Have just acquired a small bag of green hot chillies. Enough of them to last
us a year or so.

What's the best way to try and store them? We are in London, U.K. so no
chance of just letting them dry in the sun.

Is freezing the way to go? Are they best washed beforehand, so they become
ready to just drop in the cooking or would washing interfere with their
ability to be stored for a long time? Thanks for any advice.

On Fri, 18 Feb 2011 19:34:39 -0000, "john reeves"
> wrote:

>Have just acquired a small bag of green hot chillies. Enough of them to last
>us a year or so.
>
>What's the best way to try and store them? We are in London, U.K. so no
>chance of just letting them dry in the sun.
>
>Is freezing the way to go? Are they best washed beforehand, so they become
>ready to just drop in the cooking or would washing interfere with their
>ability to be stored for a long time? Thanks for any advice.

They'll dry indoors too, with a sewing needle string them on thread
and hang in the kitchen or wherever. Or you can pickle them with
vinegar and whatever herbs and spices. I'd not freeze them.

john reeves wrote:
>
> Have just acquired a small bag of green hot chillies. Enough of them to last
> us a year or so.
>
> What's the best way to try and store them? We are in London, U.K. so no
> chance of just letting them dry in the sun.

I'd slice them into rings and dry them in an oven on its
lowest setting with the door partly open (assuming you have
such an oven and a carbon monoxide detector if it's gas).
Ideally, you dry them at a low enough temperature that
it would take overnight.

If you have a warm place like a furnace vent or something,
that can be used instead. An aroma will ensue that I like,
but might not be universally appreciated.

> Is freezing the way to go? Are they best washed beforehand, so they become
> ready to just drop in the cooking or would washing interfere with their
> ability to be stored for a long time? Thanks for any advice.

I'd wash them, but it's probably not necessary.

If you freeze, blanch them first to denature the
enzymes that will degrade them in storage.

Another possibility is to pickle them in vinegar.
Cut them into slices, pack in vinegar, and store
in the fridge. No blanching necessary, in this case.
The pickle vinegar is also useful, if you like
a peppery salad dressing.

I've tried salting chili peppers. Don't do that.
The moisture in the peppers fuses the salt into
something like concrete.

On Feb 18, 11:34*am, "john reeves" > wrote:
> Have just acquired a small bag of green hot chillies. Enough of them to last
> us a year or so.
>
> What's the best way to try and store them? *We are in London, U.K. so no
> chance of just letting them dry in the sun.
>
> Is freezing the way to go? *Are they best washed beforehand, so they become
> ready to just drop in the cooking or would washing interfere with their
> ability to be stored for a long time? *Thanks for any advice.

Per "Putting Food By" just wash them, stem them, and pop into a
freezer bag or other shallow freezer container. No blanching needed.
The more rapid the freezing the better.

On 2/18/2011 1:34 PM, john reeves wrote:
> Have just acquired a small bag of green hot chillies. Enough of them to last
> us a year or so.
>
> What's the best way to try and store them? We are in London, U.K. so no
> chance of just letting them dry in the sun.
>
> Is freezing the way to go? Are they best washed beforehand, so they become
> ready to just drop in the cooking or would washing interfere with their
> ability to be stored for a long time? Thanks for any advice.
>
>
Wash them, spin dry in a salad spinner, then dry on a towel. Put amount
needed for a dish in a bag and freeze them. The only other way would be
to dry them and you said they couldn't be dried in London. You might try
putting them in a net bag, hang them in a dry spot in the kitchen and
allow them to dry up. Will depend on the humidity in your home.

"john reeves" > wrote in message
...
> Have just acquired a small bag of green hot chillies. Enough of them to
> last us a year or so.
>
> What's the best way to try and store them? We are in London, U.K. so no
> chance of just letting them dry in the sun.
>
> Is freezing the way to go? Are they best washed beforehand, so they
> become ready to just drop in the cooking or would washing interfere with
> their ability to be stored for a long time? Thanks for any advice.
>
Get a double Ziplock 1 quart bag. Pop chillies in to to fill the bag about
half full. Then suck the air out of the bag and seal it. Then into a
freezer. Best is a non-frost free freezer. That doesn't dry out what is
being frozen.

