Prik Kee Nu
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- Origin
- Thailand
- Scoville Heat Units
- 50 000 - 100 000 SHU
- Flavor
- Citrus
- Color
- Green to red
- Shape
- Small and elongated
Description
The Prik Kee Nu or Thai Bird's Eye Chili is the iconic small fiery pepper of Thai cuisine whose name translates to 'mouse dropping chili' in reference to its tiny size of 1-2 cm that delivers piercing citrusy heat with bright notes of lime leaf garlic and green mango. Ripening from deep green to vivid red it is used at both stages in Thai cooking with green pods providing sharper snappier heat and red pods offering a more mellow sustained burn essential to curries som tam larb and fish sauce condiments. The Prik Kee Nu's combination of intensity and citrusy brightness makes it the defining pepper of Thai cuisine and one of the most distinctive hot chilis in Southeast Asian cooking.