Garden Updates

[KEN W]

They will continue to grow and eventually turn red.When full red color they are ripe and will start to deteriorate.Until then just leave them on the plant until you need them.I don't pick them all and freeze until a frost kills the plant.Just be sure to pick the colored ones first.

All peppers,no matter what variety, will turn color when ripe..... from green to red,yellow,chocolate,or orange.

If they are jalapenos they should be hot no matter what size they are.Can't understand why they would taste like bells with no heat.

If to hot.....take out the seeds.That's where most of the heat is.

[hanson]

Thought the jalepeno ripeness question was a good one.

My first plant, I've been picking them when they are about the size I thought they should be (4" long, diameter of my thumb). Haven't eaten one yet though.

Just cut one open and oh yeah, plenty of heat there.

Now I've got some greens about the size of a tennis ball... ready to go or should I wait a bit longer??

And... how big does a Pablano get? I've seriously never eaten one before, just heard they were good and planted them.

[maros91]

Thats kind of weird as mine have no heat and taste like a bell pepper. On the tag it shows them being a dark color. I'll just let them go and see what happens. Thanks for the info.

[Duffman]

Biff....

I planted some "mild" jalapenos a few years ago, I forgot what they were officially called, but they had no where near the heat of a regular jalapeno(looked and tasted the same). Maybe your plant is one of these and it got labeled incorrectly.

I whipped up some of those cheese stuffed bacon wrapped jalopenos for a party once using both kinds of peppers. The folks who chowed down the mild ones first were a bit suprised when they bit into a real one.

[hoggs222]

Poblano's get around 8" long, maybe a little more. They are best when they are roasted. (google roasting poblano's)

Basically, all you're doing is roasting them on a grill until they start to bubble on all sides, then remove and put in a plastic bag for 10-15 minutes to finish cooking. Remove the seeds and outer skin that's bubbled off and serve however you want. I use these in cornbread a lot.

Jalapeno's will lose some heat if overwatered. I was told to let them get the yellowish stress cracks in them and then pick.

Like these:

[fishersofmen]

hoggs does the cake mean its your birthday?? If so happy birthday.....

[crothmeier]

canned a batch of salsa with tomatos and jalapeno/chili/green peppers from the garden last night. (had to buy onions, mine arent ready).

hopefully i can get 2-3 more batches of salsa and a few batches of stewed tomatos before fall.

[nofishfisherman]

When canning your salsa do you take any special steps to add more acid to it? My wife and I will be canning for the first time this season and we have heard that canning tomatoes is easy but when doing salsa you need to be concerned about the onions and peppers as they do not have enough acid to stay preserved.

I should say we are not going to be pressure canning, just going to go with the heat bath method.

[Big-Al]

My wife and I know people that just water bath salsa and they are still alive. She always pressure cans at 15# for 20 minutes. We have never had a jar go bad. We (she) has done hundreds of jars. We still prefer the fresh stuff but that is hard to do it for the superbowl with garden stuff. If you go by the recommendations from the Extension Service they will tell you not to can it at all with the peppers and onions. Also make sure that you put some vinegar in it - it is a hard thing to determine the amount but since we have done it for years we just seem to get it right!

[Duffman]

Well, I had a bunch of jalapeno's this weekend stuffed w/creme cheese and wrapped in bacon on the grill. The peppers were straight from the garden, they were a big hit at my little gathering, but they were not hot/spicy, and everyone commented on that. Why weren't they hot? I have no clue.

So Biff, you are not the only one dealing with not so spicy jalapenos.

[KEN W]

I'm in full canning mode now....spagetti,salsa,pizza,and taco sauces.My jalapeno's are hot.

[crothmeier]

we cook the salsa then put directly into jars and tighten the lids, after an hour or two they all pop and seal. No special ingredients to preserve. I've eaten salsa a year and half old without a problem.

My jalapenos are also extrememly hot. My next batch of salsa will be hotter. this was the medium batch.

[maros91]

So Biff, you are not the only one dealing with not so spicy jalapenos.

Mine have turned red and I picked one and it still tasted like a bell pepper. Will try again in a week or so.

[KEN W]

Maybe you have Tam mild Jalapeno's?