How does one prepare jalapenos? Can I just slice 'em up and add them to dishes? Do they need tobe dried?
Is there a best way to prepare them?
I’ve had them heaped on nachos at restaurants, and found them jarred like pickle slices, but being that I prepare a variety of hot peppers, but never tackled the jalapeno directly, I was wondering what I should know about them.
Do I dry them? Pickle them? Slice 'em and mix them in?
You can pickle them or chop them and add them to dishes. I like to roast them, then run them through a blender and freeze them in small portions. The flavor is nice and toasty and it’s easy to add it in that form to soups, stews, and salsas.
You can do it straight on the burner or on a cast iron griddle - roast them until they’re blackened and slip the skin off. Then chop them up and either add them right away (nice in a salsa) or process them and freeze.
You’re looking to store them for later use but I have a recipe for fresh jalapenos that’s absolutely wonderful!! They’re called pigs eyes! Open a package of bacon, cut each bacon strip in half. Next, cut the jalapenos in half and remove all the seeds. Stuff the pepper with cream cheese and wrap half a slice of bacon around the stuffed pepper and stick a toothpick through it to secure the bacon around the pepper. Fry them in an ungreased pan (the bacon will make it’s own grease) over medium heat until the bacon is cooked. Yummy!
They are just like most other peppers. Use them raw, roast them, pickle them, freeze them, dry them, stick them in a smoker and make chipotles, whatever you feel like doing. Generally though, most times all you really need to do is slice them and use them raw or add them to whatever you are cooking. Raw ones taste a lot better on nachos than pickled/canned ones, IMO. Nothing really special about them though when compared to most chilis.
Some other tips which you may or may not already know:
The heat to peppers is mostly in the veins and the seeds. Remove these to maintain the flavor without the burn.
If I’m working with a lot of peppers, I will wear disposable latex gloves. Otherwise, just be sure to keep your hands away from eyes, nose, ears, mouth and to wash your hands very, very well after slicing. Do not make the mistakes of slicing hot peppers, then onions, and wiping your eyes dry with your hands (I know better and I still did this - brain was on siesta).
I personally wouldn’t pickle them unless you are not going to use them very soon. They are so many ways to use them - I especially like pan roasting them (black on all sides), seeding and skinning them, dicing them and adding them to just about anything I eat at that point. I like them sliced on most sandwiches (with or without seeds and veins). Seeded, deveined and diced, I’ll use them raw in salads. You’ve noted their use on nachos. I could go on and on - be inventive.
Generally, green peppers are not to be dried. Off the top of my head, I can’t think of any dried green pepper. Red peppers can be used fresh, or dried (such as Thai bird’s-eye peppers, cherry peppers, etc.) Plus, there are certain peppers which go by one name when fresh and green, and another name when red and dried.
Roasting does wonders to peppers, though I prefer roasting the larger New Mexican green chiles and using them in New Mexican Green Chile stew.
One really simple thing you can do is make jalepeno poppers. Just core the peppers, stuff 'em with some sharp cheddar and stick 'em in the oven. Alternatively, you can slice them in half, place a strip of cheddar in the center and sprinkle some bread crumbs on top and roast in the oven (oh, about 350 until the cheese and bread crumbs brown over.)
Or make yourself and honest-to-goodness salsa, not that jarred crap you pick up in stores. The key to good salsa is fresh ingredients, and it should not be stored for more than a couple of hours. Dice up several tomatoes (remove the seeds for a better texture), a small onion, two cloves of garlic and jalepenos to taste. Mix em up, add a pinch or so of Mexican oregano, the juice of one lime, a bit of salt and a bunch of chopped fresh cilantro (aka coriander leaves.) Let it sit for a little while to allow the flavors to meld and, voila, fresh salsa. (There should be no other kind.) Fresh cilantro is key to the authentic flavor - this is what all jarred store brands I know of lack. Then again, some people hate cilantro, for whatever reason.
Well, thanks for the info. I never really heard of pan roasting them. Most of my experience is with Red peppers, but the not-drying-green-pepper rule sounds about right.
And, Kiki, OMG you are trying to kill me. I use peppers to spice up dishes that are healthy but bland.
Although, I have to try that Kiki suggestion.
When I get home, I’m definitely giving some of this a whirl.
If you like Kiki’s suggestion, you can vary it by stuffing the jalapenos with shrimp instead of the bacon. Add cream cheese inside, use a toothpick to hold everything together, then bread them and fry them. This is my favorite dish at a wonderful Mexican restaurant I used to frequent.