Don't do anything to the chillies. Rinse them only if they are dirty. You're
going to do that when you harvest them out of the freezer anyway.

I've successfully done this a number of times, as long as 6-8 months without
any degregation of any kind.

Kent

On Feb 18, 3:59*pm, Brooklyn1 <Gravesend1> wrote:
> On Fri, 18 Feb 2011 19:34:39 -0000, "john *reeves"
>
> > wrote:
> >Have just acquired a small bag of green hot chillies. Enough of them to last
> >us a year or so.
>
> >What's the best way to try and store them? *We are in London, U.K. so no
> >chance of just letting them dry in the sun.
>
> >Is freezing the way to go? *Are they best washed beforehand, so they become
> >ready to just drop in the cooking or would washing interfere with their
> >ability to be stored for a long time? *Thanks for any advice.
>
> They'll dry indoors too, with a sewing needle string them on thread
> and hang in the kitchen or wherever.

The only problem I've had with drying them indoors is humidity causing
them to mold. I live in Florida, and in high humidity, so it may not
be a bother to you in the UK, depending on the humidity there.

The best tool you can buy to do this with many, many vegetables and
herbs is a dehydrator. I have a huge one with 20 trays and I keep it
going almost all harvesting season, full of produce. Some I process
into powder, some I just seal into half gallon mason jars after drying.

john reeves > wrote:

>Have just acquired a small bag of green hot chillies. Enough of them to last
>us a year or so.

>What's the best way to try and store them?

Sautee them in plenty of butter, add a quart of chicken stock, and
boil. After 15 minutes stir in a can of condensed cream of mushroom
soup, simmer, and cool. Freeze in individual ziplocks for up to
15 years.

When ready to reuse, warm in a crock-pot for 36 hours.



S.

john reeves wrote:
>
> Have just acquired a small bag of green hot chillies. Enough of them to last
> us a year or so.
>
> What's the best way to try and store them? We are in London, U.K. so no
> chance of just letting them dry in the sun.
>

But they can be dried at low heat, in your oven.

> Is freezing the way to go? Are they best washed beforehand, so they become
> ready to just drop in the cooking or would washing interfere with their
> ability to be stored for a long time? Thanks for any advice.

Freezing is good. Wash gently and dry thoroughly. Package them in small
portions, so one bag or packet is enough to cook a dish.

Given how plentiful hot green chiles are available in London, why the
need to store them at all? Or are these an unusual sort, rarely seen? A
small bag of those green chiles would last me about a week LOL.

On Fri, 18 Feb 2011 19:34:39 -0000, "john reeves"
> wrote:

>Have just acquired a small bag of green hot chillies. Enough of them to last
>us a year or so.
>
>What's the best way to try and store them? We are in London, U.K. so no
>chance of just letting them dry in the sun.
>
>Is freezing the way to go? Are they best washed beforehand, so they become
>ready to just drop in the cooking or would washing interfere with their
>ability to be stored for a long time? Thanks for any advice.
>
All I do is toast the chilis over an open flame to blacken the skin.
Then place the chilis in a brown paper bag to steam and cool. Once
cool, peel and freeze the chilis. I freeze them all together in a
plastic storage bag, that way all I have to do is open the bag and cut
off the amount of chiiis that I need at the time.

Hope that helps and enjoy your chilis.


koko
--
Food is our common ground, a universal experience
James Beard

www.kokoscornerblog.com

Natural Watkins Spices
www.apinchofspices.com

On 2/18/2011 12:34 PM, john reeves wrote:
> Have just acquired a small bag of green hot chillies. Enough of them to last
> us a year or so.
>
> What's the best way to try and store them? We are in London, U.K. so no
> chance of just letting them dry in the sun.
>
> Is freezing the way to go? Are they best washed beforehand, so they become
> ready to just drop in the cooking or would washing interfere with their
> ability to be stored for a long time? Thanks for any advice.
>
>


They freeze quite well. Wash first, dry on a towel. You might remove
the stem and seeds or leave the seeds in for more heat.

It is important to double bag in plastic or even bag and place in a
rigid plastic container before freezing. They are very pervasive to
other foods in the freezer.