Hot Pepper Plants - Spice Up Your Life!

Of all of the varied cult food items, hot sauce is definitely one of the most popular. People who get into spicy food almost never just get into it a little bit. It is true that there are many people in our society that only like a little bit of heat in a meal now and then, but the ratio of true connoisseurs to casual fans is really astounding.  One day, you are trying out a new hot pepper sauce and the next day you are making your own. Pretty soon, your entire yard if filled up with planters sprouting your own hot pepper plants.

For me, it started purely by chance. I was at the Farmer's market and found a stall that was selling hot pepper seed. I had always liked a little bit of spice, and I thought that it would be a valuable addition to my culinary pursuits. I had wanted to start an herb garden for a while, after all, and figured that there was definitely a place for hot pepper plants. At first, I grew a couple of habanero plants. I figured that they would be a great first hot pepper plant because they were only moderately spicy, and very flavorful besides.

I acquired what my girlfriend calls my  “culinary death collection” one hot pepper plant at a time. Once I saw how easy it was to grow habanero plants, I wanted to get a jalapeño plant as well. I saved my hot pepper seeds, using the best ones to grow new plants and the other ones to cook with. Soon I was using hot pepper plants in everything. I would use them in chile, Mexican food, Indian food, and in cuisines where they had no business at all. I even made special concoctions of hot pepper plants to try to treat nasal allergies. That endeavor was mildly successful, but it was definitely not worth the pain!

The problem with growing hot pepper plants is that it uses up more space than you would think. The actual plants don't take up that much space, and are easy to grow. To use them for food, however, requires more work. Once you harvest your hot peppers, you need to dry them. This takes literally racks upon racks to do. Eventually, you will want to get a hot pepper roaster as well. When I started growing hot pepper plants, I did not think of it as a serious hobby. This, however, is exactly what it has become.