imafan26
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What to do with an assortment of hot peppers

I had to cut back my pepper plants to day so I have a few peppers that I picked off. I have some Jalapeno, Serrano, super chili, and thai chili. Some are red but most are in the green stage.

Got any recipes or methods to keep them?

I can make chili pepper water, but that would take two peppers. Fenadeni will take two and Vinha D'alhos will also take two.
I have too many left.

Got any recipe for hot pepper sauce?

If I freeze them, will they get mushy when they are thawed?

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rainbowgardener
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Lots of people around here make hot pepper jelly. I like spicy, but I'm not as big a fan of super hot as some and I don't grow hot peppers. This year I did make some bell pepper jelly into which I mixed a bit of hot peppers, not enough to make it really hot, but made it a little more tangy. It came out really good!

I haven't frozen peppers until this year. I have a bunch of chopped, frozen bell peppers in my freezer, but haven't pulled any out to use yet. I'm expecting that they will be softer, less crisp, but not necessarily what you would call mushy.

imafan26
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I have not tried to make jelly before, but I have had had pepper jelly. It might be something to look up.

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Lindsaylew82
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I ADORE hot pepper jelly! I make lots and lots. We eat it with cream cheese and crackers at holiday gatherings. I also give it away as gifts. Friends and family beg for it!

I make 3 kinds. I follow the recipe for cooked pepper jelly on the inside of Certo liquid pectin, but substitute some of the peppers. It usually calls for almost 3 ( I think it's actually 2 3/4 cups, but I've fudged it without issue) total cups of peppers. I usually do half sweet pepper and half hot pepper.

So, for green pepper jelly I use 1.5 cup finely chopped green bells and 1.5 cup finely chopped hot green peppers. I think jalapeños have a real nice flavor.

For red pepper jelly I use 1.5 cup red bell and 1.5 cup ripe red hot peppers. I use seeds and all for jalapeño jelly.

For Habanero pepper jelly, I use 2.5 cups yellow or orange bell peppers and .5 cup chopped SEEDED habanero peppers.

The recipe calls for food coloring, but I think the look VERY Charming on their own.

Also here is the official recipe for Certo brand hot pepper jelly.

https://m.kraftrecipes.com/recipedetail. ... 862&cn=USh

I like using liquid pectin because IME I get a firmer set.

Last year I made a spicy strawberry jam with ripe jalapeño peppers and cracked green peppercorns and balsamic vinegar. I'll look for it and post it!

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applestar
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I'm trying making two kinds of fermented pepper sauces. These are first tries so I won't know how I feel about them until they are finished.
image.jpg
The red/orange one on the left is
Fermented "Louisiana-style" Hot Sauce | The Joy of Cooking
https://www.thejoykitchen.com/recipe/fer ... -hot-sauce

The yellow one on the right uses a simple wild fermentation technique with just the chopped peppers and a bit of salt that I just learned about.

Both will ferment on the counter for about 3 weeks, then will be stored in the fridge (to age) until they can be food milled/strained if needed, and vinegar, etc can be added according to recipes. Finished products from these recipes are not properly tested for canning and need to be frozen or kept in the fridge to be used up in a couple of months.

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Lindsaylew82
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Or you could pressure can them in small jars!

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applestar
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Haha. Alright. That pressure canner is inching up the priority wishlist.... 8)

imafan26
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I recently treated myself to a pressure canner. I told myself that my old pressure cooker needed to be retired anyway and I can use it for making Portuguese soup anyway. I have never canned anything before, so it may be awhile before I have the nerve to try it.

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Lindsaylew82
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My favorite thing to pressure can is roasted red peppers. I char the skins, let them steam in a bowl, remove the skins, and then pack them in jars and pressure can!

They are SO good in pasta dishes and antipasti dishes with cheese and all kinds of other yumminess!

The one I have wasn't expensive! There are very expensive ELECTRIC DIGITAL ones, but I like the control I get with my simple one. It's very easy to use! I was worried at first about the pot exploding, but that was just an irrational fear... As long as you follow the directions, you can't go wrong.

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rainbowgardener
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This is the time of year when people start having more peppers than they know what to do with. I have an abundance of anaheim chilis, but they aren't very hot, not hot enough to powder like cayenne.

Uses for peppers: dry and grind, freeze, pickle, add to most thingsyou cook, including chili cabbage slaw, chili chicken soup, etc, green curry paste, chili paste, pepper jelly.

And you can make a pain relieving ointment from them. Dry and powder the peppers. Heat with oil (grapeseed, almond, jojoba, etc) in double boiler, then add beeswax and melt together. Chill for awhile then whisk and then repeat chilling and whisking and then jar up. Works like ben-gay or icy hot.

