The Greek pepperoncinis were a sore spot around the household last year because no matter what I did they didn't "taste right" to the BF and we threw away pretty much everything and decided just to eat them fresh. So when Potawie brought up the subject, I decided to once and for all solve this thing.
Here's what I know so far:
1. The Stavros seeds I'm using are not the best but they're supposed to be pretty good.
2. The ones I see in the store bought jars and on salad bars are usually on the small side. I suspect they are picked in the green stage before they get too big.
3. The darker the pepper and the more olive color it turns after pickling, the worse it offends the sensitive taste buds of the BF.
4. The seeds and placenta turn brown almost instantly upon contact with air. Even if they don't end up noticeably brown on the inside, sometimes they're "slimy" in texture.
5. They are traditionally soaked by the processor in a sodium bisulfite (or sometimes metabisulfite) solution then rinsed prior to the actual canning process.
First I picked some representative peppers from last night's harvest. The top row are small, very immature pods.
Middle row is of varying ripeness and about the size that seems right to fit well in a jar.
Bottom row are full size and ripening. I had to cut the biggest three in half for this experiment.
Next, I divided the group in half with equal representation for each batch. I cut the stems short and made one lengthwise incision in each pod which then immediately went into my prepared preservative solution. The tub on the left is double-strength Fruit Fresh and water. The right side is pickling lime and water. (careful with the lime unless you want to re-enact that scene from Fight Club )
To purge the air out of the pods, I took another tub and cut holes in the bottom. I squished the pods a few times until there were no more bubbles.
I let them soak for maybe an hour then drained the solution off and flushed them with vinegar, squeezing them again, then placed them in pint Mason jars. I did a 'quick pickle' where I take boiling distilled vinegar, water and salt solution and pour it in the jars. I squished them again with an ice cream scoop and put the lids on. I could have fit more in there.
I screwed up the lime jar because I forgot to add the water to the vinegar I squeezed out of the peppers, so the acidity is different from the Fruit Fresh jar. I'm going to let these sit until tonight then we'll do a taste test.
c.
Here's what I know so far:
1. The Stavros seeds I'm using are not the best but they're supposed to be pretty good.
2. The ones I see in the store bought jars and on salad bars are usually on the small side. I suspect they are picked in the green stage before they get too big.
3. The darker the pepper and the more olive color it turns after pickling, the worse it offends the sensitive taste buds of the BF.
4. The seeds and placenta turn brown almost instantly upon contact with air. Even if they don't end up noticeably brown on the inside, sometimes they're "slimy" in texture.
5. They are traditionally soaked by the processor in a sodium bisulfite (or sometimes metabisulfite) solution then rinsed prior to the actual canning process.
First I picked some representative peppers from last night's harvest. The top row are small, very immature pods.
Middle row is of varying ripeness and about the size that seems right to fit well in a jar.
Bottom row are full size and ripening. I had to cut the biggest three in half for this experiment.
Next, I divided the group in half with equal representation for each batch. I cut the stems short and made one lengthwise incision in each pod which then immediately went into my prepared preservative solution. The tub on the left is double-strength Fruit Fresh and water. The right side is pickling lime and water. (careful with the lime unless you want to re-enact that scene from Fight Club )
To purge the air out of the pods, I took another tub and cut holes in the bottom. I squished the pods a few times until there were no more bubbles.
I let them soak for maybe an hour then drained the solution off and flushed them with vinegar, squeezing them again, then placed them in pint Mason jars. I did a 'quick pickle' where I take boiling distilled vinegar, water and salt solution and pour it in the jars. I squished them again with an ice cream scoop and put the lids on. I could have fit more in there.
I screwed up the lime jar because I forgot to add the water to the vinegar I squeezed out of the peppers, so the acidity is different from the Fruit Fresh jar. I'm going to let these sit until tonight then we'll do a taste test.
c.
