Jalapeno Orange

Jalapeno Orange is an orange-ripening jalapeño-type Capsicum annuum sold as a sweet, juicy, mild-to-medium line suited to stuffing, jalapeño poppers, salsa, pickling, sauces, and fresh use. Exact-name seller descriptions commonly present it as a compact, productive plant around 60 cm tall in pots, producing thick-walled pods up to about 9.0 cm long and roughly 4.0 cm wide. The flavour profile described across listings is a classic jalapeño character with a sweeter, juicier taste and softer heat than many standard red-ripening jalapeños.

Heat reporting is relatively consistent for the exact name Jalapeno Orange, with several listings placing it around 2,000 to 5,000 SHU. The value of 5,000 SHU is therefore used as a practical single-number entry within that commonly repeated range.

Identity online is somewhat messy. Some sources describing “orange jalapeño” clearly refer instead to the New Mexico State University cultivar NuMex Orange Spice, released in 2015 from Permagreen Bell Pepper × Early Jalapeno. That cultivar is significantly hotter, averaging around 79,000 to 80,000 SHU, and its existence has caused some confusion in the seed trade where “orange jalapeño” is used loosely. In practice, the name Jalapeno Orange is used both for a mild sweet orange jalapeño line and, incorrectly at times, for the distinct NuMex Orange Spice cultivar.

Historically, the plain name Jalapeno Orange appears in commercial pepper lists by at least 2014. Soon afterward, the official NMSU orange jalapeño breeding release entered circulation under the name Orange Spice, which likely contributed to later naming overlap in seed catalogues.

In modern use, Jalapeno Orange sits mainly in the kitchen-and-garden jalapeño variant space rather than representing a traditional regional landrace. Its appeal is the unusual orange ripe colour, thick useful pods for stuffing, and a sweeter jalapeño flavour profile.