Recent content by ComradeQ

I planted 6 cayenne plants this year and the summer has been terrible for my peppers. Last year I had a ton, this year very few. Just a bad Canadian summer for me ... next year out of the garden and into pots, see if that improves.

Had no luck finding fresh tabasco peppers so trying to find an alternate ... thought I would look for some fresh cayenne pepper pods? Anyone got anything to sell and willing to ship to Canada? Any suggested alternatives to tabasco peppers would also be considered. I was asked to make a barrel...

jsschrstrcks - Thanks for the input, guess you make a good point. I'm not looking for something as hot as a fatalii but I agree they have a great flavour. I was hoping to do a tabasco clone as I have had a request for a very close friend to make some for a wedding. With that said, any...

Just a quick question ... I have read several posts where it says not to use lined caps if you use an orifice reducer. Is this just because it is not necessary or will it affect the seal? I have lined caps only and orifice reducers and was wondering if it was ok to use both?

Well despite all my early problems I did seem to get the mold under control. Placed all my bottles and other cooking supplies into the disinfect cycle on the dishwasher. Grabbed my brand new unused digital PH meter and went to calibrate it while the washer was on. Well guess what? It doesn't...

Still looking if anyone has any fresh tabasco pods to sell? Got my oak barrel waiting and anxious to try my own version of tabasco sauce. Please PM if you can help. :)

Just curious if anyone has any fresh tabasco pods available yet? Should be getting pretty close I think ... shoot me a pm if you want to sell some ;)

Quick question: is it possible for mold to grow beneath a brine? Just curious as there is some slightly fluffy looking mash beneath the brine on the top but I seem to have got the brine surface mold under control so not sure if it is ok or not.

So it looks like I didn't have to bin it. Took a suggestion from a friend of mine and scooped out the mold, took a disinfected cloth that I had boiled and soaked an edge of it in white wine vinegar then rubbed the rag around the inside of the jar above the brine, along the thread and lip, and...

The mold keeps coming back. I don't know if I should keep opening and scooping it out or what but this is disappointing. I know with this style of ferment you are not supposed to break the airlock, should I just leave the mold until I open it in a month or more or should I continue to keep...

That looks delicious! How did the strawberry taste come through? I'm trying my own right now and have been waiting to see your results. You inspired me to try a strawberry hot sauce and man did you come through, great job!

I am using some porcelain weights that are designed for this purpose, food safe and dishwasher safe. Those are holding some cheesecloth down to prevent the mash from rising, hence the reason I am hesitant to break the barrier. Sorry I guess I should have mentioned that first, you can't really...

Thanks for the advice! I have not been stirring as I did not want to break the airlock. My understanding is that the brine should cover and act as a barrier to oxygen and pathogens. The one with the mold was also the one I had concerns about before as there was debris floating on top ... sure...

Help! Been a week, inspected when I got home from work today and saw this ... There is a small green speck in the center so I'm assuming it is mold and not yeast. Is there any way to fix this or is it ruined? I boiled and disinfected everything so not sure where I went wrong. Haven't broken...

Updated with pics ... used the same ratios above just had double the amount. The lineup: The Mash in Jars: My only question ... the brine on top is 2 cups water and 2 tbsp pickling salt. Despite weighing down the mash, one of the jars had a small amount of debris. I tried fishing out most...