Abstract:
Can you imagine some of the great world cuisines-such as Indian, Thai, and Korean-without chili peppers? This fiery spice has become an integral part of cooking and culture far from its native range. Chili peppers (Capsicum) come from the Americas and were introduced to places such as India and Thailand after Europeans explored the New World in the 15th century. On page 986 of this issue, Perry et al. (1) shed light on when and where chili peppers were first cultivated. Data from studies of this kind may also have potential use in the analysis of human transport and spread of invasive species.
