0-999 SHU

Mild Peppers (0–999 SHU) Valued for Sweetness, Texture, and Color

Mild peppers range from 0-999 SHU. Bells, banana peppers, pimientos, and shishitos focus on sweetness, texture, and color over heat.

35
Varieties
6
Comparisons
0-999 SHU
Heat Range
Mild Medium Hot Extra-Hot Super-Hot
Featured Mild Pepper

Melrose Pepper

0-0 SHU Mild

The Melrose pepper occupies a curious space in American food culture, celebrated obsessively in one city, virtually…

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Melrose Pepper
Origin
USA/Italy
Species
C. annuum
Mild Peppers (0–999 SHU) hub with pepper varieties arranged for browsing

Image for the mild heat band.

Image credit: KnowThePepper

Quick Facts: Mild Peppers

0-999 SHU range
Bell peppers have zero capsaicin
36M+ metric tons produced annually
Safe for baby food
Valued for texture and sweetness
Choosing Guide

Choosing Within Mild

Use this tier to narrow 35 peppers by heat range, kitchen role, format, and substitution fit.

Choose by Kitchen Job

Choose mild peppers by shape and sweetness rather than SHU. Bells and other blocky peppers are best when you need cavity, crunch, or volume.

Substitute Across Nearby Tiers

When you need to substitute within the mild tier, preserve texture first and flavor second. A bell can replace another bell almost anywhere, but a shishito cannot stand in for a stuffing pepper without changing the whole job.

For a faster decision, use the substitutes hub or pepper comparisons.

What the Database Shows

35 peppers, 27 comparisons, and 278 related guides feed this tier.

Top edge: NuMex Joe E. Parker. Gentler edge: Fushimi Pepper.

Browse

Cultivars in This Tier

35 varieties

These are the named cultivars and canonical profiles that currently define the mild band on Know The Pepper. Open any card when you need the full pepper profile for flavor notes, growing behavior, or a closer substitute.

NuMex Joe E. Parker
Mild

NuMex Joe E. Parker

New Mexico, USA

900 SHU
Lombok Pepper
Mild

Lombok Pepper

Yogyakarta / Lombok, Indonesia

800 SHU sharp
NuMex Suave Orange
Mild

NuMex Suave Orange

USA

800 SHU fruity
Holy Mole Pepper
Mild

Holy Mole Pepper

Unknown origin

800 SHU
Santa Fe Grande
Mild

Santa Fe Grande

New Mexico, USA

700 SHU mild
Peppadew Pepper
Mild

Peppadew Pepper

South Africa

650 SHU sweet, tangy,
Mariachi Pepper
Mild

Mariachi Pepper

Unknown origin

600 SHU
Banana Pepper
Mild

Banana Pepper

Unknown origin

500 SHU mild, tangy, slightly sweet
Pepperoncini
Mild

Pepperoncini

Italy

500 SHU tangy
Pimento Pepper
Mild

Pimento Pepper

Spain

500 SHU sweet
Cherry Pepper
Mild

Cherry Pepper

USA

500 SHU sweet
Corno di Toro
Mild

Corno di Toro

Italy

500 SHU sweet

How Mild Peppers Compare

Visual breakdown within the 0-999 SHU range

NuMex Joe E. Parker 900-900
Lombok Pepper 0-800
NuMex Suave Orange 0-800
Holy Mole Pepper 700-800
Santa Fe Grande 500-700
Peppadew Pepper 280-650
Mariachi Pepper 500-600
Banana Pepper 0-500
Pepperoncini 100-500
Pimento Pepper 100-500
The Science

The Science of Mild Heat

Capsaicin at Mild Level

Capsaicin content below 70 ppm. Bell peppers produce zero capsaicin due to a recessive gene that blocks the biosynthetic pathway.

Capsaicin activates TRPV1 pain receptors.

Species in This Tier

Primarily C. annuum. Bell peppers are the most economically significant Capsicum crop globally, with worldwide production exceeding 36 million metric tons annually.

Cooking with Mild

Valued for texture, sweetness, and color rather than heat. Bell peppers are the third-most-consumed vegetable in the United States.

