Frozen chili peppers are great for soups and stews, and you can still use them almost the same way you use fresh chili peppers. Here's how.
Can I Cook with Frozen Peppers?
We talk alot about chili peppers in the Madness household, and preserving chili peppers is not only one of the biggest topics, but one of the most visited areas of the web site.
We enjoy growing chili peppers of all types, but in any given season, it’s difficult to consume all of those chili peppers as we harvest them. We’re only two people, you know.
We cook meal for family and friends and give some away, but we also know that we’ll need chili peppers throughout the winter, so we preserve them, and there are so many ways to preserve your chili peppers.
One of the simplest ways to preserve your peppers is freezing them. If you’re interested in the complicated dynamics of freezing chili peppers, you can learn how to do so here.
Freezing your chili peppers is extremely easy. One of the questions I get, though, is if frozen chili peppers can be used the same as fresh chili peppers?
The straight answer is NO, frozen chili peppers will never take the place of fresh chili peppers, but they can still be used in many, many ways.
Fresh chili peppers are by far the superior food, but that doesn’t mean frozen peppers are bad in any way.
Frozen chili peppers will sustain you through the winter and times when you can’t find any fresh peppers. If you’re a gardener like me, you don’t want your harvest to go to waste.
Cooking with Frozen Chili Peppers
Cooking with frozen chili peppers is easy. All you have to do is thaw your chili peppers and get cooking.
Often the peppers will be soft and somewhat water logged from the freezing/thawing process, but you can dry them with paper towels or set them into a colander to drain.
You can freeze your peppers after chopping, or freeze them whole, whichever you prefer. Once thawed, proceed with your recipe. Thawed frozen peppers are not perfect for every recipe, however.
If your recipe requires crisp or sturdy peppers, the recipe likely won't work as well, as the peppers will be softened, as mentioned.
However, they are great for cooking down as part of the Cajun Holy Trinity of peppers, onions, and celery for making gumbos, soups, stews, sauces and more.
I freeze my peppers all the time from my garden and use them in a big variety of ways. You can make the vast majority of recipes on this web site starting with frozen chili peppers.
If you are ever uncertain, comment below or drop me an email and I can help you adapt the recipe.
We recently snatched five jalapeno peppers from our freezer, thawed them out, chopped them up and sprinkled them over a bowl of homemade Madness Nachos.
The Flavor of Frozen Chili Peppers
Let’s talk about taste. Yes, your frozen peppers will not have the same texture as fresh peppers, which have a wonderful crunch.
Frozen peppers, when they are thawed, will be softer.
When you cut them, they might remind you of the texture of pickled peppers. The difference is that you won’t have the pickled flavor.
Still, the peppers retain the color and vitality of fresh jalapenos, and much of taste and heat of fresh jalapenos.
Sprinkling thawed jalapeno peppers over nachos is, in all honesty, a simplistic use of your preserved jalapeno peppers.
There are many ways to use frozen chili peppers.
What Can I Make with Frozen Chili Peppers?
The reality is you can make almost any recipe with frozen peppers that requires fresh chili peppers.
I mostly use them as a major base for cooking up soups, stew, chilis and multiple crock pot recipes.
You can use them to make hot sauces and other sauces, soups, stews, gumbos, stir fries and more.
You can dehydrate frozen peppers and turn them into chili flakes or powders. You can use frozen peppers in curries, for pickling peppers, and for making salsa.
I prefer fresh peppers when making salsas, but frozen will definitely work. I also prefer fresh peppers over frozen when making stuffed peppers, but you can definitely use frozen whole peppers for this, if you desire.
There are so many ways to cook with frozen chili peppers.
Enjoy!
Renee Riker says
Would it be safe to thaw frozen jalapenos to make and can cowboy candy?
Mike Hultquist says
You can do that, Renee. They MIGHT be too soft, but they get soft anyway overall. Let me know how it goes. Enjoy.
andrea McCarthy says
i froze all my peppers so far, what is best way to defrost before making the candy and canning?
thanks,
Andrea
Mike Hultquist says
Andrea, I would set them into the fridge and let them thaw over a few hours. If you want to thaw them quickly, you can set them into a bowl of water, then dry them.
Binnie says
I had jalapeños freeze in a deficient refrigerator and thawed then out are they still ok to use
Mike Hultquist says
Yes, they are OK to use. Just check them for any signs of rot. Otherwise, you're OK.
Lee says
Thanks for such a great website and books!
My question - can frozen peppers be used for cowboy candy? How do you think that would work out?
Mike H. says
Lee, you can use frozen peppers for cowboy candy. While they may be softer and release more moisture than fresh peppers, thawing and patting them dry helps. Simmer longer to achieve the desired syrup consistency, and adjust seasoning to compensate for any flavor loss. Despite these differences, frozen peppers can still produce delicious cowboy candy.
Paul says
Thanks for the ideas Mike.
I have 7 varieties if chilli in the freezer which I bought from a chilli farm in the south of England a few months back.
