Peppers
and Chillies - capsicum
The sweet pepper group is made up of a range of
annual plants. They can be long, narrow pointed, square or round. The most
usual varieties for us to grow can be green when young [they don’t have a lot
of flavour at this stage], yellow, red or black.
Chilli Peppers are usually perennials though short
lived. In a warm or temperate environment [usually the ornamental varieties
which, can still be eaten] they will last and be productive for 2 – 3 years.
However, in the UK outdoors or in an unheated greenhouse or poly-tunnel they
will only last for one fairly short season.
o
Sowing
and Growing – the advice for growing in cool
climates – that’s us – is to grow in unheated poly-tunnels or greenhouses.
Although, some sites say that you can grow peppers and chillies where you can
grow tomatoes, I have found that tomatoes are a great deal more tolerant of
outdoor conditions in southern UK. They are best germinated from now, in a
propagator – taking into consideration, how they will be grown on to give them
enough heat and light [don’t under-estimate their light requirements], for
proper and productive development. Although it is fine to sow later, it will
reduce the growing season and, obviously, the harvesting season. I usually sow
two seeds into 5cm pots or modules to allow for unpredictable germination [then
remove 1 seedling if both germinate. For some varieties, this can be a little extravagant
as they will give only half a dozen seeds in the packet. However, propagator
space is also limited and with careful handling the seedling can be transplanted
into another pot. As the seedlings grow they can be transplanted into
increasingly larger pots until planted in their final growing space.
I have found that, although the plants are not tall,
they can require support for the sometimes, very heavy crops. The plant stems
are quite brittle. The weight of the fruit and even just brushing against them
to look after the crop, can break branches off. It has been suggested that the
top growth of plants is nipped out to produce more branched growth but, I have
not found this necessary.
When planting in a poly-tunnel or greenhouse [in
pots – large, or in the ground], ensure the compost is rich, fertile and is
kept well watered.
Types
and Varieties
Peppers
–
The term ‘pepper’ normally refers to the large sweet
peppers which have no chemical heat. There is an amazing variety of colours and
shapes on the market as seeds though, usually only a few of these are available
in the shops to buy as vegetables.
The Bell peppers, so familiar to us can be round,
oval or square shaped. Longer varieties horn or banana shaped have also gained
in popularity and are great on the barbeque. The colour usually develops from
green through yellow into bright red as they mature however, there are orange,
black and brown varieties available to add some interest to our salads.
Check in the seed catalogues to see what suits you
best – My favourites for reliability and heavy cropping are California Wonder
which is a square/blocky shape and for the longer pointed pepper I do like
Corno di Toro Rosso [horn of the red
bull]
Chillies
-
Most growers will choose them for their heat for use
in cooking though many grow them for their interest in the very different
varieties. The heat is measured in Scoville units after Wilbur Scoville who
developed the scale for measuring the ‘hotness’ of chillies. The highest
measurement is about 15,000,000 – 16,000,000 in the chemical capsaicin. At this
point and at some distance below this level, it is toxic. The highest rating
for any chilli grown is somewhere in excess of 1,000,000 - Naga Jolokia and
quite close to that the Ghost Chili. To put this in perspective, Scotch Bonnet
and Habanero, both available on the market and considered very hot are from
100,000 – 350,000 Scoville units. Bird’s Eye chillies are about 50,000 –
100,000.
For the gentler palate, which enjoys a ‘bite’ in its
food – Jalapeños have a Scoville measurement of 2,500 – 5,000 and Joe’s Long,
my favourite chilli has a measurement of about 3,000. Sweet Peppers contain
none.
The amount of the chemical in the fruits will depend
somewhat on the season, how much sunshine the plants have had and the ripeness
of the fruits.
Of course, the effects on the body don’t stop just
with the palate. A couple of years ago, I was helping my daughter to prepare
her substantial harvest of assorted chillies [and she does like a bit more heat
than I do] for the freezer. After a couple of hours of slicing the fruits I was
reminded of a report I had read from one of the organic seed houses where they
said that it was necessary to replace the protective gloves of those collecting
the seeds from the chillies every hour as the chemicals ‘dissolved’ the gloves.
I suffered for a good twelve hours and no application we could come up with
helped. My sleepless night in considerable pain will remind me forever to be
careful of these fruits.
o
Harvesting
and Storing
Before ordering your seeds for each of these crops,
consider your planned use of the fruits.
