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Habanero Peppers Delivery or Pickup
The Instacart guide to habanero peppers
About habanero peppers
If you're looking for a way to spice up your next Mexican dish, you might want to try habanero peppers. Most people have heard of and probably tried jalapenos, but how do habanero peppers compare to the mainstream jalapeno? Peppers are rated on the Scoville scale. Every pepper receives a Scoville heat unit (SHU) rating for its mild, medium, and hot spice levels. Take the jalapeno, for example — its ratings are:
- Mild: 2,500 SHU
- Medium: 5,000 SHU
- Maximum: 8,000 SHU
As for the habanero pepper, its ratings on the scale look like this:
- Mild: 100,000 SHU
- Medium: 225,000 SHU
- Maximum: 350,000 SHU
As you can see from this comparison, the habanero pepper is substantially hotter than a jalapeno. Depending on the level of heat you like, this pepper might spice up your meal just right. However, keep in mind that this is a plant, and its heat can vary based on several factors. Where the pepper is grown, the soil conditions, the amount of water, and the temperature all affect how spicy these peppers, or any peppers, taste.
The habanero pepper is one of the hottest peppers you'll find at your local supermarket. They are fairly easy to grow and produce many peppers on each plant during the growing season. This means they're readily available, and you should have no trouble adding them to your cart using the Instacart app! We partner with a variety of retailers to help you find what you need.Â
While habanero peppers grow mainly in Mexico, places such as Costa Rica, Belize, Panama, and Ecuador also produce this pepper variety. In the United States, habanero peppers grow primarily in California, Idaho, and Texas.
Habanero peppers have a thin, waxy exterior. They're small, at only about 1 to 3 inches long. When unripe, they're green, and they change to yellow, orange, red, and purple as they ripen. Much of their heat is in their placenta and their seeds, so you can remove these if you want to reduce the pungency of your habanero peppers. Many hot peppers tend to have pock-marked skin, but you'll find that the skin on a habanero pepper is smooth.
Plants that produce the habanero pepper vary from 1 to 4 feet in height, although plants have been known to reach up to 8 feet tall under optimal growing conditions. The average habanero plant produces around 40 peppers in a single growing season. Download the Instacart app and order habanero peppers for your salsa or sandwich. An Instacart shopper can deliver them to you in as little as 2 hours!
How to pick out habanero peppers
Because most stores carry habanero peppers, you'll want to know how to pick them out so you can get peppers that are fresh and spicy. Most of the time, grocery stores carry orange habanero peppers, but check the labels in the produce section to ensure you get the right ones, as they come in other colors as well. Look for peppers that are brightly colored and have smooth skin. Also, check the peppers for soft spots or damaged areas, and avoid ones with holes, mold, or discoloration.
Another way to tell if the peppers are good is to smell them. Thanks to their heat, you should easily be able to smell whether habanero peppers have that fruity yet spicy aroma they're known for.
How to use and store habanero peppers
You can use habanero peppers to spice up just about any dish. They have a sweet, tropical flavor with hints of fruit and smoke that make them appealing for a range of dishes. You can chop them up and eat them raw on tacos or nachos. To truly bring out the flavor of habanero peppers, however, you'll want to cook them. Make sure you always wear gloves when handling these peppers, as even just a small amount of their juice can irritate your skin.
Storing whole, uncut habanero peppers is simple. Just place them in a paper or plastic bag in the crisper drawer of your refrigerator, and they should keep well for about a week. If you want them to last longer, put them in an airtight container in the freezer.Â
Habanero Peppers Near Me
Buy your favorite Habanero Peppers online with Instacart. Order Habanero Peppers from local and national retailers near you and enjoy on-demand, contactless delivery or pickup within 2 hours.
FAQs about habanero peppers
Hot peppers have health benefits in addition to their spicy qualities. Habanero peppers, in particular, boast high amounts of B vitamins. These vitamins help the brain and nervous system function properly. Plus, they provide lots of energy. They can also help increase metabolism and aid your body in its fat-burning process. One study has shown a link between eating habanero peppers and lower rates of prostate cancer. Other studies have tied the capsaicin in habanero peppers that causes that burning sensation to lower cholesterol levels and blood pressure.