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Jalapeño peppers with no heat?

Can anyone tell me why jalapeño sometimes have no heat?  And short of taking a bite in the store how do you know if you are getting a "cold" one?  Our last pepper stout beef had no heat at all.  The peppers where not seeded, all 3 went in in seeds and all.
TIA, Rick
 1 LBGE, 1 SBGE, 1 KBQ and a 26" Blackstone near Blackstone, Virginia

Comments

  • builderdawg
    builderdawg Posts: 105
    The heat level of Jalapeños seems to vary greatly. I’ve had some that were borderline Serrano heat level and some with almost no heat. It is just luck of the draw. 
  • Tom_in_NC
    Tom_in_NC Posts: 29
    Rick, I’d love to know if there’s a trick to this myself. Love jalapeños in all sorts of dishes and prepared all kinda ways, but you never know if you’re getting one that tastes like a green bell pepper or one that’s doing its best impression of a Carolina Reaper lmao. Keeping my eye on this thread. 
  • Cornholio
    Cornholio Posts: 1,047
    I was taught to look for the white lines, almost like stretch marks in the peppers. These are older and will be hotter. The smooth, smaller, and really green ones will be “cooler.” 
  • rifrench
    rifrench Posts: 469
    Good idea, Cornholio, I'll pass it on to my "personal shopper".  From the size of the latest Jalapeños I've seen, they are being pushed to ripen.  They are way bigger than I remember, and bright green.  There isn't much choice in produce locally, Food Lion and Walmart.  The wife won't shop at Walmart, so I may have to grab my mask and drive to a larger place.  Then again, I am not buying a chuck at $7.99 a pound, either. This crap has to end soon.....
     1 LBGE, 1 SBGE, 1 KBQ and a 26" Blackstone near Blackstone, Virginia
  • Gulfcoastguy
    Gulfcoastguy Posts: 6,286
    @Cornholio has got it right. There are many varieties of jalapeños planted some have been bred to satisfy pepper wimps and sometimes there is a mixup at the seed companies filling the orders. I accidentally got the world’s third hottest pepper or at least a single seed of it when ordering ordinary habanero seed.  Another factor is the climate that they were grown in. A wet cool climate means less hot peppers and a hot dry climate can mean scorchers.
  • Cornholio
    Cornholio Posts: 1,047
    Those lines come with age as well as stress which goes along with the location/environment they were grown. When they get less water and/or grow in hotter climates it stresses them out which in turn makes them hotter. 
  • Legume
    Legume Posts: 14,602
    Texas A&M have created hybrids with little to no heat.  Take what you want from that.

    https://www.myseedneeds.com/products/tam-jalapeno?variant=37595125896
  • GregW
    GregW Posts: 2,676
    To my understanding, the reason Jalapeño poppers are popular now is due to a variety of Jalapeños developed at Texas A&M University.  The variety is named TAM.
    This variety is very mild, and occasionally finds it's way into the grocery stores. They are simply sold as Jalapeños, without any indication that they contain little heat.


  • Gulfcoastguy
    Gulfcoastguy Posts: 6,286
    A jalapeño without heat is like near beer. Why?
  • rifrench
    rifrench Posts: 469
    Thanks for the inputs, TAM may be the answer!  So would growing my own, they might get hot in our usual July-August drought here in my part of VA!
     1 LBGE, 1 SBGE, 1 KBQ and a 26" Blackstone near Blackstone, Virginia
  • Gulfcoastguy
    Gulfcoastguy Posts: 6,286
    rifrench said:
    Thanks for the inputs, TAM may be the answer!  So would growing my own, they might get hot in our usual July-August drought here in my part of VA!
    I recommend Craig’s Grande. You can find the seed on rareseeds.com. As well as many other interesting seeds.
  • kthacher
    kthacher Posts: 155
    edited May 2020
    This is all explained in a book called Peppers, by Amal Naj.  Blame “Dr. Pepper”, otherwise known as Benigo Villalon, who was a plant pathologist at Texas A&M’s University’s agriculture experiment station in Weslaco Texas.  He worked on pepper viruses and breeding programs.  

    He had a goal of convincing Texas farmers to grow more peppers as a cash crop.  But they were susceptible to disease.  Long story short, he did a bunch of breeding and created a Jalapeño with no heat.  

