We popped out for our flu prik. I always take them in my thigh so that I don’t have to endure the mild discomfort with lifting my glass for a drink or when I turn over in my sleep. Our family doc had rented a sport hall and given all his customers a rota with times based upon the first letter of our last names. He was standing at the entrance to greet each of his patients and to send then into the left or the right lane leading to the torture area where the nurse stood ready to needle me about the prik. In I went, and when I got to the first desk I asked the woman if I could drop my trousers—my Bride schoffed, “Sjoerd ! Stoppit” ! I continued my sentence, “....behind the screen there”. My Bride was making excuses to the nurse, fast and furiously. The woman pointed and I worked away with a huge grin on my face., handing my prik invitation to the waiting nurse. The invitation is sent to patients by the doctor. We do not have to pay, but he gets money from the government for his service. It works like a charm each year; however, normally it takes place in his office. His office is a one way in, one way out situation and these are corona times so there has to be a one-way path, leaving by a different door. So, as the nurse was giving my prik, the Bride entered, still apologising for me. She had to get two priks like I did last year. I slipped out while she was explaining that we get the priks in the thighs and the hop on our bikes and bike the discomfort out. Well, all this info was more than you needed , but I found it all entertaining. What this posting is really about is this peculiar pepper that I came across whilst stringing more peppers harvested yesterday. Look at this anomaly: The strings are filling-up with more and more peppers. When will it end. How many more do I want. My Bride. Adopts a concerned tone. I feel that there is room for one more string.
Sjoerd, here in Texas, and in Mexico, the strings of dried peppers are called "rastras". There are pick-ups parked by the side of the roads, with rastras strung across the beds; there are small roadside stands selling rastras; and if you have a Hispanic friend, he/she will probably make a rastra for you. We don't have any, since we aren't fond of burning our palates!
Weird pepper there ! Glad your pricks are over for the year ! Just wondering how much hot sauce you are planning ? There are a lot of chili heads in the world ! May be a business for you !
Jane—Rastra’s . Right. I can vaguely remember that from my time in Spain and Mexico. I do not recall seeing them for sale though, just at people’s homes hanging outside a door on the sunny side. Almost every home had one or more. Well, chillies we use in cooking, but they do look good hanging against a white wall. We don’t do that, but they would look nice. Many homes in southern Spain are whitewashed and so their peppers are very easy to see. Yes Jane, the misuse of chilli heat can indeed ruin a meal. I know what you mean there. When we were travelling in southern India it was difficult to eat because the food was so darn hot. I recall once we were sitting out in an open air restaurant on the roof. It was exotic and romantic. I had some boiled rice and some kind of brown vegetable sauce with it. I tried it and found it lava- like, so I just sprinkled a little on the boiled rice for the taste. As my Bride munched on her butter nan and I stirred my rice and brown sauce a passing waiter stopped by the table and said, “ no, like this”, whereby he picked up the container of veggie sauce and dumped it all on top of my still white rice! Whaddyh say. Mart, most of the peppers will be saved in dry flake form. We may make some sambal oelek-like chilli sauce, I dunno yet.
Hahaha! What a story. I do understand your bride's need to apologize for your behaviour. Those peppers look very decorative. Good luck with figuring out what you'll use them all for.
Sjoerd, here's an idea for your plethora of peppers. Friends would love to get a festive red wreath for the holidays, and then they can eat it for the next few years!
Chuckle. Yeah Droopy. But I found it so terribly unfair that she interrupted me at a crucial moment—it gave the whole question a different implication. Ach, but you know Holland— no one gets excited about things like that. We used one pepper with the chilli this evening. Jane that wreath leaves me breathless. What a stunning sight against the white shutters. Gohgeous dahling.
I finally thought to show that wreath to my Bride. To say she was amazed in an understatement. She liked your humour as well. I wonder how many peppers there were in that beautiful wreath. Blimey! It looks as if the wreath was hung up with a piece of raffia.
The wreath idea is beautiful. We fermented our hot red peppers and made a hot sauce similar to Sambal Oelek. It's very tasty. Just the peppers, some onion and garlic in a brine with a little sugar to feed the fermentation, sealed for a week then put through food processor.
Thank you Sjoerd. We go through it pretty fast. I'll start new pepper plants in the sun room in January. We are also experimenting with overwintering a couple or pepper plans to boost earlier yields.
