# Hot pepper residue removal **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 5, 2008, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-pepper-residue-removal/444035 "2008-04-05T03:21:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Darryl\_Lict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@Darryl\_Lict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darryl_Lict)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2008, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-pepper-residue-removal/444035/1 "2008-04-05T03:21:17Z")
I’m cooking up an experimental chile relleno dish made from jalapeño peppers and some cheese curds I picked up in Minneapolis. I was dying to try the cheese curds after hearing about them on the dope. They’ve been sitting around for a while and of course are not “squeaky”. They taste pretty good though, pretty much like chunks of cheddar cheese. I’ve just cleaned out about a pound and a half of peppers and was wondering if there was any household substance that would be useful in removing the capsaicin from my hands, before I inadvertently touch some sensitive body part? I really don’t like wearing gloves when preparing food, so this will be useful information in the future. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2008, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-pepper-residue-removal/444035/2 "2008-04-05T04:33:06Z")
I use dish soap, scotchbrite and the hottest water I can stand. It seems to pass the contact lense test. ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2008, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-pepper-residue-removal/444035/3 "2008-04-05T04:35:16Z")
Alcohol will act as a solvent. ETA: Applied externally to the hands, not taken orally. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Darryl\_Lict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@Darryl\_Lict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darryl_Lict)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2008, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-pepper-residue-removal/444035/4 "2008-04-05T08:10:58Z")
[QUOTE=jnglmassiv] I use dish soap, scotchbrite and the hottest water I can stand. It seems to pass the contact lense test. [/QUOTE] Indeed, the contact lens test is the ultimate. Thanks, I ended up just scrubbing my hands twice, and not touching my wiener or ass. i also read somewhere that one teaspoon of bleach to a quart of water works well. The chile rellenos came out just OK. They were pretty dang spicy. My experiment was to cover them with Jiffy cornbread mix. It tastes like jalapeños and cheese with a cornbread crust. Not bad, but not much like chile rellenos. And **Rick** , I drank a bunch of alcohol just to make sure. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2008, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-pepper-residue-removal/444035/5 "2008-04-05T10:57:52Z")
In the future, try rubbing your hands with oil before messing with the peppers. I live in a country where the only peppers are habeneros, and I wear contacts. ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2008, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-pepper-residue-removal/444035/6 "2008-04-05T14:29:04Z")
Also, in the future, use eggs instead of cornbread mix. If you can make a proper omelet, you can make a very good chile relleno. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-pepper-residue-removal/444035/7 "2008-04-07T05:27:44Z")
I just saw on an episode of _Good Eats_ where Alton Brown says to dip your hands into a 1:5 solution of chlorine bleach in water. The chlorine breaks the capsaicin down into something that can be easily rinsed off your hands. ---
**Author:** ![Rhubarb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/59ef9b/32.png) [@Rhubarb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhubarb)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-pepper-residue-removal/444035/8 "2008-04-07T05:39:27Z")
Also, chile rellenos are typically made with poblano peppers. Flavorful, but not as spicy. ---
**Author:** ![Santo\_Rugger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Santo\_Rugger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santo_Rugger)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-pepper-residue-removal/444035/9 "2008-04-07T13:46:22Z")
Vegetable oil works pretty well at getting it off your skin, as does butter, or any other lipid. [QUOTE=Rhubarb] Also, chile rellenos are typically made with poblano peppers. Flavorful, but not as spicy. [/QUOTE] If they’re made with pablanos, they’re called stuffed pablanos, not rellenos. Or maybe pablano rellenos. The pablano’s a pepper, but it’s not a chile. Also, in my experience, a pablano is usually stuffed with meat and/or beans, while rellenos are only stuffed with cheese. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Lao](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/2bfe46/32.png) [@Dr.Lao](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Lao)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-pepper-residue-removal/444035/10 "2008-04-07T14:11:24Z")
[QUOTE=Santo Rugger] If they’re made with pablanos, they’re called stuffed pablanos, not rellenos. Or maybe pablano rellenos. The pablano’s a pepper, but it’s not a chile. Also, in my experience, a pablano is usually stuffed with meat and/or beans, while rellenos are only stuffed with cheese. [/QUOTE] By what measure are Poblano peppers not chiles? My understanding is that chile peppers are fruits of plants of the genus _Capsicum_, which poblanos are: [Poblano - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poblano) ---
**Author:** ![Santo\_Rugger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Santo\_Rugger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santo_Rugger)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-pepper-residue-removal/444035/11 "2008-04-07T14:30:47Z")
[QUOTE=Dr. Lao] By what measure are Poblano peppers not chiles? My understanding is that chile peppers are fruits of plants of the genus _Capsicum_, which poblanos are: [Poblano - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poblano) [/QUOTE] I think it’s a regional thing. If I ask for a chile relleno anywhere in New Mexico, I can almost guarantee it’s going to be a Big Jim, Barker, or possibly an Anaheim, but it will be a green chile. It would be more accurate to have said that a poblano is not a green chile, which is what I would expect when ordering a relleno. If I wanted a stuffed poblano, I’d order a stuffed poblano. :smack: I always forget to make the distinction between Mexican and New Mexican food, hence the regionalism. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-pepper-residue-removal/444035/12 "2008-04-07T14:59:02Z")
[QUOTE=Santo Rugger] I think it’s a regional thing. [/QUOTE] Must be. Here I’ve only encountered poblanos in chile relleno. [And this site says:](http://www.peoplesguide.com/1pages/chapts/food/recipe/main/rellenos.html) > [@](#): > > In Mexico the Chili Poblano, a dark green triangular shaped chile 3” to 4” in length that varies in hotness from mild to quite picante, is the chili of choice for this recipe. > > […] > > If you can’t get Poblanos, a large green Anaheim makes an acceptable substitute, as do any of the long green chiles from New Mexico. ---
**Author:** ![Beadalin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@Beadalin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beadalin)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-pepper-residue-removal/444035/13 "2008-04-07T16:30:43Z")
Washing my hands and under my fingernails with milk always works like a charm for me. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2008, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hot-pepper-residue-removal/444035/14 "2008-04-07T16:35:39Z")
[QUOTE=Darryl Lict] They’ve been sitting around for a while and of course are not “squeaky”. They taste pretty good though, pretty much like chunks of cheddar cheese. [/QUOTE] You’ve pretty much missed the point of curds if this is the case. They are not supposed to taste like little chunks of cheddar cheese. If they do, that’s a sign that they’re old. The joy of curds is very much a texture thing. They are soft & squeaky and taste mildly like cheddar cheese.