Collection: Sierra Leone

In Sierra Leone, “peppe” or “pepper” usually means small, very hot West African chilies similar to Scotch bonnet and bird’s eye, grown by smallholders and in backyard plots.

These peppers go into pepper soup, pepper chicken, and cassava-leaf stews, often pounded with onion, tomato, and spices into fiery bases. Most production is for local use, with informal regional trade; processed sauces are mostly imported.

Flavours are intensely hot, fruity, and aromatic, defining the punchy heat of Sierra Leonean cuisine.