Growing up with a green thumb, Roberto Pegararo grew many different vegetables in his parent’s backyard, but it was the hot pepper that has captured his attention in recent years.
Pegoraro has amassed quite a variety of peppers — from Scotch Bonnets and habaneros to Trinidad Scorpions and more — and he’s now created a line of products sure to fire up the palate.
Pegoraro’s hot honey, hot maple syrup, spicy jams and chocolate, spices and sauces have been on display at the Farmer’s Market and other markets in the North over the last few months.
The plants have taken over the back yard of his parent’s home in the South End of the city. There are peppers growing in buckets, in garden boxes and in in-ground gardens.
For this coming winter, he’s even set up a greenhouse and hydroponic growers to keep the fiery-hot crops coming.
Gardening has always been a family tradition. Pegoraro’s father, now in his 80s, has been growing tomatoes, peas, zucchini, beans, carrots and grapes for wine since locating to the area in the early 1970s.
“I really learned by watching my dad,” Pegoraro said. “ We both loved nature and gardening.”
That love for nature took him on a journey to aquaculture out east for a few years. He eventually returned to the Sudbury area.
“A few years later, my son expressed an interest in growing peppers. It started as pranks and competitions with friends,” he said. “At first, our plant only yielded one pepper per year, but I never gave up ‘cause that’s not who I am.”
Since then, Pegoraro has picked up a handful of foolproof tricks for growing hot peppers. For instance, he’s learned they need company by growing in pairs and that tomatoes shouldn’t be planted anywhere near their growing location.
He admitted there’s something unique about gardening in the Gatchell area that seems to boost his crop success.
“We seemed to be sheltered longer for frost. Other areas will get hit and we often won’t until about two weeks later,” Pegoraro said. “Plus, the soil in the Kelly Lake Road area is rich in nutrients, which is great for growing in itself.”
Spreading like a blaze of hot sauce, Pegoraro’s venture has rapidly grown into a full-time gig, involving his extended family for support.
He’s streamlined his operations with products that use predominantly ghost peppers, Trinidad Scorpions and Carolina Reapers.
He also experiments with new seeds from Seedy Sudbury, family in Italy and Superior Seeds in Sault Ste. Marie. In his garden can be found an abundance of black pearl, Nonno’s Heirloom, Bolivian Rainbows, Black Hungarians and button peppers with varying degrees of spiciness on the Scoville heat scale.
Pegoraro said the best seller is the hot honey. He said the product is versatile and while some use it as a dip for nuggets, others brush it onto wings, ham, salmon, pastries, bagels and toast.
He’s teamed up with Northern Ontario-based vendors like Chocoland and the Manitoulin Honey Company. His jalapeños are shared with local bread vendors and his habeneros find their way into locally sold spice packages. He even uses the backyard grapes and ghost peppers to make Groovy Grape Ghost Jelly.
Pegoraro said the benefit of being present at the Sudbury Farmer’s Market often is the suggestions and recipe ideas he gets from customers.
“One guy in Massey likes the hot maple syrup for his shepherd’s pie while I like it for french toast,” he said. “Another person uses the hot raspberry jam for ice cream. It’s all such different feedback.
“My intensity levels aren’t meant to punch people in the face either,” Pegoraro said. “My product line is more about the natural flavour, warmth and enjoyment.”
To learn more about Pepperaros, visit Pepperaros.ca.
Pepperaro will also have a booth at the Oct. 10 Hike for Hospice event.
Anastasia Rioux is a writer in Greater Sudbury. Let’s Eat! is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.