How to denature a pepper

[killing_rose]

Yesterday, I discovered ten different peppers in our fridge. (Not counting the sweet bell peppers.) Eight of some long and red and pointy variety. One that looked like a jalapeno. One that looked like a red version of a jalapeno.

Now, if you are a pepper fanatic, this would probably be a great state of affairs. As we have three in the house (myself included) who don't handle spice nor capsicum all that well...

Well, the peppers from our CSA have been collecting.

Last week, with an orange variety of pointy-long-pepper, I discovered that I could get it mild enough for my house to handle it cooked. Yesterday, I started the same process with the ten peppers.

When it was one pepper, it was easy enough to just let the two sides denature, and it was pretty quick. With multiple, they're still denaturing.

So with one pepper. First, find gloves, and put them on. Then: 

*Take the top off, split in half, and de-seed and pith. Wash it under warm water, while popping all the bubbles. (According to the source I originally went off of, this is where the capsicum is located, so it won't properly denature if you don't do this.)

*Then chop it up, put it in a glass measuring cup, and pour enough whiskey over it to cover. (You can do this with any alcohol, apparently; JD is the one form of booze we can all agree on. So.) 

*Leave it to sit about an hour to three. Taste it; when it's mild enough for you, it's done. Pour off the whiskey and, if you have someone who LIKES spice/capsicum, hand it to them to drink.

With a larger batch of peppers, the process still starts the same. Except, when you chop it up, put it in a canning jar. I filled a quart jar full. As I'm cheap and not wasting that much booze, stick to about 2 shots, and rotate the jar.

I've had it right side up, upside down, and am currently rotating it side to side. It's definitely taking longer than if you do this pepper by pepper, but it's about 75% of the way to house-edible, and my housemate really likes the flavored whiskey.

I will caution that if you don't handle capsicum well, large amounts of processing should probably be handed off to someone who does, as I could not breathe by the time I was finished yesterday.

Comments

[linaelyn]

THIS IS AWESOME. I am the one who handles capsicum well, but I have some in my circle who do not. I will definitely try this.

Thank you!

[killing_rose]

It really is, which is why I didn't just post it to my personal dw.

You're welcome!

[somethingclever]

To be honest, this sounds freaking amazing and like the best idea I have heard in ages.

Wow. That's so cool!!!

[killing_rose]

I didn't want the CSA peppers to go to waste, but you know how much this house does not manage spice and peppers. So to google I went, and then I tweaked.

But. Yeah. The technique is really kinda awesome. (Hence why I decided to post it to a comm instead of my dw.)

[tameiki]

Just an FYI, if you like chile peppers but don't handle the heat well, you might want to go with the Anaheim variety as it's not hot at all. The Hatch chiles have a tiny bit of spice, while the Pueblo chiles are definitely on the hotter side.

In my town we are having the Chile & Frijole festival this weekend where people from around the nation come for the Pueblo chiles. Most of us here like it hot :)

Thanks for the lesson, though. It'll be sure to come in handy for those who don't care for the spicy variety.

[drgaellon]

I thought Hatches were very spicy. Must've heard wrong.

[tameiki]

Hatch green chiles are only a little spicier than Anaheims but not by very much.

It's the Pueblo chiles that are about half-way toward a jalapeno. Hatch falls in between the Pueblo and the Anaheims. In my experience it's a very nice, mildly spicy flavor :)

[killing_rose]

Capsicum is seriously not something we can handle, so Anaheim peppers without denaturing will make several of us fairly ill. Hatch and Pueblo are off the menu without denaturing (and possibly are still off the menu).

Yeah, my father has repeatedly muttered that he wants to go to a Chile festival. I don't get it, but to each their own. Hopefully, the tourists haven't made you vaguely homicidal.

[tameiki]

Luckily I live about 12 miles out of town and nearly 20 miles away from the festival so all's good.

If your Dad wants to try to make it to next year's festival, it's always in September (after the harvest), and in Pueblo, Colorado :)

[thirdblindmouse]

Pour off the whiskey and, if you have someone who LIKES spice/capsicum, hand it to them to drink.

That sounds like a terrifying concoction, even for someone who likes spiciness. Perhaps hand it to them to use in cooking instead? ;)

[killing_rose]

Though the smell off of it makes me flinch, my housemate quite likes it. Otherwise, I would have suggested it be used in cooking. (Or, um, gifted to others for cooking.)

[ossobuco]

This is really neat! So the resulting alcohol is drinkable? I'm not fond of very hot things, but I know some people who I think would take capsicum whisky as a challenge, and I love the flavor of peppers but not the spice... thank you for sharing. :D

[killing_rose]

Yup, resulting alcohol is drinkable. It's one of the reasons I went with JD--other options were vodka or moonshine, and Katarik (housemate who handles spiciness) won't drink those varieties of alcohol.

Yeah, we can handle sweet peppers and I often cook with the orange and yellow bells, but that's about all we manage. It's fun and interesting to get the flavor of the pepper without the "oh gods" heat.

[acelightning]

I have absolutely no problem with eating things that contain capsaicin - in fact, I love hot foods. So, to me, the idea of pepper-infused liquor sounds delicious! (But what am I going to do with the denatured peppers?)

I actually once made a super-strong version of this on purpose. I took a bunch of dried habaneros, dried bird peppers, and fresh piquins, and stuffed as many as would fit into a small bottle. Then I filled the bottle up with Everclear (190 proof grain alcohol, not available in many states or countries) and let it marinate, tightly sealed, for a year. Thus I created the "Nuclear Martini" - black-pepper-infused vodka with just a few drops of the high-octane stuff ("to taste"), garnished with an olive stuffed with jalapeno instead of pimento, finished by grinding a few specks of black pepper on top.

However, I usually prefer to eat hot peppers, rather than drink them :-)

[killing_rose]

Damn, I stand in awe of your martini.

If you cook with sweet peppers, you can sub the denatured peppers for 'em. It's interesting to play with the flavor of the pepper without the heat.

[acelightning]

I actually don't like the taste of sweet/bell peppers very much :-(

Hmm... I could cut them into interesting garnishes, though, then blanch them (or maybe the alcohol soak would eliminate the need for blanching?) and freeze them for when I need an interesting garnish...

[alchemise]

Oh wow, what a cool idea. I love the taste of peppers as well, but have an intolerance to capsicum, so I have got to try this. Although like you I'm already positive that I would have trouble breathing during the processing. But still, I will find a way to try it!

[killing_rose]

I didn't find it as bad with one pepper; it was also easier to fully denature one pepper. It was when I was processing a whole batch that I realized what a bad idea it really was.