Membership questions? Log in issues? Email info@brewersassociation.org

Author Topic: Making Your Own Chipotles  (Read 3144 times)

Offline Pawtucket Patriot

  • Senior Brewmaster
  • ******
  • Posts: 1367
  • Rebelling against cheap swill since 2005
    • Bauhaus Brew Labs
Making Your Own Chipotles
« on: November 06, 2011, 05:51:56 am »
I have a bunch of jalapeños from the garden that have now reddened. I'd like to smoke them and make my own chipotles. For anyone who has done this before, do you dry the peppers in a dehydrator prior to smoking them or just smoke them fresh?  What temp do you smoke the chiles at?  And what type of wood is appropriate for making chipotles (I'm thinking mesquite)?
Matt Schwandt | Minneapolis, MN
AHA Member

Partial-Mash Pictorial
All-Grain Pictorial

Offline a10t2

  • Official Poobah of No Life. (I Got Ban Hammered by Drew)
  • *********
  • Posts: 4696
  • Ask me why I don't like Chico!
    • SeanTerrill.com
Re: Making Your Own Chipotles
« Reply #1 on: November 06, 2011, 09:20:21 am »
I can't help you with the specifics, but I bet cherrywood would make for some tasty chipotles.

According to wikipedia, The chiles are smoked for several days until most of the moisture is removed. In the end, the chipotles have dried up in a manner akin to prunes or raisins... In recent years, growers have begun using large gas dryers. So either technique would probably work.
Sent from my Microsoft Bob

Beer is like porn. You can buy it, but it's more fun to make your own.
Refractometer Calculator | Batch Sparging Calculator | Two Mile Brewing Co.

Offline tschmidlin

  • I must live here
  • **********
  • Posts: 8198
  • Redmond, WA
Re: Making Your Own Chipotles
« Reply #2 on: November 06, 2011, 11:02:52 am »
I would think the fresh ones would take on the smoke better, but if you have enough you could try it both ways.
Tom Schmidlin

Offline euge

  • I must live here
  • **********
  • Posts: 8017
  • Ego ceruisam ad bibere cervisiam
Re: Making Your Own Chipotles
« Reply #3 on: November 06, 2011, 11:15:56 am »
I smoked fresh poblanos then put them in the dehydrator.

You have to smoke them low and slow. Mine were around 200-225. A couple hours at least and they collapsed, got all wrinkled but still fleshy. Then overnight in the dehydrator. Quite tasty.

Can't see why it wouldn't work for the humble jalapeño.
The first principle is that you must not fool yourself, and you are the easiest person to fool. -Richard P. Feynman

Laws are spider-webs, which catch the little flies, but cannot hold the big ones. -Anacharsis

Offline tschmidlin

  • I must live here
  • **********
  • Posts: 8198
  • Redmond, WA
Re: Making Your Own Chipotles
« Reply #4 on: November 06, 2011, 11:19:07 am »
What kind of wood did you use euge?
Tom Schmidlin

Offline euge

  • I must live here
  • **********
  • Posts: 8017
  • Ego ceruisam ad bibere cervisiam
Re: Making Your Own Chipotles
« Reply #5 on: November 06, 2011, 11:42:37 am »
Oak lump charcoal with some oak chunks.
The first principle is that you must not fool yourself, and you are the easiest person to fool. -Richard P. Feynman

Laws are spider-webs, which catch the little flies, but cannot hold the big ones. -Anacharsis

Offline Pawtucket Patriot

  • Senior Brewmaster
  • ******
  • Posts: 1367
  • Rebelling against cheap swill since 2005
    • Bauhaus Brew Labs
Re: Making Your Own Chipotles
« Reply #6 on: November 06, 2011, 12:20:14 pm »
Thanks for the suggestions, guys.  I think I'll smoke 'em tonight.
Matt Schwandt | Minneapolis, MN
AHA Member

Partial-Mash Pictorial
All-Grain Pictorial

Offline EHall

  • Brewmaster
  • *****
  • Posts: 729
Re: Making Your Own Chipotles
« Reply #7 on: November 06, 2011, 01:41:13 pm »
mesquite is usually what they use. smoke em around 200-225F for at least several hours. Make sure to poke a hole in them with a knife to keep em from exploding.
Phoenix, AZ

Offline nicneufeld

  • Senior Brewmaster
  • ******
  • Posts: 1049
Re: Making Your Own Chipotles
« Reply #8 on: November 06, 2011, 06:50:33 pm »
Tried cold smoking fresh jalapenos a year ago...ended up having to be dried in an oven later, then ground into powder.  Had a strange raisiny taste....I was not a fan.  My two mistakes assumedly were in using green jalapenos, as well as doing a genuine cold smoking, as opposed to the hot smoke that will dry them out properly.

Offline redbeerman

  • Senior Brewmaster
  • ******
  • Posts: 1849
  • On the banks of the mighty Susquehanna in MD
Re: Making Your Own Chipotles
« Reply #9 on: November 13, 2011, 03:03:22 pm »
I smoked fresh poblanos then put them in the dehydrator.

You have to smoke them low and slow. Mine were around 200-225. A couple hours at least and they collapsed, got all wrinkled but still fleshy. Then overnight in the dehydrator. Quite tasty.

Can't see why it wouldn't work for the humble jalapeño.

This is what I do.  It works for green or red.  Hard to get red ones here.  They have a tendency to go bad (get rot) before they trun all the way red.
CH3CH2OH - Without it, life itself would be impossible.

[441, 112.1deg] AR

Jim