The origin of chili peppers is not from China, but from the tropical regions of South America. The country of origin is Mexico. Chili peppers were introduced to China from South America in the late Ming Dynasty. At first, they did not enter our menu, but were used for appreciation and medicinal treatment. Later, after being separated from Chinese cooking, spicy food once became a popular food. *The same trend continues to this day.

The earliest written record of chili peppers in my country appears in the "Eight Notes of Zunsheng" written by Gao Lian of the Ming Dynasty: "Chili peppers are clustered with white flowers, with bald heads, spicy taste, red color, and very impressive. "From the name "Panjiao" we can see that although chili peppers are popular all over the country, especially in Hunan, Sichuan, Guizhou and other provinces, chili peppers were actually imported in the first place. So how and when did chili peppers, native to the Americas, enter China and settle down?

During the Columbian Exchange, New World foods including peppers were brought to Europe. As for the route from Europe to China, a mainstream concept in recent history is that peppers do not enter China through one entrance, but are more likely to enter through multiple transmission routes.

Although peppers were brought to the East by the Portuguese in the 15th century, given that Hunan, Sichuan and other provinces are inland, it is more likely that the introduction of peppers in Sichuan came via land routes from India and Myanmar. Here, we form a bond with the local area. The spread of chili peppers in Hunan Province starts from Macao and reaches Hunan via Guangdong.

So it is possible that chili peppers entered China at the same time by road and sea in the 15th century. Almost at the same time that Gao Lian wrote "Eight Notes of Zunsheng", the famous Chinese playwright and poet Tang Xianzu also praised chili peppers as "the best quality" in "The Peony Pavilion".

Finally, I would like to add two points. First, before chili peppers came to China, there was spiciness in Chinese food and cooking. Cornus officinalis and Sichuan peppercorns provide a spicy flavor to the food. Second, when chili peppers first arrived in China, they did not enter the kitchen. Instead, they were planted as ornamental plants in the gardens of dignitaries. The so-called "red color is very impressive." This is exactly the same as the way chili peppers were treated when they first arrived in Europe. So, we know that chili peppers entered China through two routes around the 15th century, but who was the first person in history to taste chili peppers and add them to dishes? No one knows anymore.