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TheGreenChileMonster 2018

I'm focusing this year on peppers I eat every day, and peppers I use for my sauces. Usually I grow a good 20+ varieties, but this year I am sticking to only 6. I am growing 8+ plants of many of these varieties, so it will still be a pretty packed garden. One omission that might be noticed is aji amarillo. I absolutely love aji amarillo, but I still have 4 full gallon bags of aji amarillo pods from last year in my freezer. That will last me through 2019.

My list is as follows:

Peruvian Red Rocoto-These are great for stuffing, fresh sauces, fermented sauces, kebabs, etc. A classic Peruvian pepper, that is very productive in my area. So many of my South American friends ask me if I have any for sale or trade in the Summer, that I doubled the plants this year. 8 plants will be going in 10 gallon pots.

Aji Limo-I cook with this Capsicum Chinense almost every day. It is in my opinion, the ultimate pepper to provide flavor and heat to any fish/seafood dish, plus it's amazing with chicken. This is THE pepper used in Peruvian ceviche, which is my all time favorite food. I use this for just about everything. I'm growing out some seeds from the aji limo plants I grow every single year, but also growing out some seeds from a pack a friend of mine brought me from Peru this January. 9 plants will be going in 7 gallon pots next week.

Peach Bhut Jolokia-Great building heat, great non floral flavor. This is the one pepper in the 800K SHU+ category that I really enjoy cooking with. I am growing out extra plants this year for my passion fruit and guava ghost sauce. Super prolific plant, and an early bloomer, compared to many of the other peppers in it's category. 8 plants going in 7 gallon pots next week.

Aji Largo-Based on taste tests with many seasoned chile heads in my area, out of about 15 different Pubescens cultivars last year, Aji Largo was universally chosen as the best for flavor. The plants get absolutely massive, even for a Pubescens, and need to be staked well to support all of the pods. The pods aren't ideal for stuffing, but are insanely juicy, and have a sweet almost persimmon like flavor. One healthy plant usually gives me a good 80+ pods in a season. Since I am using most of these aji largo pods for bottled sauce, I will be putting 5 plants in 7 gallon pots next week.

P. Dreadie Scotch Bonnet-This will be my second year growing this variety, and I was really pleased with the heat and flavor of the pods I grew last year. I plan on tinkering wih these pods in the kitchen with dishes, and in sauces this Summer. 2 plants going in 10 gallon pots next week.

Mini Red Rocoto-There isn't much to say here except, "wouldn't it be nice to have the same flavor and heat of a rocoto, without it being the size of an apple?". This is a great variety to quickly kick up the heat on a salad, pickle, and generally snack on. It's a bite sized rocoto for pete's sake! 2 plants going in 10 gallon pots next week.

I'm also growing some veggies as always:

Ping Tung Eggplant
Japanese Eggplant
Rosa Bianca Eggplant
Black Egg Eggplant
Black Beauty Eggplant
Tomatillo
Okra
San Marzano Tomato
Costeluno Gemovese Tomato
Beefsteak Tomato
Mortgage Lifter Tomato
Brandywine Tomato

Herbs:
Quilquiña
Huacatay
Culantro/Shado Beni
Oregano
Sweet Basil
Lemon Thyme
Rosemary

Pics coming next week while transplanting outside.
 
The P. Dreadies have really been pumping out pods lately. The plants are little bushes, but the pod output has been fantastic. I've picked a good 60+pods off of my two plants this season so far, with more ripening every day.
 

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I wanted to create a uniquely Amazonian sauce with some of these aji charapita pods. In the Amazon region of Peru, a fruit called cocona is typically used in conjunction with aji charapita pods for sauce.

Since cocona fruit is essentially impossible to get locally, I subbed it for naranjilla, which has a similar flavor as cocona. I also used some passion fruit pulp, to enhance that exotic aroma and flavor, plus to contribute a touch of sweetness.

This sauce came out seriously amazing! The flavor is uniquely exotic and spicy.
 

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Hey Dale, tell me more about the Aji Arnaucho you sent me. For a month it had 2 pods on it, then two weeks ago a third one, this morning it's just bursting with blossoms and pods. I'm reading some conflicting data (ok, more like confounding), thought maybe you could straighten me out.
 
It's one of only two chinense I have growing this year, would like to know more about the little boogers....Like what's ripe with these guys...
 
Thegreenchilemonster said:
I wanted to create a uniquely Amazonian sauce with some of these aji charapita pods. In the Amazon region of Peru, a fruit called cocona is typically used in conjunction with aji charapita pods for sauce.

Since cocona fruit is essentially impossible to get locally, I subbed it for naranjilla, which has a similar flavor as cocona. I also used some passion fruit pulp, to enhance that exotic aroma and flavor, plus to contribute a touch of sweetness.

This sauce came out seriously amazing! The flavor is uniquely exotic and spicy.
Wow! That sounds like a really nice, exotic sauce. I envy your creativity on that front. It looks like it came out really good!
 
stettoman said:
Hey Dale, tell me more about the Aji Arnaucho you sent me. For a month it had 2 pods on it, then two weeks ago a third one, this morning it's just bursting with blossoms and pods. I'm reading some conflicting data (ok, more like confounding), thought maybe you could straighten me out.
 
It's one of only two chinense I have growing this year, would like to know more about the little boogers....Like what's ripe with these guys...
Fully ripe is completely red. Most Peruvian chefs seem to cook with them half way ripened...ie purple/white, turning orange. IDK, I like them fully ripened. Here is the best known chef in Peru, Gaston Acurio, cooking with aji arnaucho.
 

