The Hottest Pepper Blog

March 22, 2010

Can I Freeze Peppers?

Filed under: Ask Jamie — Tags: , , — admin @ 10:39 pm

freezer 150x150 Can I Freeze Peppers?

You ask them, Jamie answers them! Here’s another edition of Ask Jamie, with a wonderful question on freezing peppers.

Question
Hi, I heard about these peppers and have read through your website (and a few others).  When is the time of year to be able to buy whole peppers from you ?   My recipe for chilli is a bit warm (Jalapenos and Habaneros, I really prefer the Habeneros because I like the fruity taste of them (and also of course the heat). I would like to have a very hot version of my chilli using Habeneros and the Ghost pepper. Obviously I dont know how much to use and still be edible, I’ll have to use a little, and add small amounts until I get it where I want it.

A couple of questions:
1) When would I be able to buy whole peppers from you ?
2) Does freezing the pepper until used have an effect on flavor ? (I imagine yes, but not sure how much).
3) Since you are the experts on these peppers, any handy tips on how/how much to use ? (I am aware of the need to be careful – made that mistake with Habeneros once).
Thanks, and I’ll place my order after receiving your feedback (might get some powder for now since you are out of the actual peppers according to your site).
~JC Harris

Answer
Aloha JC,

Thanks for your inquiry.  Just like the Habanero pepper, the Bhut Jolokia has a wonderful flavor. It also has an intense back heat.  I cannot tell you how much to use as this is very, very subjective.  You just have to experiment.
As far as the freezing goes, we pick our pepper when they are bright red, and very ripe.  Not one pepper ripens in transit, or is picked before it’s time.  They are then de-seeded by hand which is a huge pain in the butt.  The peppers are then either, sun dried, or dehydrated.  Then they are vacuum packed and frozen.  You can re-hydrate them if you wish, and many of my customers do this.
I would purchase the pepper flakes and experiment with them.  You are not going to be able to use the fresh peppers much anyway because they have to be diced so fine or you could hurt someone who eats a chunk. Not a nice thing to do.
We will have fresh peppers again around June 1st.
Mahalo and Aloha,
Jamie

thehottestpepper.com

June 10, 2009

The Sifter

Filed under: How to — Tags: , , — admin @ 9:34 am

Aloha,

I hope that every one had a great weekend! And GO LAKERS!!!

Today’s Blog will be about “The Sifter”. This little garden assistant works wonders when getting soil from your compost pile. The purpose of it is pretty simple- to keep the larger particles of soil on top of the screen and allow the smaller ones to fall into your bucket or other carrying device. It is very important to have a very fine soil composition for certain vegetables like carrots which can be easily sidetracked when they grow. I have seen many a crooked carrot in my day because the gardener did not take the time to sift the soil. You can make a sifter easily and cheaply and it saves a ton of time.

How to Make “The Sifter”

I use a sheet of diamond lath (available @ The Home Depot) or any good garden supply store. They have different thicknesses of the lath, but the cheapest one (about $5.00) will work just fine. It measures 2′ x 6′ and you can just frame it out with 2 x 4 lumber in any size that you want. If you want a higher sifter, then use 2 x 6 lumber. This sheet can makes two 2′ x 3′ “sifters” if you know a friend that needs one. OR, you can just put the sheet of lath on 2 piles of dirt, put a bucket underneath the center and shovel the soil on top of the lath. Use your hands (I wear gloves as the lath is a bit sharp) and rub the soil through the “diamond” shaped holes. Now you have a fine soil that is good for germinating seeds, transplanting, or for vegetables that need a fine, sifted soil

Aloha,

Jamie

picture 002 225x300 The Sifter