Preserving Peppers
At Dickie Bird Farm, we grow 10 varieties of peppers. I make salsa, stuffed peppers, pepper poppers and vegetable kabobs all summer long and still have plenty to put up for winter.
There are three ways to preserve peppers: pickling, drying and freezing. Pickling peppers does not preserve flavor, and limits the way you can use them in winter dishes. Drying peppers is a great way to preserve small peppers like cayenne, chipotle and habanero, but doesn’t work well for large peppers like Bell, Poblano and Anaheim.
Freezing is the best way to preserve peppers’ pep and maintains their versatility. I roast them first and then and freeze in airtight bags. Frozen roast peppers are a fantastic addition to winter soups and stews, on pizzas and in burritos.
Roast Peppers
Ingredients
Peppers
Vegetable oil
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Line large baking sheets with aluminum foil. Grease liberally with oil.
3. Split large peppers, remove seeds and stems and place cut down on baking sheet. Scatter smaller whole peppers across sheets.
4. Bake for 30 minutes. You will hear peppers pop in the oven as they near completion. Skins will begin to blacken.
5. Remove peppers from oven.
6. Pack peppers in an airtight container or vacuum seal before freezing.
There are three ways to preserve peppers: pickling, drying and freezing. Pickling peppers does not preserve flavor, and limits the way you can use them in winter dishes. Drying peppers is a great way to preserve small peppers like cayenne, chipotle and habanero, but doesn’t work well for large peppers like Bell, Poblano and Anaheim.
Freezing is the best way to preserve peppers’ pep and maintains their versatility. I roast them first and then and freeze in airtight bags. Frozen roast peppers are a fantastic addition to winter soups and stews, on pizzas and in burritos.
Ingredients
Peppers
Vegetable oil
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Line large baking sheets with aluminum foil. Grease liberally with oil.
3. Split large peppers, remove seeds and stems and place cut down on baking sheet. Scatter smaller whole peppers across sheets.
4. Bake for 30 minutes. You will hear peppers pop in the oven as they near completion. Skins will begin to blacken.
5. Remove peppers from oven.
6. Pack peppers in an airtight container or vacuum seal before freezing.
