If you've bought fresh chilies but won't be able to eat them all within the next 3 weeks, we offer solutions to preserve them longer.

Our long-term preservation methods

Before any handling: always wear gloves, the capsaicin contained in chilies stays on fingers and can cause burns if you rub your eyes, nose, face or any other sensitive parts of your body...

Method 1: freezing fresh chilies

Simply protect your chilies in a freezer bag and put them in the freezer. You can take them out whenever you need them. Your chilies might be a bit softer but the taste will remain unchanged!

Once frozen, you can keep your chilies in the freezer for several months.

Method 2: drying chilies

Once your chili is dried you can preserve it for several years! Before starting, check each chili and don't keep those that have:

• traces of mold
• white spots
• a suspicious smell

Rinse each fruit with hot water, dry them with a clean cloth and remove the stem (except when air-drying your chilies).

1. Drying chilies in the oven

Cut your chilies in half so the inside can dry, then put them on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Set the oven to 50°C and let the chilies dry for as long as needed until they are completely dry. This technique will take several hours, the bigger the chilies, the longer it will take. Leave the oven door slightly open to let moisture escape and remember to turn the chilies every hour.

2. Drying chilies in a dehydrator

Place your dehydrator in a well-ventilated room. Leave space in the machine so air can circulate between the chilies. Set your dehydrator temperature between 55 and 60°C then let dry for 8 to 12 hours. Check occasionally and remove dried chilies as they become ready.

You'll find many seeds, set them aside to plant your chilies next year.

Once dry, you can store your chilies in a hermetically sealed freezer bag or in a glass jar.

3. Drying your chilies indoors

This is the most economical but also the longest method. If you want to dry your chilies indoors, place them in a warm room (at least 20°C), dry (so they don't rot) and ventilated because the chilies will release a small (invisible) smoke that irritates eyes and nose. Ideally, use a fan and keep the window open so there is air circulation in the room.

If you have children or pets, don't let them access the room.

Turn the chilies regularly and allow at least 2 weeks for your chilies to dry.

4. Drying chilies outdoors

The process is long and depends on the region where you live. If you live (like us) in northern France, you might have more difficulties...

Place your chilies on a cloth in the sun to dry for several days (or weeks) until they are completely dry. Remember to turn them every day and bring them inside at night if the temperature drops too low. If you want to dry your chilies cut into pieces, protect them from insects with a thin film.

You can also tie your chilies by the stem along a string and hang it outside, which prevents you from having to handle the chilies every day to turn them. But if you have many chilies, this technique might take a lot of time to set up, and you'll need space to hang them.

How to know when your chili is properly dried? A dried chili should have no trace of mold, dried chilies should maintain some flexibility, no need to let them completely dry until they're brown, or hard as stone. The chili should be uniformly dry, fragile and have soft skin.

What to do with my dried chilies?

• Store them in a freezer bag and use them to make soups, sauces and various seasonings for your meats, fish and seafood...
• Place them in a blender and prepare your own spice blend to create your seasoning.
• Use the seeds to replant chilies the following year.

---> How to rehydrate dried chili?

Method 3: salting chilies

Putting your chilies in brine will allow you to preserve them for several months, it's a technique widely used in Mexico.

Ingredients:

• 500 g of Jalapeno (for example) cut into quarters
• 250 g of carrots
• 1 roughly chopped garlic clove
• 1 tablespoon of coarse salt.
• 1 teaspoon of pepper
• 700 ml of vinegar
• Add a few drops of your favorite hot sauce

Recipe:

Boil the vinegar

Add the carrots and cook for 10 minutes

Add the other ingredients and boil for 10 minutes

Remove from heat, place everything in a glass jar, let cool.

Close the jar and store in a cool place.

Method 4: preserving chilies

Ingredients

• 1.3 kg of chilies
• 350 ml of lemon juice
• 2 liters of water
• 1.5 liters of apple cider vinegar
• 235 ml of water
• 2.5 tablespoons of salt
• 3 tablespoons of celery seeds
• 6 tablespoons of mustard seeds

Recipe

Wash and cut the chilies into 1 cm slices

Mix 350 ml of lemon juice with 2 liters of water.

Put the chilies in the water and lemon solution, then refrigerate for 18 hours. Stir occasionally.

Remove the chilies from the water and lemon juice solution. Soak in water for 1 hour (in the fridge). Repeat this process 2 to 3 times. The last time, dry the chilies thoroughly.

Prepare your water bath and jars for preserving.

Place 1 tablespoon of mustard and celery seeds at the bottom of each jar, place the chilies and leave 2 cm of space.

In a separate pan, boil the vinegar and 400 ml of salted water. Then put the solution in each jar. The chilies must be covered with the solution.

Sterilize your jars.

Method 5: making chili oil

To preserve your chilies you can also make chili oil.

Clean your chilies thoroughly, grill them on the barbecue (not too long), then place them in a bottle and add:

• 1L of olive oil
• A few sprigs of thyme
• 4 or 5 chilies of your choice
• 2 or 3 bay leaves
• 1 garlic clove
• 10 peppercorns

Let it macerate for a whole month.