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fermenting Ferment complete - now what?

B

bmelz

I've looking for some suggestions or ideas on what to do with my ferments. I currently have 3 different ferments going since October of 2015, all in quart sized jars.
1 - salt brine, ghosts, onion, garlic, carrot
2 - salt brine, (green) jalapenos, garlic, onion
3 - salt brine, reapers, ghosts, scorpion
 
 
Ideally I'm looking to make a sauce that's smooth and won't settle pepper bits to the bottom. the last time I made sauce with one of my ferments, I tried to leave it pretty plain but ended up with a very small amount of sauce. I don't mind adding things like vinegar, water, other veges, etc. and I don't mind having to cook it down. I'm just kind of looking for some thoughts or additions that others in hear would do with their 14 month ferments.
 
any thoughts?
 
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Welcome to THP bmelz!  
 
You've got three different ferments, all of them in quart (32oz) jars.  To increase the body of your sauces I'd suggest you open and then cook them (to stop fermentation) and then use a combination of food mill and immersion blender to process the ferments.  The cooking down will soften everything then being put through the medium screen of the food mill will remove skin and seeds.  The final blend with the immersion blender will help keep the solids suspended in the sauce, though you will have some separation w storage.  
 
Personally I'd advise you to taste the ferments as you open each one and decide what direction you'd like to take that ferment in.  Ghosts/onion/carrot/garlic might go nicely with some red fruits (thinking raspberries/strawberries or apples/pears) or even some more roasted sweet red bells to help cut that heat.  The green ferment would take some tomatillos easily, along with some vinegar and maybe some fresh cilantro.  
 
Lots of rooms to experiment!  Starting with 32 oz is only going to leave you with about 25-28 ounce after cook down though, so expect between 4-6 five ounce bottles of hot sauce per ferment provided you don't add much to the party.  :)  Please be sure to follow up here w pics and details on what direction you decided to go! 
 
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OK, thanks. I've got no problem bringing it down to safe level < 4. I'm just concerned that it'll still be safe after it's been above 4 for the last 14 months. Is cooking it down and dropping the pH enough to kill any nasties??

I just checked my jalapeno brine and it was at 4.45. I've already added enough vinigear to drop it down to 3.8 and it's cooking now, but will it be safe to eat?
 
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bmelz said:
OK, thanks. I've got no problem bringing it down to safe level < 4. I'm just concerned that it'll still be safe after it's been above 4 for the last 14 months. Is cooking it down and dropping the pH enough to kill any nasties??

I just checked my jalapeno brine and it was at 4.45. I've already added enough vinigear to drop it down to 3.8 and it's cooking now, but will it be safe to eat?
Click to expand...
 
Provided your fermentation was done in a clean sterile vessel and no air got in throughout the process you should be ok.  If you had any blowouts (ferment backing up through the airlock) or opened it to stir, etc along the way then I'd be somewhat concerned.    
 
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Well if you really want to be certain there are no nasties in it, I'd put it through a pressure canner after lowering the ph. But as said above, if it had been in a closed system up to now, It's probably ok. 14 months and not below 4? Wow. Next time add some sugar perhaps before you ferment.
 
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pV3RI3W.jpg


All done.
The red one I added blueberries for flavor and a bit of lemon juice to drop the PH.

The green one I added vinegar to drop the PH and cilantro for taste.

Each of them were blended, cooked , strained ,refrigerated for two days, then pH checked, cooked some more, then finally jarred.

They each taste really good.
 
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