    This “civilized Jalapeño” generated a bunch of demand, since it was thought that there was a market for Jalapeños with no heat.  So this variety got out in the wild, and you cannot tell the difference, between one that is hot and one that is mild.  

    So now Jalapeños are a crap shoot, which is why you never know what you are going to get.  Annoying as far as I am concerned.

    That book is fascinating by the way.  
    Winnipeg, Canada
  • rifrench
    rifrench Posts: 469
    edited May 2020
    Thanks Gulfcoastguy for the seed tip!  And thanks for the explanation kthacher,  I'll have to get the book!  And thanks to all for their contribution to my education!
    Just ordered the book!

     1 LBGE, 1 SBGE, 1 KBQ and a 26" Blackstone near Blackstone, Virginia
  • rifrench
    rifrench Posts: 469
    Update- Got the book, and enjoying reading it.  Good info here!
     1 LBGE, 1 SBGE, 1 KBQ and a 26" Blackstone near Blackstone, Virginia
  • JethroBodeen
    JethroBodeen Posts: 523
    rifrench said:
    Thanks for the inputs, TAM may be the answer!  So would growing my own, they might get hot in our usual July-August drought here in my part of VA!
    I recommend Craig’s Grande. You can find the seed on rareseeds.com. As well as many other interesting seeds.
    We grow these as well and like them a lot.

  • rifrench
    rifrench Posts: 469
    Thanks, I bookmarked rareseeds. Going to be a next year project!
     1 LBGE, 1 SBGE, 1 KBQ and a 26" Blackstone near Blackstone, Virginia
  • fence0407
    fence0407 Posts: 2,236
    I've also heard that the pointier the tip of the jalapeno, the hotter it is. I have no earthly idea if that is true, but I can assure you I always go for the pointier ones.
    Large - Mini - Blackstone 17", 28", 36"
    Cumming, GA  

  • rifrench
    rifrench Posts: 469
    Thanks, fence0407, I'll pass that on to my produce buyer!  
     1 LBGE, 1 SBGE, 1 KBQ and a 26" Blackstone near Blackstone, Virginia
  • carrda04
    carrda04 Posts: 83
    The heat level of Jalapeños seems to vary greatly. I’ve had some that were borderline Serrano heat level and some with almost no heat. It is just luck of the draw. 
    Answer was in the first comment. We just use serranos. Married into south asian family, so it's serranos with most meals. 
    LG BGE
    Camp Chef 2xburner

    Twin Cities, MN
  • sumoconnell
    sumoconnell Posts: 1,932
    carrda04 said:
    The heat level of Jalapeños seems to vary greatly. I’ve had some that were borderline Serrano heat level and some with almost no heat. It is just luck of the draw. 
    Answer was in the first comment. We just use serranos. Married into south asian family, so it's serranos with most meals. 
    Similar here - I married into a Mexican family, Serranos for everything except ABTs. 
    +++++++++++++++++++++++++++
    Austin, Texas.  I'm the guy holding a beer.
  • Elijah
    Elijah Posts: 679
    https://www.mezzetta.com/product/10106129.html?Search=mezzetta

    These have zero heat to my tastes. Seems like the same or similar story. 
  • kthacher
    kthacher Posts: 155
    Elijah said:
    https://www.mezzetta.com/product/10106129.html?Search=mezzetta

    These have zero heat to my tastes. Seems like the same or similar story. 
    As an outraged Canadian who cannot abide "tame" peppers, I am declaring war on Texas to exact revenge.  The precise date is a secret.  
    Winnipeg, Canada
  • Legume
    Legume Posts: 14,602
    kthacher said:
    Elijah said:
    https://www.mezzetta.com/product/10106129.html?Search=mezzetta

    These have zero heat to my tastes. Seems like the same or similar story. 
    As an outraged Canadian who cannot abide "tame" peppers, I am declaring war on Texas to exact revenge.  The precise date is a secret.  
    College Station, TX
  • Elijah
    Elijah Posts: 679
    kthacher said:
    Elijah said:
    https://www.mezzetta.com/product/10106129.html?Search=mezzetta

    These have zero heat to my tastes. Seems like the same or similar story. 
    As an outraged Canadian who cannot abide "tame" peppers, I am declaring war on Texas to exact revenge.  The precise date is a secret.  
    For the record I don't like the tame ones. Might as well use a vinegar sponge, it'd taste the same.