Cherry bomb pepper plants
A round red pepper with some heat, not the sweet cherry from a relish tray.
By Debra Austin
Species: Capsicum annuum
Cherry bomb versus a sweet cherry
A cherry bomb is a round Capsicum annuum with a thick wall and a real, modest heat. Sweet cherry peppers, the ones in jars of pickled pink rings, are a different selection with almost no capsaicin. The shape is the trap. Both look like a cherry. Only one bites.
We grow Cherry Bomb, listed at 2,500 to 5,000 SHU. That is one plant, not a series of colors.
How hot a cherry bomb is
2,500 to 5,000 SHU puts it with a mild jalapeno. You can eat it. You will notice it. It is not a habanero and it is not a peppadew, which sits at 1,177 and is a baccatum besides.
Pickling and stuffing
The wall is why this pepper exists. It holds up in vinegar, and the cavity takes a stuffing of cheese or meat the way a jalapeno does, with a rounder shape. Leave them whole in a brine if you want the jar people recognize, and expect more heat than the sweet version.
Growing cherry bomb plants
Compact annuum. A three to five gallon pot, sun, and regular picking. They ripen red. A green cherry bomb is unripe, not a different variety. The plant is easier than a chinense and less sprawling than a baccatum.
The Cherry Bomb we grow
Questions people ask
How hot is a cherry bomb pepper?
Ours is listed at 2,500 to 5,000 SHU, about a mild jalapeno.
Is a cherry bomb the same as a sweet cherry pepper?
Same shape, different heat. Sweet cherry peppers are nearly without capsaicin. A cherry bomb is not.
Are cherry bombs good for pickling?
Yes. Thick wall, round pod, and enough heat that the jar is not just vinegar.
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