Capsicum annuum. Mild/Medium Hot. 75 days green, 90 red.
Milder than the variety Korean, but still has a bit of heat, enough to give a recipe a light kick. Shiny, light-green peppers ripen to a bright red. After the fruit begin to dry a bit, they turn a much deeper, darker red. Hong gochu simply means ‘red pepper’ in Korean. Our research tells us, hong gochu signifies a category of peppers, so we added ‘Large’ to the variety name to indicate the fruit shape is on the larger side of the Korean pepper spectrum. When fruit are still green they are called put gochu (green pepper) or oi gochu (cucumber pepper) in Korean. At this under-ripe stage they are stuffed, breaded and fried to make a delicious Korean dish called gochu twigim. When fruit are harvested ripe and then dried, the chili flakes or powder adds a nice warmth and rich flavor to dishes. If seeds are removed, the heat is very light. These have a nice sweet flavour. Hong Gochu Large is perfect for kimchi and a great choice for making Korean gochugaru (dried, coarsely ground red pepper flakes), and gochujang (fermented chili paste). We originally sourced this seed from the Sample Seed Shop, who acquired it directly from a source in Korea. We have spent several years selecting this slightly variable variety for plants that thrive and produce well on our farm in Oregon.