Peter Piper picks a peck of pickled peppers in the famous tounge-twister. What exactly were these?
Food historians tell us pickles, foods preserved in brine or vinegar, have been known since ancient times. Many foods are treated this way, including vegetables (cucumbers, cauliflowers, onions), fruits (limes, mangoes, watermelon rinds), and nuts (walnuts, butternuts) Recipes varied according to local ingredients and taste. Peppers are a “New World” food, introduced to Europe in about the 16th century. “Chili peppers, both the hot and sweet varieties, which came from South America, swept through the Far East and western Europe in the sixteenth century and became very popular in mixed pickles, their vivid colors brightening up those giant jars of vegetables one still sees displayed in shops and markets.” —Pickled, Potted, and Canned: How the Art and Science of Food Preserving Changed the World, Sue Shepard [Simon & Schuster:New York] 2000 (p. 97) Recipes for pickles are found in 17th and 18th century American and British cookbooks. Recipes for pickled peppers began appearing in the 1