Remember to wear gloves and be careful handling them. Even my very mild Anaheim peppers burn when they get in the eyes. (Since they are so mild, I wasn't wearing gloves, but then I rubbed my eyes and was sorry.)

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Lindsaylew82
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I made some guacamole the other night and I put several jalapeños in it. In the shower later that night, the tips of my fingers were on FIRE! I guess some of the juice got under my fingernails and didn't wash off. My peppers aren't even hot this year, but they were still burning several hours later!

Mine are really wimpy this year.... They are deliciously sweet though with that nice jalapeño flavor, just very, very mild.

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applestar
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Update: they smell AMAZING :D
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image.jpg (38.69 KiB) Viewed 6608 times
I was sure those yellow peppers would never be covered in "their own" liquid as the recipe/instructions indicated, but sure enough. The full quart jar (1/2 Lb) of diced peppers has reduced to something like 6 fl. oz. When 1/2 the quantity of vinegar is added at the end, it will most likely make 8 fl. oz. of hot sauce.

I'm going to put the yellow ones in a smaller jar and put an airlock on it. But I think I'll give the Louisiana style a little longer to ferment.

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applestar
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I started a batch of fermented red peppers to make into Sriracha sauce. I didn't have enough so I'm just going to keep adding to the jar as the peppers ripen. For this one, I took a middle road and added a couple of table spoons of Moscato wine. I also added a piece of the roasted Etkezesi Paprika. :()
image.jpg

imafan26
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Wow Apple you are so talented.

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applestar
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This is a lot of fun!
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applestar
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I made my "Sriracha" sauce. I had three recipes to draw from and I took a "good look at" the bottle of Sriracha at Trader Joes on Wedesday.

But in the end, I ended up with a thoroughly immersion blended un-strained thick "sauce", except I didn't boil it. I was thinking ai wanted to keep the live culture.

I made a few changes -- I can't seem to help myself -- I used 1/4 cup date sugar and used two garlic cloves and two myoga flower buds. Myoga is hardy Japanese ginger and you harvest the flower buds that grow underground BEFORE the delicate pale yellow flowers emerge from the ground. I only have a newly planted small patch and had about a dozen flower buds to harvest this fall (I did notice I missed three of them when they bloomed). I used rice vinegar based on a friend's recommendation.

Again, I ended up practically licking up what was left in the mixing container and swiping off the outside of the blender with my finger. So yummy! :D

I'll post photos and the actual peppers that went into this later, but I did intend this one to be more hot than any of the others since I wanted to give some to my brother. I made it with the contents of the square middle jar in the photos above.

I also made something called "Cowboy Candy" -- candied jalapeño peppers, except I didn't have enough jalapeños so I used an assortment of peppers. The recipe recommends waiting two weeks before opening the jars and starting to eat them, so they should be ready to eat on Monday.

pepperhead212
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I freeze most of my peppers at this time of year (I am not fond of excessive vinegar in pepper sauces, and I have not been able to perfect lacto-fermenting them). I dry them earlier in the season, then in Oct. I pick the ripe ones and freeze them, then just before it is ready to freeze out there, I pull all of the full sized green ones off the plants, and freeze those. They get a little mushy, esp. the thick fleshed ones, but are still very good in recipes. I keep a large jar of red Thai peppers, as well as a bunch of green peppers of different sizes, some habanero peppers, and some Hanoi Markets and Fresnos, and anything I have a lot of I freeze extras in Foodsaver bags.

One thing I have found that helps peppers keep better when freezing is to leave the stems on. This keeps the moisture from seeping out though the hole formed when snapping the stem off. I just cut them back to about 1/4" when I harvest.

And come spring, I have found that excess thin fleshed peppers, like red Thais, still dry OK, after being frozen all winter!

imafan26
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good tip. I leave the stems on because it takes so much time to clean them, but I am glad to know it helps them to keep. The red ones can be dried. They get even hotter but also sweeter when dried. The others I usually make hot pepper sauce or I freeze, but mostly I end up giving them away. My friend gave me his hot pepper sauce recipe years ago, but it doesn't taste the same as when he makes it. One time he called me from San Francisco because he forgot the recipe.

It is very simple
Just pack a jar full of cleaned and chopped or minced peppers. This is a job for the food processor.
Add a few cloves of minced garlic, depends on how much you like and the size of the jar.
Fill the jar with fish sauce to cover the peppers
1 tablespoon of lemon juice.
I usually use 8 oz jars.
Keep in refrigerator. Add hot pepper sauce to dishes and can be used as a condiment.

pepperhead212
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imafan26 wrote:good tip. I leave the stems on because it takes so much time to clean them, but I am glad to know it helps them to keep. The red ones can be dried. They get even hotter but also sweeter when dried. The others I usually make hot pepper sauce or I freeze, but mostly I end up giving them away. My friend gave me his hot pepper sauce recipe years ago, but it doesn't taste the same as when he makes it. One time he called me from San Francisco because he forgot the recipe.

