Marconi Pepper

Marconi is a large Italian heirloom sweet frying pepper producing elongated fruits 20–25 cm long with thick, meaty walls that hold up beautifully to high heat. When raw, the flavor is rich and candy-sweet; when roasted or pan-fried in olive oil, it deepens into a smoky, almost caramelized sweetness that is central to traditional southern Italian antipasti and contorno dishes. It is grown in red, yellow, and golden forms and has traveled with Italian immigrants to North American kitchen gardens where it remains popular.

Days to maturity

80–90 days

Plant height

50–75 cm (20–30 in)

Best use

Frying, roasting, stuffing

Species

Capsicum annuum

Origin

Southern Italy