There are numerous recipes where red chili peppers are added for a unique flavor and spiciness. Either they are used in whole or grounded form, fresh or preserved form as available and according to the requirement.
Sometimes you may end up with overabundance of chili peppers growing in your home garden or may find a need to stock up red chilli powder for a year long use. Whatever be the reason, you got to learn these handful tips, if want you want to best store your red chili for longer period of time while keeping its color and flavor intact.
Different Ways to Preserve Your Red Chilli Peppers
- Dry Your Chilies
The age old and most reliable method for the storage of whole red chillies has always been drying. Earlier our grand mothers used to sundry the red hot chillies in order to store them for longer use. In this process they would initially prepare the red chilli powder manufacturers by rinsing them in salt water and then used to dry them in the sun for few days. This way they prevented any mold to form on the chillies and stored them easily for yearly use.
Now-a-days we have faster ways to dry our chillies like we have ovens, dehydrators to accomplish the drying process rapidly than waiting for few days as done in the sun drying process. Whatever be the way you use, drying is definitely one of the best ways to store your red chillies for longer duration.
- Freeze Your Chilli Peppers
Talking about storage, freezing is the sure option for storing many of the food items in the household. And, same goes for the red chillies as well. All you need to do is to clean your peppers thoroughly with cool and clean water, dry them with a cloth and put them in a airtight container or ziplock bag for freezing.
Never store your peppers in big containers as they may catch mould easily, better store them in small containers and take them out as needed.
- Pickling Your Peppers
Pickled peppers are very tasty and yes, can be preserved for a much longer time. All you need is to get your ingredients right to pickle your peppers perfectly. The basic method of pickling chillies starts with washing them in salty water and pat drying them with a clean cloth. Then poke holes through the surface of the chillies so that they can well absorb the syrup and get much tastier from within.
Then boil up some water along with vinegar, sugar, salt and coriander seeds in it. Let the sugar and salt dissolve. Do not allow the vinegar to boil much. Once the syrup is ready, pour the syrup and chilli peppers into a clean and dry glass jar. Allow the solution to cool completely before putting on its lid. Then, store the jar in refrigerator and keep it untouched for atleast two weeks before you can enjoy them.
How to Store Red Chilli Powder?
Not only whole red chillies, many of us store red chilli powder especially in the Indian households for the year long usage. There are various ways to store red chilli in powdered form for culinary use. While many of us store red chilli powder along with rock salt, many prefer storing it with asafoetida blocks. However, you may store it, one thing to keep in mind is that you need to press the powder by adding little every time in jar.
This will avoid any air patches to remain in your chilli powder during the storage process. You may also add cloves in between the powder as you go on adding little bit of it every time in the jar. Finally, tighten the lid and tie a clean, dry cloth on the top of the bottle to ensure that no insects or moisture can creep in.
So, this summer store your red chilli peppers either in whole or powdered form this way and enjoy their peppery flavor and spiciness all the year around.