Growing Habaneros

[Craig Watts]

I've been growing a numerous variety of peppers for years. The most versitial is my cayanee that I either dry or can in vinigar. My question is about the habanero. I know that if I let a cayanee on the vine long enough it will turn red yet I haverst most of them green and then process.

When do you harvest your habaneros? Do you pick them green or wait till they turn orange? I've grown habaneros for years and always waited untill they turned color. The hottest of course was the Red Savinia. Over wintered that guy for three years :)

Anyways, just curious if you folks pick 'em commonly in their green state.

Thanks,

Craig

[Gary Mattingly]

On Sun, 18 Jul 2004 17:41:21 GMT, [e-mail] (Craig Watts) wrote: ...

I harvest cayennes when they're red, habaneros when they're orange, some jalapenos when they're red and some when they're green, same for serranos. I harvest thai/thai dragon when they're red. Some of the peppers (all varieties) I eat when I harvest, some I dry, some I dry and grind to make powder. I've dried roasting, peeling and freezing once on some peppers which seemed okay for larger peppers

I like cayenne and thai best for storing dried. I usually wind up grinding up all the habaneros. They seem a bit more susceptible to mold/fungus when drying & stored.

Wow! That is with respect to the overwintering for three years. I've done it for two years once.

Gary

[Craig Watts]

Thanks for the feedback Gary,

Have you ever done the needle and fishing line dry thing in the kitchen for cayanee? Pick 'em green, needle and thread them and let them dry to a red. Works great for me.

Craig

[Thomas]

[B.Server]

My perception is that habaneros do not develop their "fruity" flavor overtones until they are ripe (orange, red, or chocolate brown). So I leave them on the plants until ripe.

I pick serranos both red and green, depending on what I will be using them for. I do not grow jalapenos as I don't care for the grassy, vegetal taste. I grow two Thai peppers, fogo and dragon. The fogo I leave until fully ripe (a very bright yellow/orange), the dragon I use either green or red depending on the recipe. The red ones are the pepper that I most often dry. We have an antique gas stove, meaning it still has a pilot light, where I can leave Thai dragons for about 4 days at the end of which they are dry and can be frozen. The local, wild, chile piquins are mostly harvested red, when I can get to them before the damned mocking birds. They are dried or frozen for later use.

[Gary Mattingly]

No but I'll give it a try this year.

Gary

[Gary Mattingly]

Follow this advice!! The first time I did not and then I took a shower. Not a good idea.

Next time I wore gloves.

Gary