Chili sauce too hot

I have just made some fermented chili sauce that I would like to can. I made it too hot and I am wondering if you have any suggestions for making it a little bit milder before I can it.
 
Deborah

You can take the “too salty” out of a soup with a chunk of raw potato, take grease out by letting it cool, but as far as I know there’s no way to take the “hot” out of a too-hot chili sauce. Any readers out there with any ideas for Deborah? — Jackie

Canning brine

I had an amazing bounty of cabbage this year which I have made into kraut. I can’t believe how juicy it is! My question is in regards to the juice/brine. After canning up close to fifty quarts I have a lot of brine left in my 12 gallon crock. What can I do with this? I love to braise pork in sauerkraut juice. Am I able to can this leftover brine to use for that purpose? Any other tips?

Justin Dinger
Barnum, Minnesota

Congratulations on your cabbage crop. Ours was terrific, too. Yes, you can put up your leftover brine provided that is clean and scum free. Just can it in a boiling water bath canner by first heating to 185-210 degrees (don’t boil), then pour into hot jars and process for either 15 minutes for pints or 20 minutes for quarts. Then you’ll have plenty to braise your pork. — Jackie

Crumbly biscuits

I have tried multiple biscuit recipes. They generally turn out moist and tasty, but crumble. Any pointer on what I am doing wrong?

Kathleen Neal
Springfield, Illinois

First, use cold butter or shortening. I prefer to use buttermilk instead of milk for the liquid as they seem less crumbly. When you knead your dough, knead it briefly; over-kneading makes crumbly biscuits. And finally, you want an almost sticky dough; add just enough flour while kneading so it doesn’t stick to your fingers, not so it gets drier like bread dough. If these don’t do it, try adding 1 tsp yeast to your room temperature liquid, along with the baking powder called for. This makes a roll/biscuit hybrid that tastes like a biscuit but holds together real well. Here’s hoping for plenty of hot biscuits on your table that don’t crumble away. — Jackie

6 COMMENTS

  1. For too spicy/hot sauce, add a dairy product to tone it down. Sour creme, Cheese or even Butter works very well.

  2. For the too-hot sauce, I would make another batch, without the spice and combine them. I’ve done that with too salty baked beans that raw potato didn’t fix. They were *really* salty!

  3. I add my vote for the sugar. It will tone down the heat. As an aside, it is also good for putting on your lips if you get something too spicy on them and they start to burn.

  5. I like canning hot relish, peppers, salsas, etc. My problem was that the product would be very hot before I canned it, and too mild after. I have to make it pretty blazing to get the heat I want. Canning it MIGHT take some heat out. If you have the time, and it can ferment for a bit longer, you might try making it again, but without heat. Maybe even half a recipe of it. Let it ferment for a bit, then combine the two. I don’t know what your recipe called for, but maybe some pureed and strained tomatoes woult do the trick? Good luck!

  6. Deborah, the only way I know to cut down on heat is to add sugar. You will need to taste to make sure it doesn’t make it too sweet but it will cut down on the heat. I’m not sure how this will effect the canning process at all.

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