I saw you green, then
Turning red as you ripened.
Pleasant to look at and tasty in a dish,
But too hot if excess is used
Savior of the poor, enhancer of good food.
Fiery when bitten, this makes it difficult
Even to think of the good Lord himself!
– Purandara Dāsa, 16th C. Indian Poet
Potato, papaya, pineapple, cassava, and chili peppers, all were brought from the New World to the Indian subcontinent by Portuguese sailors in the 16th century or in the case of the potato, in the 17th century. All of the plants grew well in the hot climate of the south Asia and were adopted into local cuisines, but only the chili pepper spread across Asia like wildfire.
In Malayalam, the red chili pepper is called kappal mulagu—”the pepper that came in the ship.” By 1542, three types of peppers were being cultivated in India. Curries, previously spiced with black pepper, suddenly flared with heat.
Interesting information about Kappal Milagu and other imports to India.
Would you be able to share the original lyrics of the song written by Purandara Dasa?
Thank you so much!
Hi Manjusha:
Thanks for the kind words. I’m glad you enjoyed the post! Unfortunately, I do not have the original Kannada lyrics to Purandara Dasa’s poem about chilies. If I come across them, I will post them as an addendum to this thread. Keep reading! Laura
@Manjusha: The whole song in Kannada is available here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fEGLADHqYw
I am a Malayali, but have never heard the phrase “Kappal mulagu”. I wonder if the use of the phrase is restricted to some pockets of Kerala – probably near Kozhikode (Calicut) where Vasco Da Gama originally landed.
A more widespread term is Kappal andi – (ship nut) the word used for the cashew nut, and even the peanut, which were both introduced by the Portuguese to India. Cashew is also called Parang andi because the fruit is called Parangi pazham (literally “foreign fruit”, from parangi – the word for “foreign” which we got from Farsi/Persian). Goa – the former Portuguese colony, grows a lot of cashew, and has a big cashew and feni (the drink made from fermented cashew fruit) market.
Thanks for your insights!