DETERMINATION OF CAPSAICINOIDS AND SCOVILLE HEAT UNIT IN DIFFERENT ORNAMENTAL CAPSICUM GENOTYPES GROWN IN TURKEY USING HPLC

Spices are used as flavoring, coloring, and preserving agents in foodstuff. Pepper plants (Capsicum annuum L.) area commercially grown as ornamental (plants or fruits) or to produce fruits. Pepper fruits are consumed fresh or processed as dried product (crushed, paste, spice, powder, flake, seasonings, oleoresin, etc.). Capsicum family has a long history of cultivation and utilization as a food product. In general, the consumer's choice depends on various quality characteristics. As an ancestral spice, red chilli peppers are pungent and edible fruit obtained from many varieties within the Capsicum genus (over 90 and also 2000 species). Red chilli pepper demonstrates good quality degree due to the existence of phytochemicals, colour, taste, flavor, smell, and bitterness. In this study, the liquid chromatography (LC) procedure was employed for the investigation of pungency and Scoville Heat Unit (SHU) in a total 21 different genotypes of Capsicum species.