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Cayenne Pepper Infused Oil

E

Elizabeth

Hello again!

I'm new to the forum and also to (hot) peppers. I have many Cayenne peppers this year and I'm searching for different EASY t hings to do with them. So far, I have plans to grind into powder, and also coursely ground.

I have also ordered bottles to make a micro batch of hot sauce. I'm sure I'll have more questions about that when the bottles come in...

Tonight, my question is about Cayenne Pepper infused oil. I bought a beautiful bottle with pour spout, and a liter of extra virgin olive oil, and I have the peppers...

Now what? Do I dry (dehydrate) them first? Do I cut the green stem end off before putting them in the bottle? Do I simply rinse the peppers,d ry them and drop in the bottle? If so, how many peppers should go in? How long will it keep? Will the peppers lend any heat to the oil? If so, will it be quite hot or slightly hot?

I know I can do this with vinegar too, but honestly, I don't use m uch vinegar, and I probably would use the oil much more frequently.

I hope I didn't ask too many questions. I appreciate all advice you are willing to share.

Thanks!

-Elizabeth
 
After a long chat with a man from the CDC when we were seated together at a luncheon, I heat process all my herbal oils, including the hot pepper oil. If you're going to cold infuse, be sure you carefully wash the peppers before putting them in the oil.
 
For myself, I would not use olive oil but rather canola or another neutral oil. You can get around the worry about contamination by blanching the peppers, drying, and then straight to the oil. Elizabeth..welcome to the forum and good luck. Please let us know how the oil thang' goes. I would like to do that mysef'. Cheers!!
 
I agree about dried, they will impart more flavor. That way you can leave them whole, and they will look prettier in the bottele.
Either way you go, I would not use EVOO unless you are just going to make salad dressing, or drizzle it over your finished food. Either of those would be great uses, but regular OO will hold up better and be cheaper for cooking with.
 
I never thought of heating the oil with the newly added ingredients, using dried ingredients I guess makes more sense to minimize mold & etc...
 
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