Fermenting.

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by Father'sDaughter

Just what is the texture of the fermented peppers when they're done? Soft? Crunchy? Somewhere in between?

I've looked at a lot of recipes for them on the Internet and while the posters go on and on about how wonderful they are prepared this way, no one really talks about the final texture. I tried the basic canned pepper recipes using vinegar and a hot water bath a few years ago and for me it was a waste of good peppers.

Crunchy if done right.

The pickled hot water bath peppers are a joke turns them intro mush.

[Worth1]

I want to add that the flavor is something that is hard to describe.
To me they have a sort of musky after taste you pick up when you breath out your nose.
Only the peppers do this and it is very pleasant not offensive at all.

Worth

[Worth1]

Here it is the chili pequin sauce.
The one on the left is the pure stuff.
The one on the right is where I took the leftover mash and blended it with vinegar and strained it again to get the very last of the goodness from the peppers.
I drank the leftovers but tossed the used up mash.
Worth
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[coronabarb]

Trop, yes the Extension is in Gold Beach. Margie House heads up the MFP program and she was trained last year at our class. She's great! Douglas and Lane counties have the most active MFP programs in the state and we staff the statewide (and country wide) Food Preservation hotline. You are welcome to call it if you have any food related questions. 800-354-7319
http://extension.oregonstate.edu/curry/

[coronabarb]

How hot is that stuff, Worth? Pequin is the fiery peppers, right?

[Worth1]

Pretty hot but not too hot about 60,000 SCU.
Worth

[Tracydr]

Originally Posted by Rairdog

That is a nice crock! I have wanted one(10 lol) for a while. I dove into fermenting heavy this year. I made quart jars and buckets with airlocks. It started with kraut. Then I mixed in diakon, onion and moved into kimchi. Next was hot/dill/sweet pickles, serranos and pepperocinis. Nothing better than a brat/dog with your own toppings. Then pepper season came and I made fermented hot sauces. These turned out much more complex than my normal vinegar sauces. Now I am making beer. It intrigued me how they preserved the harvest in the old days so I tried to somewhat re-create the process. I tried to grow most ingredients except for beer grains. You might say I have a fermenting problem.

We make fermented pepper mash,then mix with fresh tomatoes,cilantro and onions. Once we added some chipotle to he sauce and it was wonderful.
I've never used an airlock,just make sure it's weighted and stays under the liquid portion.

[Tracydr]

Best kraut I've made had onions,apples and bit of caraway. I freeze so that I don't lose the crunch or good bacteria.

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by Tracydr

Best kraut I've made had onions,apples and bit of caraway. I freeze so that I don't lose the crunch or good bacteria.

Mine stays crunchy even in milk.

Worth

[Tracydr]

I like using red cabbage because it ends up pretty pink.
I have got to plant some cabbage this fall!

[greenthumbomaha]

I'd like to know about the texture of fermented peppers too. Its so convenient to pull out a homegrown pepper in the winter but I always have more than I can use for chili in the freezer.

Cabbage did really well this year so I went back and read most of this thread. I figured I would buy a kit rather than fashion up a crock or try a diy for my initial batch.
I called all the typical kitchen stores like bed bath and beyond with no luck. My last call scored these mason jar kits. The kit is just a lid for a wide mouth mason jar and a weight. It is on "sale" for $9.99 reg $14.99 at Natural Grocers.
Now the watch and wait.

- Lisa

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by greenthumbomaha

I'd like to know about the texture of fermented peppers too. Its so convenient to pull out a homegrown pepper in the winter but I always have more than I can use for chili in the freezer.

Cabbage did really well this year so I went back and read most of this thread. I figured I would buy a kit rather than fashion up a crock or try a diy for my initial batch.
I called all the typical kitchen stores like bed bath and beyond with no luck. My last call scored these mason jar kits. The kit is just a lid for a wide mouth mason jar and a weight. It is on "sale" for $9.99 reg $14.99 at Natural Grocers.
Now the watch and wait.

- Lisa

Lisa it looks great.
My peppers are crunchy what can I say.
I dont follow recommended water bath canning to do this and neither do the commercial canners bottlers or folks that put them in the jars.

What they do is pasteurize at a lower temperature longer time this kills the fermenting process and they do add vinegar it also makes the jar seal.

Some of the bottled pepper sauce isn't even sealed so the speak it goes in the bottle and out the door.

The Claussen pickles and Kraut aren't processed.
My refrigerator Kraut isnt processed but the lids are sealed because I put room temperature product in a cold refrigerator.
This in effect caused the air and everything in the jar to shrink and seal the jar.

[Tropicalgrower]

Originally Posted by greenthumbomaha

I'd like to know about the texture of fermented peppers too. Its so convenient to pull out a homegrown pepper in the winter but I always have more than I can use for chili in the freezer.

Cabbage did really well this year so I went back and read most of this thread. I figured I would buy a kit rather than fashion up a crock or try a diy for my initial batch.
I called all the typical kitchen stores like bed bath and beyond with no luck. My last call scored these mason jar kits. The kit is just a lid for a wide mouth mason jar and a weight. It is on "sale" for $9.99 reg $14.99 at Natural Grocers.
Now the watch and wait.

- Lisa

You know,that is a good idea someone had with those weights..actually more like spacers really,but that looks like a good solution to keeping the kraut submerged.I like the idea of a crock and will invest in 1 for sure.The only problem is,that if there are several variations of Kraut,or other ferments you want to try,you would have to wait 4-6-8 weeks for the crock to be available for the next experiment.I'm conflicted between using jars,and food grade plastic buckets for the other "trials".I know that they say Food Grade,but I am still not convinced that they would be safe for ferments.But hey,lots of people use them for that purpose,so maybe I am just overly cautious.

[Tropicalgrower]

Originally Posted by coronabarb

Trop, yes the Extension is in Gold Beach. Margie House heads up the MFP program and she was trained last year at our class. She's great! Douglas and Lane counties have the most active MFP programs in the state and we staff the statewide (and country wide) Food Preservation hotline. You are welcome to call it if you have any food related questions. 800-354-7319
http://extension.oregonstate.edu/curry/

Thanks for the link and the phone number Barb.I also found Curry County Master Gardeners on FB.I don't much care for FB,but it is a handy tool for finding all kinds of Worth-y information.

Worth-y.

Hey Worth! You might want to use that ^.You know,for things you approve of,or projects that stand out for you.If my nick was Worth,I'd use it till people were sick of hearing it.LOL

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by Tropicalgrower

You know,that is a good idea someone had with those weights..actually more like spacers really,but that looks like a good solution to keeping the kraut submerged.I like the idea of a crock and will invest in 1 for sure.The only problem is,that if there are several variations of Kraut,or other ferments you want to try,you would have to wait 4-6-8 weeks for the crock to be available for the next experiment.I'm conflicted between using jars,and food grade plastic buckets for the other "trials".I know that they say Food Grade,but I am still not convinced that they would be safe for ferments.But hey,lots of people use them for that purpose,so maybe I am just overly cautious.

Here is the deal with the crocks it is an investment.
You invest time to make food for the rest of the year.
As for food grade I also use stainless steel even though they say not to use any kind of metal.
This is a blanket statement out of ignorance and over reaction to safety.
The stainless I use is approved for this use.

Where do you want to go with the fermenting?
Is it a flash in the pan type thing or is it something you want to dedicate time and money to and to continue doing it?

These are the questions you have to ask yourself.

I honestly need about 2 more the same size I have.

Worth