Re: [CH] Piri Piri Maçarico
jim@wildpepper.com
Wed, 29 Jun 2005 13:33:54 -0500
Re: Since your mash doesn't have salt or preservatives, what kind of
shelf life does it have?
The shelf life, as long as it is unopened, is nearly unlimited. The
only thing that happens over time is a bit of oxidative browning where
the chiles contact the sidewalls and the head space. This is only
because there isn't an oxygen proof (cost effective!) plastic on the
market yet.
Re: Why are you able to get away without any?
Because of the heat treating. My method is essentially 'canning' just
like our parents (or grandparents if you're young ;-) used to do, except
I can into 5 gl buckets. The heat treating, if done correctly, combined
with the very low pH, sterilizes the mix.
Re: What's in the other 25? Water, vinegar?
I believe by this you mean the 25%. Mostly it is water and vinegar as
you guessed, though this can vary greatly from manufacturer to
manufacturer.
Re: Is it the stuff cheapskates are using to cut their mash percentages
down, that need the preservatives?
Not really. It is more of a processing choice. As heat treating is
expensive and labor intensive, not many (if any) do it. Bit of chest
thumping here- maybe that's why CaJohn (who uses the chiles done this
way almost exclusively) has over 200 major awards :-) I've over a dozen
myself just by accident since I don't usually enter contests.
I'm more likely to get away with the expense of it because the mash
production from my fields is measured in only a dozen tons or so, not
hundreds of tons.
-Jim C
Mild to Wild(R)
wildpepper.com