What the hell!!   Space chillies?  Hell YES…

So you’ve heard the hype but want to know more as there has been some downright ridiculous claims about the mysterious space chillies.  We’ve even seen photos LIKE THIS ONE showing them to grow bigger than a small child. 

We were so curious we just had to grow them ourselves and let us say we haven’t been disappointed.  For the true chilli head they are a treat.  They really do make you think of mutant chillies from outer space.  They are TWISTED / SUPER FAST GROWING / PROLIFIC AS ALL HELL / GIGANTIC and TASTE BLOODY GREAT.

We have China to thank for the introduction of the space chilli.  They have been experimenting with sending seeds into space since the 1980s.

The seeds from a range of vegetables were fired into space, where they orbited the Earth for approximately two weeks. Once they returned they were cultivated in hothouses, producing monster specimens including 21lb tomatoes, 15-stone pumpkins, enormous watermelons and nine-inch long chillies.

Scientists who have studied these gigantic vegetables claim that the near zero gravity conditions – microgravity – have created high-yield, more nutrient rich produce with harvests 10 to 20 per cent greater than normal.

Anyway that’s enough about the history of the space seeds from China – lets get back to the SPACE CHILLI side of things.

There are 10 different varieties of these Space Chilli Peppers They are:

1. The HJ1 Corona Space Chilli
2. The HJ2 Meteor Space Chilli
3. The HJ3 Yellow Solar Flare
4. The HJ4 Comets Tail Space Chilli
5. The HJ5 Helix Nebula Space Chilli
6. The HJ6 Pulsar Space Chilli
7. The HJ7 Super Nova Space Chilli
8. The HJ8 Total Eclipse Space Chilli
9. The HJ9 Big Bang Space Chilli
10. The HJ10 After Glow

WHAT DO THEY TASTE LIKE?

Each one we have tasted has surprised us with having a distinct juicy sweetness.  They are capsicum like in flavour with a medium thick wall that has a crisp satisfying crunch.

The HJ8 Total Eclipse Space Chilli, for instance, has a similar flavour to an Anaheim pepper, and roughly the same heat level, or a bit hotter.

HOW HOT ARE THEY?

There have been no official Scoville Heat Unit measurements, but we estimate that they range from being between 2,000 – 10,000 SHU.  With the bigger varieties being less hot.

HOW BIG ARE THEY REALLY?

Each variety varies in size but the biggest one we’ve grown was roughly 2 ounces in weight and approximately 9 and a half inches long.  As always the bigger the pot the bigger the pod.  We have only just started growing in the ground so expect they will get even bigger.

WHAT ARE THEY GOOD FOR?

Well we’re not kidding when we say everything.  They are juicy and flavorsome enough to make a mild chilli sauce, big enough and perfect for stuffing and roasting, versatile enough for any spicy recipe without killing you with heaaaaat(eg pizzas, salsas) and/or just as a nutritious healthy snack(lol)

WHERE CAN I GET THEM?

The space chillies are still a very rare and unknown variety of chilli pepper so they are hard to get your hands on.  But never fear chilli-seedz are aiming to sell seeds from all 10 space chillies and at the moment we have the following in stock.

1. The HJ4 Comets Tail
2. The HJ5 Helix Nebula
3. The HJ6 Pulsar
4. The HJ8 Total Eclipse
5. The HJ10 After Glow

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