Stickman's 2012 Gochu Pepper Glog

Well, here we go... Started about 35 Korean Gochu Peppers and a few Korean salad peppers, jalapenos and orange habs. All are mostly up today but the habs. I started them early last week in my heated grow tent down in my cellar on top of a grow mat, but didn't have the thermostat quite dialed in. When I left it it was 70 degrees f. in the tent. When I checked again the next morning it was 85 degrees, and I was afraid I'd cooked the seeds, so I moved them onto my kitchen windowsill on the grow mat and awaited developments. Looking much better now. I'll give the Habs until the weekend to pop, then move the flat down to the grow tent.

 

[stc3248]

My cukes always end up with some sort of issue around this time of year. I have some powdery mildew on mine right now. I didn't put any eggplant or zucchini in this year...wish I had. I like Eggplant Parmigiana better than chicken. They're both room stealers...so they didn't make the cut. Next year I am going to cut down on the #'s of peppers and only plant the ones I really liked. So many of the ones I have going are so similar heat and flavor wise there really is no need to grow them all. Between the Red 7, Barrackpore, Scorpions, Brainstrain They all taste similar and how many "melt your face off" peppers do you really need???

Whatcha gonna do with that eggplant? Can't wait to see the foodie pics!

 

[stickman]

Welcome to the top of page 21 Shane! Does that mean my glog is legal to drink?
I'm going to fire up the charcoal grill this afternoon and make Baba Ganouj since I have two eggplants over a pound. My kid sister is driving out to my Mom's from Eau Claire, WI and she should arrive by tonight, so I'm making it to take over when we go tomorrow. I'll post pics on the ethnic food thread. Cheers!

 

[RocketMan]

Dude, I made some Bulgogi and cheese Ramen and it was really good but all I could think while I was eating was Damn I so could use some of Stickmans Gochu Gang in this!


Hope your weekend is a good one.

 

[stickman]

Next year I am going to cut down on the #'s of peppers and only plant the ones I really liked. So many of the ones I have going are so similar heat and flavor wise there really is no need to grow them all. Between the Red 7, Barrackpore, Scorpions, Brainstrain They all taste similar and how many "melt your face off" peppers do you really need???

Agreed! That's been my position all along. I don't believe in "Acquired Tastes" so much, and the "melt your face off" peppers cancel out the other flavors for me. As I've been trying to deal with hypertension by cutting back on salt and losing weight (never been easy for me, I LOVE food), I find you can roast and steam eggplant instead of frying in oil and get great results. The Koreans make a great side dish called Kaji Namul that's made with steamed eggplant cut into bite sized strips and marinated in the 'fridge. It's excellent served cold on a hot day!

Dude, I made some Bulgogi and cheese Ramen and it was really good but all I could think while I was eating was Damn I so could use some of Stickmans Gochu Gang in this!

Hope your weekend is a good one.

If you're interested, when I get enough Gochu Garu together from my ripe peppers I'll make a batch. You should be able to find it in the Asian markets in your area though. If not, I can send you a care package. Cheers!

 

[SocalChilehead]

That Baba Ganouj sounds great you interested in trying some Lemon (baby pods not sure on seed count but I will send you some seeds if you enjoy them) and thick cayenne peppers. Just pm harvesting the rest and hopefully all of the baby pods tomorrow so these real beast come out to play.

 

[stickman]

That Baba Ganouj sounds great you interested in trying some Lemon (baby pods not sure on seed count but I will send you some seeds if you enjoy them) and thick cayenne peppers. Just pm harvesting the rest and hopefully all of the baby pods tomorrow so these real beast come out to play.

Hi Fernando! Sure, I'll try them, and thanks! Baba Ganouj is really easy to make. I just take whole eggplant and grill them until the outer skin is black and blistered. The pulp inside will be nice and soft, and will have gotten a nice smoky flavor. The skin will split during this process and steam and juices will drip out, but don't worry... that's normal. You can do this on a gas range but then you need to line the burner with foil to hold the dripping juices and avoid making a mess. I prefer my charcoal grill. Once the eggplant is cooked enough, cut off the stem and scrape the pulp away from the burnt skin with a spoon and put it in a blender or food processor. Add a teaspoon of salt, the juice of a lemon and a peeled and coarsely chopped clove of garlic. Blend until smooth. Add 4 or 5 tablespoons of tahini and blend ingredients together. Check the taste and add more salt or lemon juice if you want. Scrape into a bowl, garnish with chopped parsley and drizzle with the best extra virgin olive oil you can find... a fruity tasting one would be traditional, and serve with chips or pita wedges. If you're one of those folks who don't like getting chunks of garlic in the finished product grind the garlic and salt first in a mortar and pestle, molcajete or suribachi. The garlic will just liquefy and disappear into the food. I'll post pics later in the ethnic food thread.

