Smoking Jalapenos to Make Chipotles

Get Your Jalapeno Peppers

Prepare the Jalapeno Peppers

Smoke the Jalapeno Peppers

Use or Store Your Chipotles

Love Chile Peppers? Come learn about 39 different chile peppers. Some are mild like the Anaheim and some are so hot they are literally being used as weapons. Complete with information about their origin and history, uses, and full-color photographs!



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Caution: when working with chili peppers, be sure to wear disposable food gloves since the oils from the chili peppers is very difficult to get off of your hands and will burn your eyes and other sensitive body parts.Choose ripe jalapeno peppers that are firm, fresh, and red and wash and dry them thoroughly. You will get about 1 pound of chipotles for every 10 pounds of jalapeno peppers you use.You can leave the jalapeno peppers whole, or if you'd like to reduce the drying time you can cut off the stems and slice the jalapeno peppers open, being careful not to lose too many of the seeds. If you'd like to take away some of their heat, you can remove the seeds and membranes since that's where a lot of the jalapeno heat comes from.Put the jalapano peppers in a smoker and cold smoke them for 8 to 16 hours. If you don't have a smoker, there are many available. Or, if you want to make your own smoker, you can find directions here or here Make sure your smoker is very clean before you start smoking the jalapeno peppers, otherwise it may impart stale food flavors into your chipotles. You want the peppers to end up black, dry, leathery, and brittle to make sure the flavor will be preserved. Since this can take a long time, many people will finish off the peppers in a food dehydrator or oven (below 200 degrees) over night.Store the peppers in a cool, dark, and dry place for up to 6 months. You can also make chili powder by grinding up the dried peppers.