Wegman’s in Burlington was focusing on Hatch chiles today. The heat levels were medium, hot and extra hot. Unfortunately not all of the displays were labeled so I think I grabbed a few pounds of medium and would have preferred hot. Anyway, it was exciting to see that they had roasted and skinned chiles in the refrigerator case and they were clearly labeled. They weren’t seeded or stemmed. It made for a relatively tasty and easy Hatch mac and cheese. It would be easy to stash a few of the roasted in the freezer for future use. The fresh chiles were $1.99/lb and the roasted were $4.99/lb.
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Thanks for the post! Great news.
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I picked up some hot and they were HOT! Delicious. I have done the charring and peeling, so I’m very happy to pay someone to do it.
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Awesome! They were great in the mac and cheese. I bought both the roasted and the fresh and roasted about 6 lbs. on the grill yesterday. I haven’t peeled them yet, but will do so and then pop them in the freezer.
I[quote=“bear, post:4, topic:14697”]
I bought both the roasted and the fresh and roasted about 6 lbs. on the grill yesterday
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Sounds wonderful. The grill is also my favorite way to roast peppers. I wash them, place them on the grill grate, and rotate them on all sides until the skin is charred and the flesh yields when gently pressed with tongs. Into a metal mixing bowl the roasted peppers go, topped with a plate to trap heat so that the skins will loosen.
A sharp knife and a plastic cutting board do the trick when the peppers are cool enough to slide off the skins, remove seeds and cut flesh into strips. First I make a hole in the pepper and tip the juice into a bowl so that I can store freshly roasted peppers in the fridge. The juice helps the strips stay moist and flavorful. Never seem to be any extra peppers to freeze here because we eat them up fast.
Oh, and I’ll wear gloves when deseeding hot peppers. I learned the hard way when breaking down a batch of especially hot peppers. Ouch.
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Thanks for the tips. About how long do they stay fresh? I also am growing quite a few poblanos so I have lots of hots around. I think I’ll make chiles rellenos using both peppers to compare.
I usually roast directly on the coals (after seeing Rick Bayless do it) but managed to over-roast a few yesterday. I think I’ll go back to putting them on the grate next time. Steaming really helps to loosen the skins. And YES to wearing gloves. Funny, I can tolerate quite a bit of heat in my food, but my skin is super sensitive to capsaicin.
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I get a good week of storage out of a bowl of roasted peppers in the fridge.
Full disclosure: I once rubbed the corner of my eye with my hand that had capsaicin lingering on it. Did that ever teach me!
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I never wore gloves (and still don’t if only handling a few peppers) but I hear you about the eyes - my hands never seem to react to the heat, but accidentally touch your eyes or other sensitive areas and WOW… . . . .
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thanks for the heads-up - went yesterday to buy some mild and some hot! Can’t wait!
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Grabbed some roasted medium hot Hatch peppers at the Wegman’s in Chestnut Hill yesterday.
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