Chili: The Bicolano Aphrodisiac?

The rains were torrentious, the winds howling wild. The local radio station had announced just a few hours ago typhoon signal number three in the whole of Bicol region. The roof of the small house was leaking, ready to be blown by the winds. The household furnitures were now all wet, the posts about to surrender to the strength of the maelstrom pounding on their very foundation. Each howl produced by the angry wind battering the different parts of the house very clearly stressed the warning that the house would crumble in any moment.

Suddenly, the man of the household came out clutching several large sticks in his hands. He ran towards his backyard garden, unmindful of everything, braving threats and dangers unto himself. He reached a small plant and quickly removed the fallen branches that were now threatening to crush it. He planted the sticks around the plant. He glanced at his house and watched as it slowly crumbled to the ground. He smiled. His favorite plant, his most important possession in life, was safe.

His chili was alive.

The aforementioned story is a classic Bicolano tale narrating the Bicolano’s preference for his chili over all his other possessions. Bicol has been notorious, since time immemorial, for hosting the strongest typhoons known to man and the tale of the Bicolano securing first and foremost his chili plant from the storm’s anger has been legendary. It has become a cliché. The Bicolano would prioritize the safety of his chili plant before his house, before his other possessions, or even before himself.

Such is his love for his chili. Greater love no man has than this Bicolano who braves threats of death for his favorite plant: the chili.

Common Names of Chili

While the Bicolano refers to chili only as lada, pasitis, or rimorimo, chili has been known in the Philippines under different names. For most dialects in the Philippines, it is simply referred to as sili. Other common names include but are not limited to:

Tagalog: Siling labuyo; Pasitis; Pasiti; Siling bundok; Siling palay
Bisaya: Katumbal; Kitikot; Siling kolikot
Ilokano: Silit diyablo
Ifugao: Paktin
English: Bird pepper; Bird’s eye chili; African chilies; Cayenne; Chili pepper; Red pepper; Chili; Spanish pepper
Spanish: Chile picante

The Chili Plant

The chili or sili plant is erect, branched, half-woody, and 0.8 to 1.5 meters in height. The leaves are oblong-ovate to ovate-lanceolate, 3 to 10 centimeters long, and pointed at the tip. The flowers are solitary or occur several in each axil, and are stalked, pale green or yellowish-green, and 8 to 9 millimeters in diameter. The fruit is commonly red when ripe, oblong-lanceolate, and 1.5 to 2.5 centimeters long. The seeds are numerous and discoid.

History of Chili

It is widely and commonly held that chilies originated in Mexico and were already being cultivated there as early as 3,500 BC. In the early 1500’s AD, the Spaniards and the Portuguese took them to India and Southeast Asia where, largely owing to the tropical climate in these places, these plants flourished. The early colonizers, ironically in search of spices, found that it was easy to take with them dried seeds of chili in their travels and that chilies thrived in hot climates. They grew at a wide range of altitudes, with rainfall between 600-1250 mm. Thus, the chili was rapidly adapted in many parts of India, Indonesia, Philippines and other tropical Asian countries. The locals then easily took to the spice and soon, their national cuisines were heavily influenced by the “heat” generated by the fruit.

How to measure the “hotness” of chili

Chilies contain capsaicin which irritates the skin in your mouth and throat. Capsaicin has no smell or flavor but it is what provides the “heat quotient” for the specific chili. It is primarily located in the pith that connects the seeds to the pod, not in the seeds itself as is frequently mentioned. The “hotness” of a chili is measured in Scoville units (typically used in the west) which, simply put, is a scale that dilutes capsaicin in sugared water until the “heat” can no longer be detected. The longer it takes to dilute the heat, the higher the score. To give you a range, sweet bell peppers are rated zero while the Habanero, at some time considered as the world’s hottest pepper, is rated at 100,000-300,000 Scoville units.

Classifications of Chili

Chili or Sili belongs to the genus Capsicum of which there are at least four known major species. These are:

1. Capsicum frustescens
2. Capsicum annuum
3. Capsicum fastigiatum
4. Capsicum minimum

The Bikolano lada or pasitis has been commonly referred to in Tagalog as siling labuyo. This, as Bicolano chili connoisseurs would attest, is both wrong and correct. It is wrong in the sense that the Bicolano lada or pasitis is adjudged as hotter than the Tagalog siling labuyo; and it is correct in the sense that the Bicolano lada or pasitis and the Tagalog siling labuyo both have almost the same appearance.

To elaborate, it is important to note that currently, there are two different varieties of siling labuyo available in the Philippine market. The most popular and the one most easily available has bright red color, and is pointed and longer. This is, as far as Bicol chili connoisseurs are concerned, actually an imposter whose seeds have come down from Taiwan or elsewhere in the past 15 years or so. Because they are so easy to cultivate, and so nice to look at, they have fastly taken over the older, more “real” siling labuyo. Identified with the scientific name Capsicum frustescens, they are currently the favorite of traders and merchants because they have a longer shelf life, almost triple than the “real” siling labuyo’s. While the siling labuyo would only keep fresh for a couple of days before going totally wrinkled, Taiwan chili would still look fresh even after three weeks. But this variety generally has less heat than the “real” one. At right is a photo of said Taiwan chili.

