Hot pepper is not China-originated. It was brought to China at the end of Ming Dynasty. Hot pepper was not economically cultivated in Taiwan before Ming Dynasty, but only as ornamental which was different from the situation now. The main purpose of this article focuses on the changes of Taiwan residents’ dietary habit of hot peppers, and the development of hot peppers’ cultivars and yield. From the research result, we can see that the development of dietary habit is a complex process interwoven with sociopolitical factors, economic changes and production of food materials. However, the cultivation of food material is also affected by the trend of dietary habit.