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AJs 2009 Concentrate/Puree 07-19-09

AlabamaJack

AlabamaJack

eXtreme
Well, I have started making concentrate for 2009. I am going to start calling this puree instead of concentrate. There seems to be some question as to whether this is actually concentrate or not...sooooo....I will call the stuff puree because that is what I do, I puree it then cook it down....

8 half pints Fatalii and 7 half pints of Bhut Jolokia...this is a good start for the year...I didn't start making puree last year until the first of November...

071909a015.jpg


The dehydrator is running 24/7 with cayennes, anaheims, cascabel, NuMex Sandias, and Super Chilis (these are some of the , contents of my home made chili powder)...

top shelf super chili, second shelf, chicken hearts, third and fourth shelf cayenne, fifth and sixth shelf anaheims etc...

071909b001.jpg
 
Jimminy Christmas! SO why are you getting so many peppers earlier this year? Did you start them earlier or are they just producing better for you because....? I have to assume you have more plants too?

I already have 3 jars of Puree and 1 marmalade in the cabinet, several bags of peppers in the freezer waiting for a big batch, and several more bags that my sun-dried specimens go in. Of course, I only have 1 or 2 plants of each variety - but I can see that starting them in Jan/Feb pays off early.
 
caroltlw said:
Jimminy Christmas! SO why are you getting so many peppers earlier this year? Did you start them earlier or are they just producing better for you because....? I have to assume you have more plants too?

- but I can see that starting them in Jan/Feb pays off early.
Click to expand...

Carol, this is three weeks worth of peppers...I picked another 7.5 lbs yesterday but didn't take pics...I just think I learned a lot last year...like when to switch fertilize, watering smarter, plus I have better seed stock this year than I did last...I have about the same number of plants this year as I ended up with last year...I think it is the varieties I am growing...they just seem to be prolific...

and yes, starting in Jan/Feb helps a great deal...I have gotten about 11 lbs fataliis so far with the comparison fataliis I am growing and they were started 12 January if I remember correctly...but then again, I have 4 Devils Tongues, 15 Fataliis, 5 Red Fataliis, and 5 Chocolate Fataliis...so on the average, I have only gotten about 1/3 pound per plant...so far...

Bob_B said:
AJ,

What exactly is the recipe for your puree? I assume you can it?

Thanks,

Bob
Click to expand...

no problem Bob...

100 gms pepper (all but the stem)
60 ml white vinegar (5%)
dash of sea salt
~1/4 tsp agave nectar

this is the size batches I make and it fits in one of the magic bullet containers perfectly...
 
AJ, please adopt me. I don't eat much and I'm house broken. :lol:

I can't wait to give this a go this year. I'm saving the cash to buy a new pressure canner and threads like this provide tons of inspiration and salivation.
 
AlabamaJack said:
I have gotten about 11 lbs fataliis so far with the comparison fataliis I am growing and they were started 12 January if I remember correctly...
Click to expand...

:shocked:

My most productive plants were started Jan 2 (lemon drops) and Jan 18 (red hab). The later ones Feb 14+ (long choc habs, etc) are impressive looking specimens but didn't get a full fruit set before the weather turned to scorching. Fall harvest might show the opposite results.
The earlier starts (Dec) seem stunted by comparison.
 
Skydiver said:
AJ, please adopt me. I don't eat much and I'm house broken. :lol:

I can't wait to give this a go this year. I'm saving the cash to buy a new pressure canner and threads like this provide tons of inspiration and salivation.
Click to expand...

you will love the pressure canning method...or at least I do...

not taking any applications right now for adoptees...but will keep you in mind if we do... ;)

caroltlw said:
:shocked:

My most productive plants were started Jan 2 (lemon drops) and Jan 18 (red hab). The later ones Feb 14+ (long choc habs, etc) are impressive looking specimens but didn't get a full fruit set before the weather turned to scorching. Fall harvest might show the opposite results.
The earlier starts (Dec) seem stunted by comparison.
Click to expand...

I am sure the Fall harvest is going to be killer Carol...I just hope I can dulplicate the 80 pounds I harvested in October last year....

todays puree-ing resulted in

bottom row - 5 Red Fatalii
Middle Row - 3 7 Pot 1 Trinidad Scorpion
Top Row - 2 Foodarama Scotch Bonnet, 1 Chocolate Fatalii

in the middle row, the 7 pots are on the left...notice how much more red they are than the others...