I made a minced beef chilli con carne last night but found that if I de-seeded them there was very little heat no matter which variety. Leaving the ribs in has meant a nice level of heat. I’ve used some in a ‘Pico de Gallo’ salsa tonight…’facing heaven’ and ‘Hungarian Hot Wax’.
All the best fella from Wilmslow, near Manchester, England.
Paul
Mike Hultquist says
Glad to help, Paul! Cheers!
Katti says
I want to make some pickled jalapeños with jalapeños we have currently frozen. Will this work or will the texture be wrong? Sadly we don’t have any jalapeños growing this year! Silly me for not starting any.
Katti says
Just seen someone already asked this and you can use them! Thanks so much, this is an excellent website about chillis!
Mike Hultquist says
Katti, yes, you can use frozen, though they will be softer from the freezing/thawing process. But still usable!
Mike says
Answered my question using frozen jalapeños! Thank you.
Ruben Amaya says
Can you use frozen jalapeño slices to make “Cowboy Candy”...aka... candied jalapeños?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Yes, Ruben. You can use frozen jalapenos for this. Just thaw them and use them per the recipe. Let me know how it turns out for you.
Laura says
Hello to all,
I have been freezing jalapenos for awhile. I used to just wash & dry good, pop them whole in a resealable freezer bag and pull out when needed. But I hated trying to finely dice them whether frozen (too hard) or thawed (too mushy).
Most recipes rarely mention the size of the jalapeno(s) needed so after some trial and error(s) I have calculated, for my tastes, the net weight of a medium pepper after removal of half the seeds and the stem end to be 25g. So now when I have an abundance of jalapenos I pulse (mince) them in my small 2 cup food processor and freeze in 25g portions. An ice cube tray comes in handy. I lay a piece of plastic wrap over the tray, indent each cube space and fill with 25g minced jalapeno. When frozen I pop them into a freezer container and use as needed. Actually I am in this site looking for a new spin on my usual Jalapeno Pepper Jelly recipe. Frozen works great for this; but, if I was making Jalapeno Poppers fresh peppers are a must.
Bon Appetite
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Excellent, Laura! Very helpful!
gwen schleif says
Can I still dry jalapenos after they get frosted in the garden?
REPLY: Gwen, yes, you can, though make sure they haven't gone bad on the inside. They should still be OK for drying. -- Mike from Chili Pepper Madness.
Carl zerweck says
I have about 8 bags of frozen jalapeños from last season and they are growing like crazy in my garden now. I recently canned some pickled peppers and jalapeño jelly with fresh peppers. So I am wondering now if I could use the frozen ones for canning jelly and pickled peppers?
REPLY: Carl, yes, you can use frozen pepper for pickling and jellies/jams. Just thaw them out and use them as needed. -- Mike from Chili Pepper Madness.
Vickie Boyett says
When making your jalapeño pepper jelly try adding blackberries turns out beautiful and has a great taste. Just a little hint strain the blackberries after you purée them and remove some of the seeds. Makes for a much nicer jelly.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Vickie!
Julie says
I am now knee deep into canning season. I was wondering how to use my frozen jalepanos and other hot peppers in a hot pepper jam I want to can. Is it safe to use the now for canning?
REPLY: Julie, yes, you can still use frozen peppers (thawed, of course) for making jellies and jams. They are perfectly good for that and for canning. Just use your normal canning procedures. -- Mike from Chili Pepper Madness.
nancy says
can i use frozen peppers in hot pepper jelly and jam?
REPLY: Nancy, yes, you sure can. -- Mike from Chili Pepper Madness.
Allison says
How do you thaw them? Other than leaving them out to thaw
REPLY: Allison, you can leave them out or thaw them in a bowl of water. - Mike from Chili Pepper Madness.
Charlene says
You can use frozen jalepenos for poppers. I do it all the time. Not mushy at all.
Fran Knebel says
Love your website and recipes. This summer, my three jalapeno plants in patio pots have gone crazy. Life "got in the way" for a bit, and I had no time to get some poppers made to freeze. (That's pretty much all I do with 90% of my jalapenos, as my family loves them so much year around - even at Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners!). I usually keep my poppers whole and stuffed. I now have three bags of frozen, (30-40 whole jalapenos), in the freezer - not yet cleaned out.
Do you suppose that if I
a) roasted them a bit in the oven, then cleaned out the insides, or
b) thawed them just to the point that I could get my little cleaning tool in there to work,..... that they would work for poppers? I know they'd be a bit mushy. Would I be better off roasting the cleaned-out peppers in the oven before I filled them? Or?
Thanks for any ideas you might have.
REPLY: Thank you, Fran! I think you can still use them for poppers if you are able to get them cored, or even use them as boats. You're right, they probably won't be very firm and could get mushy on you, but the flavor should still be there, I think. If you do it, let me know how they turn out. -- Mike from Chili Pepper Madness.