What to Grow in Chili Pepper Garden? Hatch Chilis....and?
We've been thinking about growing some chilis in our yard soon. I think it will be fun to plant some chili peppers.
Jalapenos are too mild for me, so I'm looking for something in the more medium heat range, but not destroy your taste buds like ghost peppers. Based on posts here, I think starting with hatch chilis sounds like a great idea, and I'd be curious if anyone has any other suggestions. Ideally suggestions that go well with BBQ.
I do a lot of habaneros and jalapenos usually. Still do ghosts and reapers as well, they don't turn out as hot in my area and are great in salsas etc. Have you tried any of the thai chilis? Some great flavors there with decent heat. Otherwise try growing what you would cook with. I like thai and Mexican so I try to branch out in those directions and see what grows well for me. Seems late to be starting in your area though.
Yes, it is a bit late for this year, but looking forward to next year. I like the suggestions of thai and Mexican, as we do eat a lot of that too. What are your favorites?
I would vote for thai chilis as well. I am generally not a fan of the flavor of most peppers like jalapenos, serranos, etc. but I do like the heat they can bring. Thai chilis don't have that standard pepper flavor for me but they do pack some good heat.
Hatch chilies, technically, are New Mexico chilies that are grown in and around Hatch, NM. They look like an Anaheim but are hotter, with varying grades of heat available.
This year I am growing a Serrano hybrid called Flaming Jade. I planted 2 plants together in the same hole and I pick probably 7-10 peppers a week. It’s a crazy good producer and the peppers are very flavorful and about 3-4 inches long.
Another good producer is Aji Amarillo, which is a yellow Peruvian chile that has a heat profile between Jalapeño and Serrano. I’m fermenting a batch right now to make an Aji garlic chile sauce to use for Peruvian chicken (among other things).
My Hatch Big Jims are doing OK. They are good but I’ve been disappointed in their production and size. From 2 plants, I’ve gotten maybe 5 peppers and they are only about 5-6 inches long and maybe 2 inches diameter. I don’t think they like the humidity and heavy rain all that much. I probably won’t grow them next year.
Cayennes have done well but they are smaller than I thought. That being said they are hot and taste really good. I’m making my own cayenne powder with them.
My banan pepper plants have been very productive but I am not using them as much as I thought I would. I made a couple of jars of pickled banana peppers and don’t go through them as fast as I thought I would.
My Pimento peppers are very tasty but not very productive. I got 6 peppers off 2 plants. The plants are only about 2 feet tall it’s apparently a determinant because it hasn’t produced any more peppers. I roasted my peppers and made pimento cheese, which was pretty stinkin’ good. I wish the plants were more productive because I would use these over traditional Bell Peppers all day if I had enough.
This is my second year growing poblano’s. The variety I chose this year is a hybrid call Baron. Production has been disappointing and they are pretty small. I can’t get the big suckers like you find in stores and need for chiles rellenos. I’ve done a little reading and I think next year I’m going to try the San Ardo or Mosquetero varieties as I understand those are the big boys like the ones you find in stores.
My Scotch Bonnet is just now starting to set peppers. It’s an MOA variety from Jamaica. We’ll see how productive it is.
That’s a basic rundown of my chile garden this year.
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