Pickled my first peppers of 2013!

[Mojave]

My 3 over-wintered pepper plants are flowering like mad and 2 of them (Fatalii and a baccatum) are puttin' out the peppers!

A couple of days ago I made a quick pickle with a handfull of my baccatum peppers, all that were ready, with a bunch of habs from the produce market (my habaneros are just starting to flower).

As long as we don't have another blazing summer it looks like this will be a good year!

[spacetogrow]

Ymmmmmmmm.

[roper2008]

Is the baccatum an Aji Lemon? I will do a lot of pickling, dehydrating, and pepper jelly
for this year. Last year was not that good for me as far as my peppers went. I hope
you have a good season this year.

[Mojave]

I'm not sure of what exactly it is but I know it's not an Aji Lemon. When they first start to yellow they have a mild heat and, kind of like the Aji Lemon, a very crispy clean citrusy taste. If left to ripen to a somewhat orange final stage they are quite hot but lose their great flavor and texture. Mixing them with the habs kicks up their heat a bit.

Thanks roper, a very good 2013 season to you too!

[Crandrew]

Mojave,
When you pickle peppers how long are they good for in storage? Could you PM me your recipe source? I dehydrated mypeppers last yera but I think I'm going to try this, this year.

[Rideau Rambler]

Love the album in the background!

[Mojave]

Originally Posted by Crandrew

Mojave,
When you pickle peppers how long are they good for in storage? Could you PM me your recipe source? I dehydrated mypeppers last yera but I think I'm going to try this, this year.

They will last about a month, but I will go through about a jar every ten days. I'll make about two jars every two weeks once the season gets going. I came up with my recipe by trial and error and I'm forever tweaking it. I've found the most important thing is the vinegar to water ratio (roughly 3 to 1). You can add salt and whatever else to your own taste. I use a lot of fresh crushed garlic!

[Mojave]

Originally Posted by Rideau Rambler

Love the album in the background!

Me too!

[Tracydr]

You can easily can pickled peppers in a boiling water bath. Then they will have an almost indefinite shelf life.
I love the book Joy of Pickling. Tons of great recipes.
Try making pickled green beans. Those are the best!

[Keger]

I have a lot of peppers and am new to pickling. Any ideas on a simple way to get started? Thanks!

[Mojave]

I'm not sure myself Keger.

I don't know how to do actual pickling and have to admit it seems daunting to me. I worry one small mistake and I'll end up poisoning myself.

My quick pickles will only last about 4 or 5 weeks in the refrigerator, but that works out fine for me as I eat them way faster than that. Maybe I should check out the book Tracy mentioned. Being able to preserve my peppers, the real way, would be a good thing once the season gets into full swing.

Can anyone give us an idea just how complicated/expensive real preserving is?

[tlintx]

Dirt simple and cheap. For things like pickles and jam, anyway!

There are good instructions with every flat of Ball brand jars (less than $10). And plenty of good books on the topic on Amazon.

And you can often get all the supplies, including the pot and jars, from Target or Walmart.

Be sure you've read up on safety, though. Basically, follow tested, modern recipes, don't fudge, and be clean.

I usually freeze because I have the space and it is waaaay too hot to boil water by harvest time here. But we put up quarts and quarts of store bought tomato sauce every couple of years this way.

Edit, reread your question, and "pickle" just means store in vinegar, I think. I thought you were asking after canning. Preserving, well, you can also freeze, refrigerate, dry... even smoke or salt-cure or pack in sawdust.

Just depends what storage facilities you have and end product you want.

Tl