Saturday, May 29, 2010

Ode to the Jalapeno.

Actually, it's not an ode. I'm just not inspired. I don't eat jalapenos at all, so why is it I grow them year after year. They're pretty I suppose, and they're one of the most productive things I've got.
So, now that I've got 'em....how large do you let yours grow?

9 comments:

  1. Well, they're attractive when red. . . so you could just be lazy and enjoy them all along, since you don't want to eat them.

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  2. You can let them turn red if you want, but if I want green ones, I wait until they start corking. That's getting some brownish, fine squiggly lines on them.

    Ever try hot pepper jelly? It's super fantastic. Don't give them too much water or fertilizer, or you might get sweet peppers.

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  3. Although I don't grow them very often, i'd say to pick them at 2-3" long. I'm more of a bell pepper person, because there's more uses for them in our preferred cuisine.

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  4. Maybe you'd like them if you stuffed them with cream cheese and wrapped them in bacon like The Pioneer Woman does.. I think bacon makes just about everything palatable! ;-)

    I can't tell you how large I let mine grow since this is the first year I'm growing them, but I'll certainly post pictures once I am able to harvest some..

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  5. I usually let mine grow 2-3" long. You can pick them at any size, but the bigger you pick them the more pepper you have. The younger you pick them the more peppers they produce.

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  6. I let mine go all different stages, then I pickle jars for nachos all winter and I also halve them, stuff with cream cheese and sausage, top with grated cheddar, and freeze on cookie sheets then dump in gallon bags in the freezer - party food all winter long!

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  7. Damn. I came here hoping for a poem!

    I, too, don't like jalapenos, and refuse to plant one because I know it'd grow well and then I'd resent it. I agree with the previous commenter - try PW's jalapeno bacon wrapped thingies - some of my friends have tried them and say they are da bomb!

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  8. I was reading about a variety in Organic Gardening mag that tastes like jalapeno but has no heat. I will dig up the magazine and give you the name.

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  9. Dan, there's one called a Tam jalapeno, but it still tastes like a pepper. It's the pepper taste that gets me more than the heat.

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