Are Banana Peppers Good for You? Nutrition Facts and Benefits

Wwhether you’re preparing an unusual meal or sticking to a standard salad or sammie for lunch every day, it’s essential to have a variety of bars on hand zhuzh up your plate. Spices, seasonings and condiments have their merits to give victory and flavor to even the most tasteless dishes; and so, too, do fresh and pickled produce. One such vegetable that doesn’t get a lot of airtime (but IMHO should) is the humble banana pepper. It packs a satisfying blend of sweetness and spice, enriching dishes and dips with unexpected zest.

Not familiar with banana peppers? They are a cultivar of the species Capsicum year (ie, bell peppers or sweet peppers) and are also related to chili peppers. They get their name from the yellow tint and shape of their namesake fruit, but they certainly don’t taste like bananas. But could something as tasty as banana peppers—a staple of Italian hoagies everywhere—really be good for you?

Ahead, we’re covering the ins and outs of banana peppers—including what they taste like, how healthy they are, and RD-verified ways to include them in your diet.

Nutrition facts of banana peppers

Wondering if banana peppers are good for you? Let’s start with their nutritional profile – which is honestly pretty impressive. According to the USDA, one cup of raw banana peppers contains the following:

• Calories: 33.5
• Protein: 2 grams
• Fat: 0.56 grams
• Carbohydrates: 6.6 grams
• Fiber: 4 grams
• Sugar: 2.4 grams

They also contain some calcium, vitamin C, potassium, vitamin B6, and vitamin A, as well as trace amounts of other important vitamins and minerals.

What are the benefits of banana peppers?

1. They are rich in gut-healthy fiber

“One cup of banana peppers contains 4 grams of fiber: a nutrient that helps us feel fuller longer,” says Heidi McIndoo, MS, RD, of FoodieMomRD. Fiber—which only 7 percent of adults get enough of daily, according to 2021 research by the American Society for Nutrition—is also beneficial for digestive ease and regularity, heart health and aging.

2. They can support your immune system

Move over, oranges: banana peppers might give you a run for your money. One cup of raw banana peppers has 103 milligrams of vitamin C—more than the recommended daily intake of 75 to 90 milligrams for adults. Your body uses vitamin C to support the immune system, make collagen, and absorb iron. What’s not to love?

3. They are rich in capsaicin which promotes health

McIndoo says banana peppers are a great source of capsaicin – a natural plant compound found in peppers. Capsaicin is famous for the fire it brings to chili and cayenne, but it is also associated with a number of health benefits. According to a 2022 review in the journal Moleculesthe antioxidant compound can offer antimicrobial, hypoglycemic, and even anticancer effects, as well as help treat pain and hypertension.

What does banana pepper like?

Banana peppers are sweeter than spicy, so they are closer in flavor to peppermint. “Banana peppers are so much milder than most other peppers, you might be surprised they’re even in the same category,” says McIndoo. “Comparing the heat to the popular jalapeno pepper, a jalapeno starts at about 2,500 Scoville heat units [SHU, the measure of heat or spiciness in a pepper]while the sweetest banana pepper has about 500 SHU.” Meanwhile, bell peppers are the sweetest and mildest of the group, ranking at 0 SHU.

Basically, banana peppers taste like a tangier version of bell peppers. They offer a satisfying spice flavor for those who can’t handle things like hot jalapenos, serranos, poblanos, and the like.

Are banana peppers good for you?

Yes, banana peppers are a healthy choice to add variety (and flavor) to your diet. “The variety of foods we eat can increase our enjoyment of our meals and help us meet more of our nutritional needs compared to eating the same foods over and over again,” says McIndoo. “Incorporating more vegetables – including peppers – gives us more opportunities to get a greater variety of nutrients including fibre, vitamins and minerals.”

ICYMI, eating 30-plus different types of plants per week is the number one predictor of a healthy gut microbiome, per results of the American Gut Project². Fortunately, eating more plants to meet this quota is easier than you might think, as each type of pepper—from banana peppers to red bell peppers to jalapenos—is a separate entity.

“Also, foods rich in flavor such as pepper help us to rely less on salt to flavor our meals,” says McIndoo.

How to use banana peppers in your cooking

Banana peppers are sweet, slightly spicy, and sour (if pickled), can add to your diet fun, fresh and healthy. “We add banana peppers to our homemade pies and slice them to put into sandwiches,” says McIndoo. They are also a great addition to salads (think Greek salads) and antipasto. Perhaps best known in their pickled form, these peppers can provide a sharp zing to liven up everything from salads to salsas.

“You can also experiment with swapping them out in recipes calling for other types of peppers,” says McIndoo. “For example, use them instead of – or in addition to – jalapeños in salsa, dice them and roast them with green beans and onions, or mix them into a burrito filling or add as a topping for tacos.” In short, the mouth-watering possibilities are endless.