# Smoking dried red peppers



## bluewhisper (Oct 19, 2016)

This is my second time smoking dried red peppers. This isn't smoking with heat to cook, nor quite cold smoking. The peppers come out crispy but not toasted.

First, the smoker awaits with a new heat deflector duct. That's HVAC duct, drilled for ventilation and heat distribution. It just slips right in.













new_duct_ready.jpg



__ bluewhisper
__ Oct 19, 2016






The peppers on the left were from a Mexican store; they must have been weighed out from a bigger bag because the individual bags had nothing on them but weight and price in marking pen. The peppers on the right were from a Burmese store. They're a little bit larger and a darker red, and much hotter.













pepper_trays_waiting.jpg



__ bluewhisper
__ Oct 19, 2016






I started a fire of chunky mesquite with a stick of maple. I was shooting for more smoke than heat.













mesquite_starting.jpg



__ bluewhisper
__ Oct 19, 2016






This is the kind of thick white plume I avoid for smoking meat, but for this job I wanted a strong, tangy, heavy smoke flavor to stand up to the pepper heat. BTW this was handy for keeping the flies away.













white_smoke.jpg



__ bluewhisper
__ Oct 19, 2016






I let the peppers smoke for about 45 minutes, which left them crisp but not toasted (much).













pepper_trays_smoking.jpg



__ bluewhisper
__ Oct 19, 2016






Here's the final result, after breaking the pods open to spill the seeds (they went to a bird feeder mix) and running them through a blender and a coarse sieve. The sieve lets the powder through but captures most of the seed and coarse flake.













two_pepper_grinds.jpg



__ bluewhisper
__ Oct 19, 2016






The powder makes a smoked paprika with a kick. I used some of the coarse to flavor a bottle of vinegar, turning it dark red like tomato juice.













vinegar_pepper.jpg



__ bluewhisper
__ Oct 19, 2016


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## hb99 (Oct 19, 2016)

I grow my own peppers, dehydrate them then pulverize them.  I also "strain" mine to separate the powder from the chips and seeds.  I'll put the chips back into the blender to see what else I can get out of them.

I'm still searching how to smoke them (better).

I have my last pickings of peppers ready to go, but not a smoke scheduled.  I may have to use the gas grill instead of firing up the WSM.


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## redheelerdog (Oct 20, 2016)

Nice peppers, and nice smoke pics, I love that kind of stuff. Good job.


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## disco (Oct 25, 2016)

Great idea and quview. Points!

Disco


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## rlj3rd (Oct 25, 2016)

A trio I smoke, Pasilla. Jalapeno, and Fresno's. I smoke them for an hour to two, then dry them in a dehydrator, blend them and finish them in a burr mill grinder. Makes for a wicked chili powder.













smioked peppers.jpg



__ rlj3rd
__ Oct 25, 2016


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## bluewhisper (Oct 26, 2016)

This is from a few years ago, fresh Indiana habaneros on the old New Braunfels direct I used to have.













208.jpg



__ bluewhisper
__ Oct 26, 2016


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## bluewhisper (Jan 22, 2017)

I did it again, pretty much the same thing. Here are some pics of other parts of the process.

The 1960s blender on the patio workbench ...













pepperblender.jpg



__ bluewhisper
__ Jan 22, 2017






... and what it does













peppers_before_after.jpg



__ bluewhisper
__ Jan 22, 2017






Sifting the peppers through a coarse sieve













sifting_peppers.jpg



__ bluewhisper
__ Jan 22, 2017


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## meateater22 (Feb 2, 2017)

I'm using oven to make my own dry pepper. I have my own peppers, homegrown 100% free of any chemicals and poison. Done the same with tomato. cut it on quarters put them on trays and keep it all day outside and use sun to dry them out. awesome you should try it guys ( sun-dried tomato). perfect for pizza salads and soups.


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## SmokinAl (Feb 2, 2017)

meateater22 said:


> I'm using oven to make my own dry pepper. I have my own peppers, homegrown 100% free of any chemicals and poison. Done the same with tomato. cut it on quarters put them on trays and keep it all day outside and use sun to dry them out. awesome you should try it guys ( sun-dried tomato). perfect for pizza salads and soups.


Sounds real good!

Since I see this is your first post.

Would  you swing by "Roll Call" & introduce yourself.

Then we can all welcome you to SMF!

Al


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## ab canuck (Feb 2, 2017)

Wow looks good, I never thought of doing that with peppers. We don't get a great asst. of peppers here. Seasonal we get a few of the southern ones but not always...


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## bluewhisper (Feb 2, 2017)

You might want to look at the C2C pepper forum for seed sources and advice. I'm alexs s there.

http://c2cpeppers.proboards.com/


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## droppens (Sep 5, 2017)

Hit the jackpott on this thread! Amazing tips, pics and I can't wait to get my own peppars done! thank you for sharing guys! :)


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## bluewhisper (Nov 24, 2017)

I was at it again yesterday. While other guys were watching TV, I was watching smoke.

These are dried guajillos on the offset with a level of lukewarm maple smoke that would have been a disaster for any kind of meat. Today I grind them.


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