DIY – Freezing Peppers to Preserve Them For Cooking
Filed Under: Do It Yourself, Organic Gardening on August 27, 2009
If you’re enjoying a bounty of peppers, whether they be bells, jalapenos, etc., you need to preserve them. They don’t last long without refrigeration or drying. Drying them is a good option, but freezing is another. Since peppers take up a relatively small amount of space in your freezer, this is a popular option. It’s also easier and has less risk of accidentally rotting the peppers when they should be drying.
So after the peppers are thoroughly washed, it’s time to sit down and prepare them.
The first thing you need to do is cut the stems from the peppers. Then slice down them from top to bottom and open them up. Remove the seeds and placenta. The seeds are useful in cooking chiles and other hot soups and are easy to keep, by just putting them out to dry for a day or two. The white placenta can be eaten or thrown into compost.
Once the peppers are cleaned out, they can be halved, left whole, or cut into strips. For ease of storage later, I prefer to cut them into wide strips that lie relatively flat.
Lay these out on a baking sheet or another flat plate. They should be put in a single layer (no overlapping). This allows the whole surface to be exposed to the frozen air in the freezer. Once you’re done, put them in the freezer and leave them there, uncovered, for two or three hours. Then turn them all over and give it another hour or two.
This is “flash freezing” and it preserves the internal moisture and flavors.
Once they are frozen, put them in a suitable container (bag, Tupperware, butcher paper, whatever) and store in the freezer. Pull out strips as you need them, let thaw, and use.
This is fast, easy, and leaves you with great peppers you can enjoy anytime.
Two caveats: if your peppers ar ehot, remember that the hot stuff is an oil and it can squirt. So keep your eyes clear from them while you cut. Second, wash your hands with soap thoroughly after handling the peppers or you’ll inadvertently rub that oil into your eyes, ears, nose, whatever. It’s painful.
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