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Thegreenchilemonster said:
Fully ripe is completely red. Most Peruvian chefs seem to cook with them half way ripened...ie purple/white, turning orange. IDK, I like them fully ripened. Here is the best known chef in Peru, Gaston Acurio, cooking with aji arnaucho.
 
They are pretty, that crème de somethingorother capped with lavender. Now that I have a better idea of ripe I'll hold off on my temptations. Thanks.
 
I'm alao going to have to brush up on my Peruvian dialectics.... ;)
 
ShowMeDaSauce said:
For its size, the Arnaucho has been one of my better producers. Super heat tolerant too. First couple ripe pods were a tad slow. They do take awhile to ripen but not real bad. Looks really cool when its loaded with pods in various stages of ripening. I prefer them ripe to roughly a week after ripe.
 
If anything like the Aji Limo Rojos I've read these may or may not compare to, they should be very entertaining to watch ripen, and I did get a lot of the Limos last season. I don't know if I have the patience to wait a week after they're ripe, though...
 
Beerswimmer said:
Just posting a few pics of the prize sauces at my work.  The boys are tearing in and really loving the sauce!  The bajan is the clear favorite, with the peach bhut at #2.  I was told to ask you  for the recipe for the bajan!
 
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I'm glad you are digging the sauces, and really glad you are sharing with your coworkers! Thanks for sharing those pics!

The bajan sauce is super simple to make, but requires very specific ingredients to make it so tasty.

P. Dreadie scotch bonnets
FRESH turmeric
Shado beni
Garlic
Onion
White vinegar

Wash the outside of the fresh turmeric very well, but don't remove the skin! Fresh turmeric will stain everything it touches, including your counter, if the inside of the turmeric becomes exposed. Blend up all of the ingredients with vinegar and salt to taste. Simmer the sauce for a good 20 minutes or so, and check the PH to make sure it's below 3.4. Hot fill and invert the bottles.
 

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Thegreenchilemonster said:
I'm glad you are digging the sauces, and really glad you are sharing with your coworkers! Thanks for sharing those pics!

The bajan sauce is super simple to make, but requires very specific ingredients to make it so tasty.

P. Dreadie scotch bonnets
FRESH turmeric
Shado beni
Garlic
Onion
White vinegar

Wash the outside of the fresh turmeric very well, but don't remove the skin! Fresh turmeric will stain everything it touches, including your counter, if the inside of the turmeric becomes exposed. Blend up all of the ingredients with vinegar and salt to taste. Simmer the sauce for a good 20 minutes or so, and check the PH to make sure it's below 3.4. Hot fill and invert the bottles.
That sounds absolutely delicious. Got to make that soon.
 
Thegreenchilemonster said:
I'm glad you are digging the sauces, and really glad you are sharing with your coworkers! Thanks for sharing those pics!

The bajan sauce is super simple to make, but requires very specific ingredients to make it so tasty.

P. Dreadie scotch bonnets
FRESH turmeric
Shado beni
Garlic
Onion
White vinegar

Wash the outside of the fresh turmeric very well, but don't remove the skin! Fresh turmeric will stain everything it touches, including your counter, if the inside of the turmeric becomes exposed. Blend up all of the ingredients with vinegar and salt to taste. Simmer the sauce for a good 20 minutes or so, and check the PH to make sure it's below 3.4. Hot fill and invert the bottles.
 
Shado Beni = Culantro?
 
Would you provide some rough, or exact, amounts/weights to your list of ingredients? Just something to start with. Thanks!
 
 
Thegreenchilemonster said:
Yeah, culantro. I would definitely give this sauce a try, if you have any P. Dreadies laying around. It's seriously delicious.
 

 
 
Orekoc said:
Would you provide some rough, or exact, amounts/weights to your list of ingredients? Just something to start with. Thanks!
 
 
 
 
I don't want to provide any exact weights/measurements, just in case I decide to turn this into a commercial sauce at some point in the future. All of the ingredients in the picture above went into six 6 oz. woozy bottles, after cooking, and hot filling. PH was adjusted to below 3.4 with vinegar, during the simmer.
 
ShowMeDaSauce said:
For its size, the Arnaucho has been one of my better producers. Super heat tolerant too. First couple ripe pods were a tad slow. They do take awhile to ripen but not real bad. Looks really cool when its loaded with pods in various stages of ripening. I prefer them ripe to roughly a week after ripe.
 
Mine started out with about 50 or so pods that came out all at once. They ripened at different rates & it did look cool with all the different colors. The plant didn't make any more pods for about a month and now there are at least a hundred flowers popping out.
 
Thanks for answering.  I understand.  Best of luck with it.
 
 
Thegreenchilemonster said:
I don't want to provide any exact weights/measurements, just in case I decide to turn this into a commercial sauce at some point in the future. All of the ingredients in the picture above went into six 6 oz. woozy bottles, after cooking, and hot filling. PH was adjusted to below 3.4 with vinegar, during the simmer.
 
 
Crazy Monkey said:
 
Mine started out with about 50 or so pods that came out all at once. They ripened at different rates & it did look cool with all the different colors. The plant didn't make any more pods for about a month and now there are at least a hundred flowers popping out.
Hopefully the new batch of flowers have enough time to give you another big batch of pods before the season ends!
 
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