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I must be patient with ripening to get the most heat?

J

Jabski

I have to be patient and let my peppers ripen to get the most heat from them.  Is that true?  For example the Carolina Reapers have to be completely red, no orange and definately no green or else I kind of wasted my time.  I picked some yesterday to dry and I noticed some orange and even a little green in the ones I picked.  I guess the same would go with the hab's and Fatalli's too.
 
Thank You
 
A little bit of non-mature color doesn't mean they'll lack the heat you're looking for from them - they'll still be plenty hot and some pods that are mostly mature will sometimes change color the rest of the way if left out for a day or two, I believe (someone with a bit more experience could better verify this, I'm sure).
 
Even if they're still green they'll still be edible and something like a Reaper will still likely be packing a lot of heat. :)
 
Super Hots Canada said:
A little bit of non-mature color doesn't mean they'll lack the heat you're looking for from them - they'll still be plenty hot and some pods that are mostly mature will sometimes change color the rest of the way if left out for a day or two, I believe (someone with a bit more experience could better verify this, I'm sure).
 
Even if they're still green they'll still be edible and something like a Reaper will still likely be packing a lot of heat. :)
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Thank you for that information. :P   I want to be like you except doing it in Pennsylvania.
 
I'm sure you'll do good.. you're in a warmer area and there is tons of information on this site, not to mention all the awesome folks here. :) I only just started last year so I still have -plenty- to learn.
 
It's helpful to know that both very-early- and very-late-season pods can be milder than peak-season pods. Also, heat in individual pods on the same plant at the same time can vary. But as SHC said, pods that are mostly mature will have most of their heat and mostly-mature superhots will definitely have heat. 
 
To me, heat is fun but chiles are primarily about the flavor. Chiles that are fully ripe have had time to develop their sugars and are typically at the best of their flavor.  Taste is subjective and some people like some varieties green, so you should try them for yourself to decide what you like best. I prefer fully ripe - not just until they turn, but even leave them on the plant a week after that. GOOD stuff!
 
They have all the heat they're going to get once they reach full size.  At that point, ripening to a color change improves flavor.  The longer they ripen the better... until they rot.
 
Those Carolina Reapers pack some real heat, it does not matter fully color are not.The average person can not eat one.As Dave2000 pointed out color only improves flavor, making them more sweeter.Carolina Reapers are a lot of heat and bring on some real pain.
 
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