It is very simple
Just pack a jar full of cleaned and chopped or minced peppers. This is a job for the food processor.
Add a few cloves of minced garlic, depends on how much you like and the size of the jar.
Fill the jar with fish sauce to cover the peppers
1 tablespoon of lemon juice.
I usually use 8 oz jars.
Keep in refrigerator. Add hot pepper sauce to dishes and can be used as a condiment.
I always keep a bottle of nam pla prik in the fridge. This is a simplified version of the fish sauce you describe here (which sounds delicious!) - it is just 1/2 c thinly sliced Thai peppers (mostly red, but some green, esp. at this time of year) and 1 c fish sauce. After using about 3/4 of the fish sauce, I top it off once, then make another batch with new chilis when that is gone. Great condiment for many foods, not just Thai!

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applestar
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I started a small batch (a pint jar) to make fermented pepper sauce. Diced dried/semi dried hot peppers and fresh sweet peppers. All intensely red. I'll post a picture once they start bubbling. For this one, I added some honey and garlic, a bit of wine yeast, a bit of fresh salsa liquid.... 8)

HoneyBerry
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I'd rather dehydrate them thsn freeze them. I've never done it myself, but sometimes I buy them dehydrated.

HoneyBerry
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Pickled hot peppers are good. If you have time to do the canning.

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applestar
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I like freezing thick walled ones. Easy to pull out chop and add to recipes. But this year, I'm hoping to dehydrate and Grind to make paprika.

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applestar
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image.jpg
Only in the sun for the photo op. I usually keep it on the kitchen counter where no sunshine reaches.

I'm still waiting on my really hot peppers to ripen. For this one, I used dehydrated Fish and Bolivian Rainbow, fresh Jalapeño, my not quite Scotch Bonnet, and a Takanotsume. Then added Tollis Sweet Italian, what I think may be Pimento, and Mini Paprika Red. Generous amount of minced garlic. Sea salt, Himalayan Pink, drizzle of honey and maple syrup, last of my Sriracha, drained liquid from fresh salsa, a splash of orange juice, and a sprinkle of wine yeast.

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I have tried to ferment peppers, to make a version of the Szechwan staple Chili Paste With Garlic, but I haven't been able to get it as good as the best brands I have used. I think it just needed much longer fermentation. Maybe adding that wine yeast will help...maybe I'll try that.

Rairdog
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These are some of the super hot powders I made this past week.
Image

I have a freezer full of peppers and 4 quarts of hot sauce.

I just made a quart of the nam pla prik since I have a big bottle of fish sauce going to waste. I used all red serrano's, pepperocini's, some asian's, a super and sweets. Thanks for the idea!

I also have a fridge full of fermented pepperoncini/serrano and refrigerator pickled sweet serrano's.

I am about to pick some supers to experiment with fermented hot sauce. Then call it quits. Peppered out!

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applestar
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I love those bright yellow ones!

Pepperhead212, I think this was a Korean cooking show, but they had an episode in which they showed a tiny white haired (tied in a knot at nape of neck) eldery woman walking among her giant fermenting jars of chilli paste in full sun. The jars were so big she could have climbed right in. And when she opened a jar, the paste was such a brilliant red orange they LOOKED hot.

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Picked another batch today
Image

Made a mash for fermenting with the Aji Limon and Beni Highlands....the two bright yellows on right...for AS :()
Image

I also added red bell so it (should come out a light orange), onion, garlic, carrots and ground ginger. I didn't have any hooch on the sourdough so I used a little diakon/cabbage sauerkraut I made a few month ago for a kicker. Added that to 1 cup warm water and 1 Tbs sea salt to top it off and submerge.

imafan26
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Sounds amazing. What do you put it on?
I am a wimp I only use chili pepper water which is more water, some salt, garlic and a couple of hawaiian peppers and that can go on eggs, stew and rice. I usually prefer fenad1ne on meat. I also like hot pepper jelly slathered on BBQ chicken.

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applestar
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Thanks @rairdog! That looks and sounds yum! I'll have try putting some of those ingredients in my next one, especially ginger.

I have Hot Lemon but not Aji Limon which I believe is different although they look alike.

@imafan, last fall DH had an office gathering to which he took a small jar of Cowboy Candy (except I made it with assortment of hot peppers) and it was a hit. DH likes to eat it on Ritz type cracker with cream cheese.

I lost a bunch of overwintered hots due to exceptionally cold winter, so I am again harvesting ripe sweets while hots are still green. I'll have to freeze them and make things like hot pepper jelly, etc. later.