For many, as well as for me, it is an interest in growing, what is
essentially, a tropical plant. While I have managed to grow the plants
successfully outdoors in a warm year [for us in the south-west UK], they have
not been particularly successful. The fruits took so long to ripen that slugs
had decimated them by the time they were red enough to harvest. In my
poly-tunnel, even in a cool cloudy year, I have had a very satisfactory harvest
though in cooler years the fruits will be slower to ripen and you well find
yourself with a large collection of half ripe peppers to use. Peppers freeze
easily either sliced and packed in suitable freezer containers or bags or
cooked with made up into a
With chillies, as they are so prolific, you need to
consider how you can preserve them for the coming winter and spring. For the
fleshier varieties, think about slicing and freezing [remember the protective
gloves]. For the thinner fleshed varieties like Joe’s long – once they are ripe
or even half ripe – harvest and hang up in bunches to dry. They will then stay
good in a reasonably shady spot over winter to be used in chilli dishes,
curries, etc. Or, you can, once they are well dried, store in plastic bags in a
dark cupboard for several years. They will lose their potency and flavour after
a while.
o
Nutritional
Value
Excellent
source of
|
Useful
Amounts
|
Traces
|
Vitamins A and C
|
Vitamins – E, K, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, B6,
folate
Dietary fibre
Minerals – calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus,
potassium, zinc, copper, manganese
|
|
Peppers and chillies are very low in fat and
cholesterol. However, they also contain very large amounts of Sodium [salt]
|
||
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Pests
and Diseases
Indoors, the only pest I have found which will
affect my plants is red-spider mite.
This is probably the worst and most troublesome of greenhouse/ indoor pests.
These are not spiders [I remember my father, years ago, tenaciously killing
tiny red spiders in our back garden. I believe he thought they were that
terrifying red-spider mite. In N. Ireland, where it notoriously damp, how
likely was that? I discovered red-spider mite when I first moved to London. I
lived in a centrally heated flat and had no idea what this pest was which
affected my plants, nor how to eradicate it. Now many years later, when I
discovered it in the house I had bought in Bristol, I banished all soft plants
from my house for many years – now, fingers crossed, I can have plants free of
this pest.
But, in my poly-tunnel, a couple of years ago, when
I looked closely at some plants which were clearly not thriving, I discovered
the dreaded red-spider mite. It will establish on almost any plant where the
conditions are warm and dry and will quickly spread to nearby plants. When you
notice the damage, it is probably too late – but not necessarily for the
neighbouring plants. If you are unfamiliar with the damage – look for, mottled,
dry looking leaves, overall wilting or an unhealthy plant, fine webbing over
the leaves, especially the undersides. On very close inspection you can see
minute [¼mm] yellow-orange coloured insects moving on the webbing.
They don’t like moist/wet conditions. I surprised
myself a couple of years ago when I sprayed my tomato and chilli plants, which
had been infected with red-spider mite, with ‘SB plant invigorator’ [do check
this out – it is organic and is definitely effective] then followed up with
frequent sprayings with water to keep the environment damp. Of course, the damp
conditions can lead to other problems eg, botrytis [grey mould] which will
affect almost any plant – woody or non-woody and destroy it. Botrytis [Grey Mould] I have
found this mould has destroyed some of every crop I have grown indoors –
tomatoes, peppers, chillies, aubergines but, removal of signs of the mould at
an early stage, spraying with SB Plant invigorator and vigilance has kept these
destructive diseases within acceptable bounds.
Slugs
and Snails -
outdoor crops can be devastated long before they reach maturity. I have not
attempted to grow these crops outdoors even in warm dry years for many years –
it just doesn’t seem worth it!
Frost
– early frosts, when the young plants have just been planted into the
ploy-tunnel or greenhouse, can kill the plants and will do so again later in
the year when crops may still be ripening in October. Protect the crops or
harvest and use appropriately even if not fully ripe – try making salsas, or
slicing for freezing. Think about chutneys or Indian, South American dishes
where they could be used or frozen for winter.
Some Useful Recipes
Spicy Chicken or Pork
Schnitzel
Ingredients
4
large chicken breast fillets or 2 pork tenderloin
200g [8 oz] white breadcrumbs
2
eggs – well beaten
50
g [ 2oz plain flour]
3-4
fresh bayleaves
½
tsp black pepper
½
tsp mixed peppercorns
2
tsp – fennel leaves[dried]
2
– 3 dried red chillies
1
tsp sea salt
Method
·
Blitz
the spices, salt and bayleaves in a grinder or food processor until fine.
