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Carmagnola is one of the most important places for the production of peppers in Italy. In our case, we’re actually talking about four different types of peppers: “Quadrato” (almost a cube, with four corners), “Corno” or “Lungo” (with a very elongated conic shape), “Trottola” (heart-shaped), and “Tomaticot” (a rounded hybrid flattened at the poles like a tomato – also known as “tomatica” or “pomatica” in the local dialects).

The most common is “Lungo” pepper and around Carmagnola it has always been called “Corno di Bue” (“Ox horn”). It’s a pepper with wonderful colours (intense yellow or bright red) and a very elongated conical shape (more than 7.9 inches 20) with three or four lobes. It prefers flat, loamy and sandy soils. Sowing takes place from the last decade of December to the beginning of April; tunnel transplants begin at the beginning of February, while the open field must wait until May.
The fertilization is mainly organic (using bovine manure).
Peppers are manually picked from the end of July on.

“Corno di Carmagnola” pepper has a sweet flavour and a thick, consistent and fleshy pulp, which improves during storage. To enjoy it at its best, experts recommend tasting it raw, immersed in good extra virgin olive oil, or with bagna cauda, but also roasted in the oven or grilled: the skin can be easily removed. Without breaking the rule of product seasonality, it can be preserved in vinegar and oil.

This post is also available in: Italiano (Italian)