Rairdog
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imafan26 wrote:Sounds amazing. What do you put it on?
I am a wimp I only use chili pepper water which is more water, some salt, garlic and a couple of hawaiian peppers and that can go on eggs, stew and rice. I usually prefer fenad1ne on meat. I also like hot pepper jelly slathered on BBQ chicken.
It should be about the level of a Habanero sauce or less. I put hot sauce on about everything. The Aji and Beni are slightly less than Habs in heat. I could eat a whole one but it would be painful. Most of the sauces I make are not unbearable if I get a mouthful. It's like bitting into a peppercorn or maybe a little more. They really change the flavors with the fruity heat.

This mash will be cooked down and strained after a month or so of fermenting. It will have the consistency of Tabasco or a little thicker and a little more heat.

@ AS...A lot of people make their initial mash with just peppers and sometimes veggies/fruit. Then they add garlic, onion, ginger, coriander(mostly root or seed spices) etc in the final cook to their tastes. The garlic, onion, carrot seems to be an ole standby for most. They add the extra sugars to kick in the fermentaion when you use a lower salt percentage. All my fermented dills, pepperocini's kraut, kimchi etc...have been pretty salty. I am trying this recipe to lower the salt.

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Is there some magic ratio of vinegar to peppers that I need to observe in making hot sauce? I'm not planning on putting anything up for long term storage....just something that will keep a few months in the fridge. I want to play around with a few different flavors, and don't want to poison myself. I know commercial hot sauce pretty much lasts forever and doesn't even require refrigeration.

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applestar
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The fermented pepper recipes I've been looking at generally use 1/2 as much vinegar as the volume of puréed peppers and liquid after fermenting.

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applestar wrote:The fermented pepper recipes I've been looking at generally use 1/2 as much vinegar as the volume of puréed peppers and liquid after fermenting.
I'm not quite adventurous enough to try fermenting. It's funny. I make my own beer, and have no problem whatsoever with that. Just a little too squeamish for trying my own bacterial fermentation. But then, I don't eat yogurt, sour cream, etc...etiher. :oops:

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It's just like beer. Once that smell goes bad your done. I got beer goin, mead and peppers as we speak.

Picked a good batch today. I still have a bunch of EOB Mustard to pick and some other yellows.
Image

Peppers atcha!

thefuriousone
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I am a little late to this party, but Applestar those preserves look awesome! And Rairdog those peppers look tasty! I am probably going to make a simple pepper sauce with my harvest- vinegar, water and peppers.

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applestar
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Yep. I'm going to process some more into sauce. This time I think I'll make some that can be hot water bath'd to keep in the pantry and maybe give away if they turn out good. 8)

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These are my cayenne peppers harvested this year. There are more than 300. I am thinking to dehydrate and put them in olive oil in order to make spicy oil to be added on pasta, pizza and other foods ;)
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imafan26
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I started using pepper flakes from dried peppers on Pizza and in Spaghetti sauce and stew.

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One of my favorite ways to keep my excess of peppers, besides drying them, is to make hot sauces with them. As a youth growing up in New Orleans, every time you went to a local mom and pop restaurant you would find a shaker bottle of vinegar with hot peppers in it to kick it up a notch and that usually sat next to the bottles of Tabasco and Crystal Hot Sauce for patrons to use. You don't see the bottles of pickled peppers in vinegar much anymore, so I make that for myself to use at home on salads or for a little kick on sandwiches. I also love to make my own hot sauces with my hotter varieties of peppers and have ventured into using them in pepper jellies as well.

Here's my favorite recipe for pepper sauce and this will make about a pint jar of HOT sauce:

30 Habanero peppers with stems and green stem end removed. Do not remove seeds or pith.
1 medium onion coarse chopped
4-5 cloves garlic whole---skin removed
1 1/2 cups vinegar of your choice. I use basic white distilled vinegar
1/4 cup salt
1 tbs. Mustard Powder

Blend very well until all ingredients are uniform in size and it is in puree' form.

Place the mixture in a stainless steel pot and bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes stirring often so nothing sticks. Have your canning jars ready, pour the sauce in the jars, clean any spill off the tops of the jars and tighten the lids. Allow to cool and this will make the jars form a vacuum. It is ready to use from this point on.

I've made gallons of this stuff over the past several years and am constantly being asked if I have extra by the folks I've given some to. It is a hit, but it is HOT and not for the person that finds Tabasco type sauces not to their liking.

I've used this recipe for Ghost peppers, Trinidad Scorpion Butch T's, Habanero and Serrano. I don't even make pepper sauces with jalapeno or similar peppers now.

Like I mentioned, I also use the hotter peppers for pepper jelly and that too is fast becoming a hit with family and friends. It is a bit hotter than normal pepper jelly, but it can be controlled by simply using less hot peppers than normal.



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