Roasted = sweeter, raw = brighter. See fresh vs dried.

Safety & Handling

No heat precautions needed. Mild peppers are used in baby food and are safe for young children.

For handling irritation, read how to respond to pepper burn.

Breeding & Cultivar History

Bell peppers have been bred for size, wall thickness, sweetness, and color variety. Modern bell peppers are 3-4x larger than their wild ancestors.

One tier can still contain 35 very different kitchen profiles.

Tier Snapshot

35 profiles, 27 comparisons, 278 guides.

Upper edge: NuMex Joe E. Parker. Gentler edge: Fushimi Pepper.

Head-to-Head

Mild Pepper Comparisons

View All

Side-by-side breakdowns of heat, flavor, and cooking uses for mild-tier peppers.

VS
800 vs 2.5K

Holy Mole vs Pasilla: Same Chile or Different?
VS
650 vs 500

Peppadew vs Cherry Pepper: Brine, Brand, and Bite
VS
650 vs 1K

Peppadew vs Piquillo: Brined or Roasted?
VS
500 vs 650

Biquinho vs Peppadew: Size, Brine, and Best Uses
VS
500 vs 8K

Banana Pepper vs Jalapeño: Which Fits Your Dish?
VS
500 vs 500

Banana Pepper vs Pepperoncini: Sweet vs Tangy
Learn More

Related Guides

All guides →
Best Peppers for Chili: Build a Dried Chile Base, Then Add the Heat
The best peppers for chili usually combine dried depth with controlled heat. Use ancho for sweet body, guajillo for bright red fruit, pasilla or mulato for darker notes, chipotle for smoke, and cayenne or chile de arbol when the pot needs a sharper burn.
What Is the Best Soil for Pepper Plants in Pots and Beds?
Pepper soil needs drainage first, then steady nutrition and a slightly acidic pH around 6.0-6.8. Use lighter mixes for containers, compost-rich but not soggy raised beds, and avoid heavy clay that holds water around roots.
Dried Mexican Chiles by Flavor and Heat, From Sweet Ancho to Chile de Arbol
Dried Mexican chiles are easiest to understand by fresh name, dried name, flavor, and heat. Ancho brings sweet raisin body, guajillo adds bright red fruit, pasilla is darker and earthy, while morita, cascabel, mulato, and arbol fill different sauce jobs.
Easiest Peppers to Grow for Beginners, From Banana Peppers to Cayenne
The easiest peppers for beginners tolerate temperature swings, common watering mistakes, and ordinary garden soil better than fussy varieties. Start with reliable producers that mature quickly and keep setting fruit.

Pepper Tools & Resources

SHU Calculator

Calculate final sauce heat

Substitute Finder

Heat-matched alternatives

Compare Peppers

Side-by-side comparisons

Full Database

All pepper varieties

Frequently Asked Questions

Does mild mean completely heat-free?

This collection includes peppers whose listed upper heat value is 0-999 SHU. Zero and low heat are different choices: check the individual profile when avoiding pungency matters. NMSU describes mild, medium, and hot labels as broad classifications rather than a universal scale of personal tolerance.

Should I pick a mild pepper green or wait for its final color?

University of Minnesota Extension recommends harvesting at mature size and notes that many cultivars can be used green or fully colored. Match the harvest stage to the recipe and cultivar; red is not a required final color for every pepper.

How do I choose a mild pepper for stuffing?

Start with the opening and wall shape the filling needs. A broad bell cavity and a narrow frying pepper hold different amounts and sit differently in a baking dish. Use the linked profiles to compare form before buying; the heat filter alone cannot make that choice.

Sources & References
Heat Tiers

Other Heat Levels

The Scoville scale spans from 0 SHU to over 3 million. Each tier serves a different cooking purpose.

Medium

1K-10K SHU
52 varieties

Hot

10K-100K SHU
80 varieties

Extra-Hot

100K-1M SHU
21 varieties

Super-Hot

1M+ SHU
27 varieties
View Heat Level Overview →