Sichuan Chilli

Heat 5/10

30.000 to 50.000 on the Scoville scale

The facing heaven pepper or Heaven Chile is a cone-shaped, medium-hot chili pepper, between 3 and 6 cm in length, 1 to 2 cm in diameter at the base, and with very thin skin.

A cultivar commonly used in Sichuan cuisine, it is called the facing heaven pepper because the pepper grows with the fruit pointing upwards, rather than downwards, as is normal in other pepper plants.

In China these chillies are called "Zhi Tian Jiao", which means Chilli from “Chaotian” a region of Sichuan.

The chillies are a medium-hot, fragrant chilli pepper with a thin skin and citrus notes.

This mildly hot chilli is a must in Chinese foods and because of its attractive appearance; the dried chilli is often added to dishes whole.

They are used dry roasted and ground to flakes to release the particular citrusy flavor.

They are also the main ingredient for the Sichuan chilli oil, a very popular and widely used condiment.

The Sichuan dried chillies are a pantry-staple when it comes to Sichuan’s cuisine, and are often fried whole in oil at the start of recipes. Sichuan facing heaven chillies are also delicious in hot pickles.

The husk or hull (pericarp) around the seeds may be used whole, especially in Sichuan cuisine, and the finely ground powder is one of the ingredients for five-spice powder.

It is also used in traditional Chinese medicine.

The pericarp is most often used, but the leaves of various species are also used in some regions of China