The chilis at the left are the basic siling labuyo also known as siling bilog. They come in varying stages of ripeness from green to red and sometimes white or yellow. Their heat quotient varies from time to time and from area to area. This definitely is hotter than the Taiwan chili. The green ones are often too painful although said pain is ironically said to be addictive, thus the need to add more and more chili once you get the bug.

For many years, people assumed that siling labuyo was of the Capsicum frustescens species or a relative of the famous Tabasco chili. However, recently, other experts seem to agree it is a member of the hotter variety of Capsicum annuum species, probably of the grossum variety.

The Bicolano lada or pasitis looks almost like the siling labuyo although with a slight difference. It is smaller in size, has smaller leaves and has tougher skin. Its fruit does not turn yellow but brown prior to getting fully ripe and becoming bright red. But one thing is certain: perhaps owing to the quality of soil in the region, the Bicolano lada or pasitis is definitely much hotter than the basic siling labuyo.

Many years back, our own siling labuyo apparently made it into the Guiness Book of World Records as the hottest chili in the world. It’s no longer so. At about 80,000 to 100,000 Scoville units, siling labuyo is at the lower end of the range for the Naga Jolokia or Bhut Jolokia, now considered as the hottest chili in the world. Today, second to the Naga Jolokia or Bhut Jolokia is the Dorset Naga and Red Savina Habanero ranks third. Red Savina Habanero was formerly crowned as the hottest chili in 1994 and it held that record until it was dethroned by Naga Jolokia or Bhut Jolokia in September 2006. Taiwan chili which many Filipinos now also erroneously refer to as siling labuyo, ranks seventh. The rank of original siling labuyo, much less of the Bicolano lada or pasitis is yet unknown.

The importance and uses of chili

For the Bicolano, the chili is indispensable both on his table and in his medicine cabinet. For him, there are at least two functions of chili – nutritional and folkloric.

1. Nutritional uses:

1. The fruit has a very sharp taste and is extensively used as a popular condiment. It is mixed with or made into pickles and is a principal ingredient in Bicolano dishes.
2. The leaves are very extensively used as vegetable. They have a very pleasant, somewhat piquant flavor. They are an excellent source of calcium, iron, phosphorous and vitamins A and B. It contains an active ingredient, capsaicin, 0.14 per cent; and capsaicin, 0.15 - 0.5 per cent; starch, 0.89 - 1.4 percent; pentosans, 8.57 percent; and pectin; 2.33 percent.

2. Folkloric and medicinal uses:

When eaten fresh, chili is an excellent promoter of ligaments. The bruised berries are employed as powerful rubefacients, being preferred to sinapisms in sore throats. They are also given, with the best results, as a gargle. Chili vinegar (made by pouring hot vinegar upon the fruit) is an excellent stomachic. Chilies are employed, in combination with cinchona, in intermittent and lethargic affections, and also in atonic gout, dyspepsia accompanied with flatulence, tympanitis, and paralysis.

Warm fomentation of both leaves and fruit is applied for rheumatic pains. The leaves of some varieties are used as a dressing for wounds and sores. A strong infusion of the fruit of the hotter kinds is applied as a lotion for ringworm of the scalp.

Chilies are used in native practice in typhus intermittent fevers and dropsy; also in gout, dyspepsia, and cholera. Externally, they are used as a rubefacient and internally, as a stomachic.

For arthritis and rheumatism, crush fruit, mix with oil and apply on affected part. For dyspepsia and flatulence, eat the fruit as condiment or drink an infusion as a stimulant and antispasmodic. (Infusion preparation: 3-10 grains every 2 hours to a cup of boiling water) For toothache, press the juice of the pepper into the tooth cavity. For scalp ringworm, apply as lotion a strong infusion of fruit.

For several years now, contests have been held in Legaspi City on eating the most pieces of chili. Said contests are usually held during the yearly celebration of Ibalong festival. The person who gets to eat the most number of chili is proclaimed the Sili King or Queen. And it is quite interesting to note that the number of pieces of chili consumed by the contestants progressively gets higher every year. It started from 300 and it now reaches 600 pieces.

Lada or pasitis as the Bicolano aphrodisiac

Chili is believed to be wholesome for persons of phlegmatic temperament, being considered stimulating. For the Bicolano in particular, it is widely believed to be a stimulant – yup, a sexual stimulant.

There is no definitive study yet made on the effects of lada or pasitis on the Bicolano’s sexuality. And yet, if data from the National Statistics Office and the Department of Health are anything to go by, it would be easy to conjecture on the influence of lada or pasitis on the “hotness” of the Bicolanos/Bicolanas. The Bicolano/Bicolana has been declared and has been holding on the title of the “Sexiest” Filipino for several years now, being the most sexually active among all the Filipinos. For several years now, the Bicolanos have had the highest rate in teenage pregnancy, premarital sex, and very sadly, also in rape and abortion. This is no good news most certainly and this is very unfortunately the downside of this phenomenon called lada or pasitis.

But would you be interested to know the upside of it? Well, it may sound like hubris but there’s only one way to find out:

Marry a Bicolano/Bicolana and you’ll soon find out on bed.