Go through each fruit and discard any mushy, rotten, or diseased portions. Hot peppers (Capsicum annum) add spice to hundreds of dishes. Finally, one of our favorite ways to preserve peppers without canning is to make Chipotle Peppers. After you’ve sliced your peppers into the desired size, it is time to blister your peppers. If you plan on using a dehydrator or an oven, you can slice the peppers into rounds, cubes, or any shape you desire. Blistering your peppers means that you remove the skin. Understand what you’re handling before you handle it in the first place. Harvest & Storage of Hot Peppers. If you grow peppers in your kitchen garden then pick the peppers the same day when you are making the olive oil preserve. Now, most people can bell peppers, but if you plan on canning hot peppers then be sure to slice and remove the seeds as this will take some of the heat out of them. Check out my favorite ways to preserve and enjoy hot peppers below. Store in refrigerator. Put a mixture of cayenne peppers and sweet peppers in each of the nine one-pint canning jars until the jars are filled within one-half inch of the top. Step 4 – Blister the Peppers. Old peppers don't have the glossy shine and are limp. The oils that irritate your skin can be difficult to wash away with just soap and water. Pour olive oil over peppers until fully submerged. Pepper Preparation. Most chillies preserved in oil will last 2-3 weeks in the refrigerator. Canning jars help preserve cayenne peppers. Rule 1: Respect the ghost. Press the heal of a gloved hand onto each cayenne pepper to flatten it. Some like to add a few cloves of fresh or roasted garlic in with the peppers for added flavor. If you think you would like to start growing your own peppers, check out this OneHowTo article on how to grow peppers. If you’re thinking of cooking with ghost peppers – whether fresh, dried, or powdered – follow these simple rules to protect yourself and keep things at an edible level of spiciness. Hot peppers are easy to preserve and enjoy long after the peak growing season is past. Chipotle peppers are made from over-ripe jalapeños that have turned red. Dry ghost peppers three ways: In a food dehydrator; In an oven; In the open air; The first step to drying peppers is washing them. Smoker filled with fresh red jalapeños ready to be made into Chipotle peppers. Slice peppers into desired shape and remove seeds if desired (to reduce heat) Add peppers to jars. Just one word of caution before you begin: We highly recommend wearing gloves when handling hot peppers!