 

[HabaneroHead]

Hi Stickman,

I always get hungry while reading your glog!
Nice plants, nice recipies!

Balázs

 

[KiNGDeNNiZ]

awesome grow. Love the eggplants. Harvest one about that size last week. Got a whole bunching coming.

 

[roper2008]

Here is the recipe for the Habanero Gold. I've never made it myself.
Copied from another forum.


1 cup minced dried apricots (1/8" dice)
Note: Could use dried peaches or pears instead.
1-1/4 total cup minced red sweet pepper and minced red onion (1/8" dice),
approximately half-and-half.
1/4 cup Habanero peppers
Note: For extra-hot, increase Habaneros to 1/2 cup and reduce red sweet
pepper/red onion combination to 1 cup total.
1-1/2 cups white vinegar
6 cups sugar
1 3-ounce pouch liquid pectin
. Prep apricots, peppers and onion. Place in a large, stainless or other
non-reactive pot. Add sugar and vinegar. Bring to the boil and cook 5
minutes. Pull off the burner; allow to cool, cover and let sit
overnight. Stir occasionally if convenient.
Note: 4-6 hours would be plenty, so the time doesn't need to be any
greater than the soaking time for apricots in the original recipe.
Next day, bring the mixture back to the boil. Stir in liquid pectin.
Boil hard 1 minute. Pull off the heat. If necessary, skim foam. (I did
need to skim a bit.) Let cool 2 minutes, stirring to distribute solids.
Pour into jars. Stir to distribute and remove air bubbles. Do the usual
with the jars and lids, BWB 10 minutes.
When jars are sealed, "agitate" to distribute solids throughout the
jelly.

p.s. You soak the apricots for 4 hours.

 

[stickman]

Thanks for passing on that recipe Linda! I'll definitely give it a try. I love apricots. During the thanksgiving/christmas holidays a family favorite is a chutney I make with whole cranberries, ginger, brown sugar, cider vinegar and snipped dried apricots. Lots of perk and great with kale and curries too.

Hi Stickman,

I always get hungry while reading your glog!
Nice plants, nice recipies!

Balázs

Thanks HH, I'm looking forward to cooking up the recipe for Porkolt you sent. I have a pork shoulder and some slab bacon in the freezer that should work well with it, and a pound of smoked, sweet paprika to flavor it with.

awesome grow. Love the eggplants. Harvest one about that size last week. Got a whole bunching coming.

Hey Denniz, thanks for the kind words and for stopping by. Yeah, lots of ways to love eggplant beyond just frying it in oil. Ever heard of something called "Imam Byaldo"? It's a stuffed eggplant dish from the Balkans with a story attached...The story is that an Imam (religious scholar) loved a young woman because she made a fried eggplant dish he really got into. He loved it so much that when their marriage was arranged, all he asked for as a dowry was her weight in cooking oil. The first three nights after their marriage he was in heaven because she made him his favorite dish every night. On the fourth night, however, she didn't. When he asked her why, she said they were out of oil. (An expensive commodity in those days) and he fainted...

 

[stickman]

Mornin' All, just back from picking cukes, cherry tomatoes and lots of Frigitello peppers. Hope you all had a happy and productive weekend...