·
Using
a filleting knife – finely fillet the chicken or pork to give wide thin
fillets.
·
Place
these fillets between two layers of greaseproof paper or clingfilm and hamer
gently with a rolling pin until the meat is thin and tenderised.
·
Mix
the spices with the beaten eggs.
·
Coat
the meat fillets in flour then recoat in the spiced, beaten eggs.
·
Coat
each fillet in the breadcrumbs and cook
·
These
fillets can be cooked in hot oil for 10 to 15 minutes – drain well and serve
with chipped potatoes, rice, salad, lemon wedges, etc.
·
Or,
for a lower calorie version – place the coated fillets on non-stick greaseproof paper and bake in a
moderate oven for 25-30 minutes. Serve with baked potatoes and a mixed salad.
Home made Tomato
Ketchup
2Kg
ripe tomatoes ( 4½ lbs) 2
– 3 fresh bay leaves - crushed
568ml
white vinegar( 1 pt) piece
of cinnamon bark
190g
white granulated sugar ( 6oz) 2
– 3 cloves garlic - crushed
1
Tblsp. salt 2
– 3 red chillies ( dried or fresh)
¼
- ½ tsp ground allspice ¼
- ½ tsp ground cloves
Large
pinch coarsely ground black pepper
Method
Wash
and roughly cut the tomatoes and put in a preserving pan or large saucepan with
the salt, bay leaves, cinnamon bark, crushed garlic cloves and vinegar (be
fairly sparing with the salt at this stage – add more in the final stages as
necessary).
2.
Add
the chopped chillies. Take care with these, especially if the ketchup is for
children ( I have used dried Joe’s Long,
grown indoors - which are medium heat)
3.
Bring
to the boil then simmer gently until the tomatoes are thoroughly softened.
4.
In
the meantime, sterilise the bottles or jars – keep hot in low oven.
5.
Remove
the cinnamon bark and bay leaves then, sieve the tomato mixture through a
coarse sieve – preferable nylon. Return the juice and pulp to a clean saucepan.
6.
Add
sugar then ground allspice, ground cloves and black pepper gradually, tasting
frequently to ensure the flavour is not too strong. Remember, when the ketchup
is cold, the flavour will be somewhat milder. You may also want to add more
salt if needed.
7.
Simmer
the mixture until it starts to thicken. Don’t make it too thick at this stage as
it thickens as it cools.
8.
Put
the heated sterilised bottles/jars on a wooden surface and fill them with the
ketchup while it is still very hot. Seal the jars immediately. This ketchup
should keep safely for several months.
Hot Red and
Green Pepper Relish
I
have developed this recipe to use up the significant quantities of half ripe
peppers I have grown. I have used a mixture of bell peppers and pointed
peppers. Of course you could use half green peppers and half red peppers.
10
– 12 good sized red/green peppers [washed, and chopped with seeds, cares and
stems removed]
4
medium onions [peeled and chopped]
2
good sized fresh red chillies [ I’m using Joe’s Long]. Leave the seeds in if yu
like your relish to be hotter
1
good Tblsp salt [tablespoon]
1
½ pts vinegar – preferably white [ brown is fine but, won’t look as good]
8
oz [175gm] granulated sugar – do add a little more if you like your pickles
sweeter.
2
tsp allspice
Method
·
Wash
and split the peppers – remove seeds and stems and white..ish inner parts.
·
Chop
them fairly coarsely. Put the chopped peppers into a large colander over a bowl
into which the colander should fit comfortably.
·
Pour
boiling water over the peppers and leave to sit for 5 minutes. Drain the water
off and repeat the process, allowing 10 minutes for soaking.
·
In
the meantime, chop the onions and chillis and put them with the vinegar, sugar,
salt and allspice into a large pan. Bring the mixture to the boil gradually
allowing the sugar to dissolve.
·
Drain
the peppers thoroughly and add to the vinegar mixture. Bring to the boil then
simmer until the mixture has thickened and the vegetables are well cooked and
blended.
·
Taste
for salt and heat [ taking care as the mixture will be extremely hot] You may
want to add more finely chopped chilli if you like your relishes to be very
hot. Add any extra chilli before the end of the cooking process to ensure it
has cooked.
·
Pot
up into hot, sterilised pots. Cover, seal and label. Allow at least a couple of
months before eating to allow the relish to mellow.
