Above: dried hot peppers
As we are still harvesting an abundance of hot peppers, we must think of ways to use up all this bounty before it spoils – or else preserve it for future use.
The easiest way by far to preserve hot peppers is drying them. This can be done in an oven, in a food dehydrator or outside in sunny weather. I don’t have a food dehydrator, so sun-drying and oven-drying are the two options I use.
To dry a batch of hot peppers, first cut them lengthwise and remove the seeds. Careful – wear gloves while handling, because those little capsicums can be treacherous. Place the peppers on a cookie sheet lined with baking paper.
If drying outside, cover the cookie sheet with metal wire, cloth mesh or anything else that will keep birds and insects away but still let sunlight get to the peppers. Place in direct sunlight and turn peppers over every few hours. This process may take several days, depending on the amount of light, degree of heat and humidity.
For oven-drying, place the cookie sheet with the peppers in the oven and turn it on a very low heat. Remember, you don’t want them to be roasted – you just want all the moisture to evaporate. Keep the peppers in the oven, turning from time to time, until they are quite dry and brittle.
At this point, your dry pepper slices can be stored in a tightly sealed jar, where they will keep for a long time. You can also pulverize them in a food processor and make your own hot pepper powder, which you can likewise store in a jar. This powder can be used for seasoning various dishes as is, or made into hot paste or sauce with some salt, fresh or dry herbs and olive oil.
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As this will probably be my last post before Rosh Ha-Shana, I’d like to take the opportunity to wish all my Jewish readers a very happy start of this new year.
Domestic Felicity 
Really liked your idea about drying them out and then pulverizing them into our own chili powder type spice, or hot pepper spice that we made fresh ourselves out of the garden! I know that some experts have stated, or claimed that taking some hot pepper ingredients, (because of the capsasium in it), that it helps with weight loss a lot! However, although I love spices, my system has never been able to handle the really hot spice of jalapenos, etc.! However, you gave me an idea when you posted about grinding them up to make our own spice out of them after drying. I’m wondering if we could get some empty “veggie capsules”, (which ARE “kosher”) and then put some of the dried and now powdered spice into some veggie capsules and just take with milk or some type of drink and still get the same advantage of weight loss from the capsasium in it, while bypassing the mouth and esophagus enduring all that “burning” sensation? Do you or does anyone on here know if this would work? Also, what if any adverse effects it might have on the stomach and intestines? (As well as, how can I say this respectfully?~~As well as if there would be any negative “burning” effects on its way leaving “Out” of the body?
Thanks!
May you and your family have a very blessed Sukkot this year! We hope to one day be able to do so in ha eretz Yisra’el.
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Some studies, indeed, link capsaicin to weight loss because it induces thermogenesis (or, in simple words, makes your body burn calories producing heat). However, if you are sensitive to spices, I’d be wary of capsaicin, even in capsules, as the burning effect is not confined, as you rightly implied, to the upper digestive system (mouth and esophagus).
I do hope you come to Israel, and if you do, you are most welcome to get in touch and visit us!
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Shalom Anna:
Todah rabah for the warm welcome/invite to both contact you and to visit you in ha eretz Yisra’el. I have a question regarding living there in ha eretz:
How do both the Muslims and the Christians gain the access and ability to come there to Isra’el to live there as citizens, work and run a business there and either rent or own a home there? We are now both retired with our Social Security Incomes, which if we retained our citizenship here, we would continue receiving even if we chose to become dual citizens also of Isra’el, (were that even possible for us to do). Yet because we are not ezrachi Izra’eli, nor are we “Approved List Orthodox Jewish” converts, we can not make alliyah to the one country we feel is our only true “home”! Yet both Muslims and Christians are living there in Isra’el? We do not understand how they are able to move there permanently? Can you help me to understand how this works?
If it would be ok with you, I would like to discuss a few things regarding ha Torah etc., which is not for everyone here on your blog. Can you send me your email to my email address and we can maybe chat there? My email is tirtzah50@gmail.com I hope we can chat a bit there? I look forward to it.
Todah
Tirtzah
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Tirtzah, you can write to me through the contact form in my blog menu. It gets sent to my email and I can respond from there. I hope this helps.
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