The Portuguese brought capsicum from Brazil to India during the year 1584 Chillies became popular in the whole of Asia rapidly and native Asians started cultivating this crop as well The south Asian climate suited this crop and since its introduction in the 16 century has been increasingly cultivated in south Asia India is the largest producer and consumer of chillies proving that we Indians do love our red chillies Red chillies are grown over 792000 hectares of land in the states of Andhra Pradesh Karnataka Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra Around 1376000 million tons of red chillies are produced in India every year Of these chillies 70 are consumed domestically while Chilly Pepper exporter in India exports the left 30 Red chillies are a great source of vitamins flavonoids phenolics carotenoids and alkaloids which play a vital role in human health If you are a home cook who likes to experiment with flavors from across India then stocking up on these dry ared chilly varieties is something you absolutely need to do