September 13, 2020
Preserving the Peppers
By Linda Dansbury

It has been a banner year for peppers, both hot and sweet. The harvest of each will start to wane soon, and you might be thinking "good, because I don't know what to do with more peppers". Well, you can freeze them for one. Yes, they won't be crunchy when defrosted, but they are still delicious when added to chili and Mexican inspired soups and stews. I talked about the Pepper Puree in last week's post and that is a great option for preserving the peppers. Another delicious and flexible way to preserve the peppers is to make Romesco Sauce. It freezes very well and is great on grilled bread, chicken, fish, or pretty much anything!

I always freeze my hot peppers whole and then I can use them in all sorts of dishes throughout the year, until the fresh ones roll in again next summer. Whenever a cooked recipe calls for red pepper flakes or a hot pepper, I just take one or part of one out of the freezer and use what I want. They lose their crispness, but not their color - just place in a freezer bag, squeeze out the air and seal.