Plate of Peppers

Late summer and fall is the time to harvest peppers. I always know we are quickly heading to the end of summer when the peppers are ripe and ready.

Peppers are relatively easy to grow – they are members of the Nightshade family (same as tomatoes, eggplant and potatoes) and like to have at least 6-8 hours of sun. Plant in spring after all danger of frost has past and harvest from mid summer to early fall.

We planted five types of peppers this year – Pimento de Padron, Thai Bird’s Eye Chili, Poblano Chili, Jalapeno and Bell Pepper.

The pimento de padron is a Spanish pepper named after a town in Spain. The usual way to prepare them is to sear them whole in a hot pan with olive oil. Pull them out of the pan, sprinkle with sea salt and enjoy. Most of the time they are a nice mild pepper but every now and then when you least expect it – you will encounter a mind numbingly hot one. Pretty much all the ones I picked this year though turned out to be the hot ones. These kind of remind me of  the Japanese Shisito peppers – which I enjoy more for it’s sweet taste and chance of getting a searing hot one. I think I will try to find seeds and grow these instead next year.

Thai Chili Birds are tiny but really really hot! I use just part of one to make a nice Thai dressing for a seafood noodle salad.  One plant will yield 50 or more chilis so I will take the ripe ones and freeze just as is and leave some on the plant to dry. Once dried they can be store in a jar in the pantry for 6 months to a year.

Char peppers over an open flame, put peppers in  bowl, cover to steam. When cool peel skin off.

Poblano’s are for my favorite Mexican dish – Chile Rellenos. When I’ve had my fill. I roast off the excess and freeze them for use during the winter.

If you like peppers then you will love the aroma of peppers roasting over a flame. There is nothing like it and always reminds me the crisp Fall mornings when I use to go to the Farmer’s Market. There, a vendor would roast a whole drum full of peppers filling the market with the intense smell of roasting peppers.

You don’t need a huge drum to roast your own – I use the gas flame on my kitchen stove or when the weather is nice – out on the outdoor burner. You can also roast peppers under a broiler. It’s all the same basic technique of charring the thin skin and putting the charred peppers into a sealed bowl to steam. The steam helps to loosen the blister skin for easy removal. Some people like to run their peppers under a thin stream of water to help remove the skin but I never do that as all the flavor will be washed away.

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