Pepper Vinegar – Attempt #1

Well the peppers are growing like crazy and I’ve harvested enough to keep myself and all those around me up to their eyeballs in fiery foods. Two weeks ago I had so many that I took a note from Steve and his famous holiday pepper tradition and took a stab at making pepper vinegar bottles.

This harvest included Cayennes, White Habaneros, Red Savina Habs, New Mexico Green Chiles, Island Fires, Red Thai, Chocolate Habs, Orange Habs, Chileptins, one Naga and some Jalapenos.

Quick Garden Update: The cayennes have been the most prolific pepper producer so far, but followed closely by the White Habanero. The Island Fire plant and Bhut Jolokias are now over 6 feet tall!

I’ll save the details on what to do here for Steve (read it in detail here) but the biggest tip of all is to make sure you’ve got everything you’ll need out and ready. You don’t want to be opening drawers or handling other items with pepper juice all over your hands. And wear gloves!

As for bottles – we had saved up our used Patron bottles and have even ordered more off of eBay to use for the batches we’ll be producing in the next few weeks.

These first three turned out so well that I was able to finally convince the Ex that my pepper garden had a purpose – she now wants to give these out as Christmas gifts. After this batch, I made a special batch just for myself – all Red Savinas and White Habaneros. That bottle now sits on the corner of my desk in my office – as a warning for those that get to close. 😉

Nick Lindauer: The Original Hot Sauce Blog