My fellas like it hot ... I am thinking it has even become a way of seeing who is tougher! When my Mama had a whole bunch of these beauties left over, I jumped at the chance to pickle, dry, and roast some peppers!
Pickling in very easy! Drying seems to have a little trick to it, and roasting peppers to freeze is time consuming but oh so worth it!
 Place on a cookie sheet |  In the window Drying Peppers We decided to experiment a little with our drying process because drying peppers in the oven makes my eyes burn and I cough like a crazy woman! It has to be a well ventilated space, warm, and dry! First we placed them on a cookie sheet. So, we stuck ours in the back window of the car my husband wasn't using. We rolled down the windows and are letting them dry. So far so good. It takes days to dry them...so Ill post an after pic when that happens. Make sure you flip them over once or twice a day! |
Start with a bowl of peppers
Pickled Peppers... Pickled Peppers... Pickled Peppers... Pickled Peppers... Pickled Peppers... Pickled Peppers... Say That Ten Times
 WEAR SAFETY GLOVES |  Jalepenos and Hot Wax Peppers  In the jars |
I use 2 cups pickling vinegar to 1/2 cup of water. In each jar I added one clove of garlic, a couple peppercorns, and 1/2 tsp. Coarse Sea Salt (per jar). I sliced the wax banana peppers as well as the Jalepenos. I left the cherry bombs whole. You can can them green or red. :)
Sterilize your jars and lids according to manufacturers directions. Place your vinegar and water in a large cook pot and bring to a boil. Fill your jars with your peppers leaving 1/4 inch space. Ladle the hot vinegar into jars and fasten lids. Water bath according to your altitude.
 Vinegar and Water |  Water Bath |
Roasting Peppers
There is nothing I love better than roasted Anaheim Chili peppers. They are mild... with just a little bite of hot! I am not a hot pepper girl! It is a little challenging to roast them, and my favorite method of preserving them is using the freezer. I will caution you to ONLY store them in glass jars because if you store them in plastic ... it will permeate your ENTIRE freezer and everything will taste of chilis! Though these are mild, I still recommend using plastic gloves when working with them as they burn my hands! Use caution!
Place the Chilis on a baking sheet and place under the broiler in the oven, carefully watching for them to brown and bubble. It is ok if they get a little dark! Remove from over carefully and flip them over and broil the other side. Remove from oven.
Some people like to then place them in plastic bags to steam... but I am worried about the plastic melting into the food and leaving residue...yuck! So, I place them in a glass or stainless steel container and cover them. I used plastic this time as I had loaned out my glass container which has a lid! Make sure it is covered tightly so the peppers can "sweat." I leave them there at least ten minutes.
Remove the plastic and give them time to cool down so they can be handled. Then carefully peel them. The skin should come right off!
Cut the tops off, slit the pepper in half. Lay it open and with the flat of a knife scrape out the seeds!
Your peppers should look like the picture above. Drizzle olive oil over them and mix.
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I didn't have small jars, so I had to figure out a way to use what I had. I like to have smaller portions of peppers, so I am hoping by layering wax paper Ill be able to pull out smaller portions. Most of the time I just load the oil covered peppers in the jar, seal with a lid and freeze! It is as easy as that!
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