I'm thinking about making up some eggplant and frigitello peppers preserved in oil for antipasto since I have both in abundance and I already pickled some of the peppers. Just need a few more cukes to make a batch of spicy pickles. Cheers

 

[stickman]

The heat is supposed to be pretty brutal today. Highs in the mid nineties and humid as all H@&&. The chiles are dropping flowers like crazy and a few are yellowing around the edges. Time for some chilled buckwheat noodle soup called Mul Naeng Myun. My first batch of Yeolmu Mulkimchi is ready to eat now. It's been in the 'fridge developing it's flavors, and it has the tang I like. The next step is to make broth. Traditionally, the broth is about 1:1:1 chicken broth, shin beef broth and kimchi brine, but I'm just going to use chicken broth and brine from the yeolmu mulkimchi. I try to really wring out the chicken carcasses we have left after roasting them, and I put the skin, bones and cartilage in a gallon-sized ziplok bag in the freezer. When the bag is full it's time to make stock. I put the carcasses in the 7 quart crockpot with a quarter cup or so of something acid like white wine, lemon juice or vinegar, a couple of onions cut in half and a couple of carrots and celery stalks cut into chunks. Add enough hot water from the teakettle to cover and let it simmer all day. I love using the crockpot slow cooker for this since I can leave the house and know that it'll run safely on its own.

Making stock and the young radish kimchi

When the stock has simmered enough I strain it through three layers of cheesecloth in a colander, pour it into jars and let it cool. When cooled, I skim off the congealed fat on top and discard it, then cap the jars and refrigerate.

Next, boil the buckwheat noodles for about 4 minutes so they don't overcook, and rinse in cold running water to chill.

Lastly, put about a handful of noodles in the bottom of a bowl, add fresh or pickled vegetables, cold shredded meat, or marinated tofu or a soft boiled egg sliced in half and pour in a generous amount of the tangy chilled broth mixture. If you don't have any kimchi brine for tang, add a bit of rice vinegar to taste. For a touch of sweetness add thin slices of Asian pear or a pinch of sugar. On hot days I add ice chips too.

Cheers

 

[HabaneroHead]

Holy cow!
It looks tasty! It must be my punishment to read your entries at the end of my working day with empty stomach...
It's good to see other people who love eating as much as I do.

 

[stickman]

Whew! Today is supposed to be much more comfortable... highs in the mid 80's and less humid. Gotta leave for work early, so these are the harvest pics...

Not-Serrano Anaheims, a few Frigitello peppers and a couple of eggplant. I think the one on the right looks a little like Fred Flintstone...

Cherry tomatoes and my entire harvest of potatoes. I planted 4 Yukon Gold potato plants in a grow bag, and they grew great. The plants died back after flowering, which I expected, but the miniscule harvest i didn't. Oh well, you only know by trying, and now I know. Cheers

 

[PIC 1]

Those are some big Anaheims!
I can see those blistering on the grill........................very tasty!

I haven't tryed to grow the Yukons, but last year I grew the Russian Fingerlings. Those were the "dust off" and eat right out of the container type with creamy texture. . Last season we had a ton of rain. Some of the spuds on the bottom spoiled, due to soggy late in the summer soil. If I knew we were having a drought this year I would have tryed them and a few others again. At least I could have controlled the water this season.

Good luck with the rest of your season

Greg

 

[stickman]

Those are some big Anaheims!
I can see those blistering on the grill........................very tasty!

I haven't tryed to grow the Yukons, but last year I grew the Russian Fingerlings. Those were the "dust off" and eat right out of the container type with creamy texture. . Last season we had a ton of rain. Some of the spuds on the bottom spoiled, due to soggy late in the summer soil. If I knew we were having a drought this year I would have tryed them and a few others again. At least I could have controlled the water this season.

Good luck with the rest of your season

Greg

Hi Greg,
Thanks for stopping by and the kind words.! I'm definitely going to fire up the grill tonight and make chiles rellenos!
Good luck with the rest of your season too. Cheers

 

[Beehunter]

Nice! looking good man. chiles rellenos on the grill sounds about perfect.

 

[SocalChilehead]

Great harvest Rick the frigitello peppers look awesome. That sucks about the potatoe harvest what size grow bag did you use?

 

[stickman]

Great harvest Rick the frigitello peppers look awesome. That sucks about the potatoe harvest what size grow bag did you use?

Hi Fernando
I don't remember what the volume was, but it's about 3 feet high by a foot and a half wide. The bag is made of dark green woven polyester of the kind they make tarps out of. I had the bag up on a palette on the south side of the house, and I noticed when I was digging in the soil that it was quite hot, so I think I had some of the same troubles that Shane had before he wrapped his pots in white plastic to cool them down.
Live and learn... I got 4 quarts of the Frigitello peppers so far, and at least that many more coming. Cheers!

 

[stc3248]

That does suck! Bright sides are I bet they looked nice for a while and you have enough for potato salad for one!