071909c002.jpg
 
Look'n great AJ! I'm confused though...I still say it is a concentrate. Only because you are cooking it way down, thus it becomes a concentrate. All concentrates are made from purees. For your recipe to be a puree, it would not be cooked down.

For all of those out there that started this confussion...This recipe calls for first: pureeing the peppers and then: cooking down of the puree to a point that it is thick, thus making it a concentrate.



Uhm...Sorry for my rant...I've only had one cup of coffee so far, not quit awake yet...

Okay, now that I have ahd another cup along with some Mt. Dew, I feel better.

Taken from Wikipedia:
A concentrate is a form of substance which has had the majority of its base component (in the case of a liquid: the solvent) removed. Typically this will be the removal of water from a solution or suspension such as the removal of water from fruit juice. One benefit of producing a concentrate is that of a reduction in weight and volume for transportation as the concentrate can be re-constituted at the time of usage by the addition of the solvent.

By boiling the pepper puree for at least 30 minutes, you are removing the water that is in the puree, thus making a concentrate.
 
Very nice AJ. Any chance we can get a shot of the cabinet where you store all this? I can imagine you must have purees and powders galore.
 
@AJ Do you know the reason, technical or otherwise, for the addition of vinegar to the puree? I would assume it's to dissolve capsaicin, and perhaps liven up flavors in foods as well. But is there a reason beyond that? As in preventing spoilage and the like. Just wondering. Guess I'm asking cause I'm not a big vinegar fan, or vinegary sauce fan.

Great work BTW...
 
PF...I was thinking along the same lines as you with the concentrate...it really doesn't make any difference to me what you call it...I know the stuff is definitely hot and it preserves the fresh taste of the peppers...

shelves a mess right now Josh...gimme a couple of days and I will post a pic...I have used a lot of the bottles from last year...

Diablo...I use the vinegar to lower the pH of the concoction...the vinegar is acidic (read low pH)...pH is very important for shelf life...if you want to make something to eat in a couple of weeks, you don't have to use the vinegar (or lime juice or lemon juice, or something else acidic), but if you want shelf life, you have to use something that will deter growth of bacteria and a low pH is the answer...I am not a big fan of vinegar based sauces either, but the vinegar in the concentrate to me does not give you the vinegary taste like tabasco sauce..
 
Hey AJ, fantastic looking results you've gotten! Kudos man. I noticed a couple of differences between how you do things and how I do the same thing.

I remove the stems and halve each pepper to reduce the amount of drying time and to avoid some of the thicker parts not being dried as well as the smaller parts.

I noticed you leave the stems on and dry your peppers whole.

I'm guessing that you do it to save prep time and compensate with longer drying times.
 
I am basically lazy so I just put the peppers in the dehydrator whole.

No particular reason for doing it that way...just the way I do it....if I sell any of the dehydrated pods, they just look better whole with the stems on than they do halved...IMO
 
it is a way of preserving the color and taste of fresh peppers IMO.

yes, use it for cooking, making sauces/salsas...don't need much to add heat this way...
 
AlabamaJack said:
Diablo...I use the vinegar to lower the pH of the concoction...the vinegar is acidic (read low pH)...pH is very important for shelf life...if you want to make something to eat in a couple of weeks, you don't have to use the vinegar (or lime juice or lemon juice, or something else acidic), but if you want shelf life, you have to use something that will deter growth of bacteria and a low pH is the answer...I am not a big fan of vinegar based sauces either, but the vinegar in the concentrate to me does not give you the vinegary taste like tabasco sauce..
Click to expand...

Very nice impressive stash of concentrates you have AJ.

I might add that one of the main advantages of "pressure canning" is that the higher temps produced during processing don't require the higher acidic levels needed as when using the "hot water bath" method. I'm sure you could remove the vinegar from your recipe and maybe just add a little citrus juice if you wanted.

I too am surprised you don't slice your peppers in half b4 drying. Not only is the drying time reduced, but it allows the spotting of the occasional odd chili with dark seeds to be discarded or just removal of the bad seeds.

Again, great pantry load of spicy hot treasure. :)
 
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