How to Smoke Habaneros

Smoke habaneros on a charcoal smoker.

You can smoke any type of hot pepper, including habaneros. Habaneros are among the hottest peppers. They are small, balloon-shaped peppers and should be handled with care because of their capsaicin content. They are similar in appearance and heat to the Jamaican Scotch bonnet pepper. Use smoked habaneros to flavor salsas and other spicy dishes. Does this Spark an idea?

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Paper towels
Latex gloves
Charcoal smoker
Charcoal briquettes
Wood chips
Probe thermometer

Instructions

- 1
  
  Put on latex gloves. Rinse the habaneros in plain, running water. Pat dry with paper towels.
- 2
  
  Slice each pepper in half with a sharp knife on a cutting board. Leave the seeds inside the peppers. Habaneros are extremely hot, but you can always remove the seeds after they are smoked to reduce the heat.
- 3
  
  Start a charcoal burn in a charcoal smoker. Use enough charcoal for the fire to last about 24 hours. The amount will vary depending on your particular smoker. Add five or six handfuls of dry wood chips to the charcoal burn. Use pecan, mesquite or any other type of wood chips designed for use in smoking.
- 4
  
  Assemble your smoker using the lower grate and water pan, but do not put water in the pan. The grate and pan will help distribute the heat and the empty pan will catch any habaneros that fall through the grate during smoking.
- 5
  
  Spray the upper grate lightly with cooking oil. If you skip this step, the habaneros will stick to the grate.
- 6
  
  Place the grate on the smoker and place the habanero halves in a single layer evenly on the grate. Leave an inch or two between each one. The outer edges of the grate will get more heat than the center, so put fewer halves in the center area.
- 7
  
  Put a probe thermometer inside and place the cover on the smoker. Watch the smoker for a few hours to make sure the temperature comes up to around 150 degrees F and stablizes there. Adjust vents to regulate the temperature. The exact procedure depends on your particular smoker. Generally, opening vents increases temperature and closing them reduces it.
- 8
  
  Let the habaneros smoke for about 24 hours. Remove them from the smoker, again wearing gloves. Let them air dry for two days to finish drying them out. After that you can use them for cooking or freeze them in plastic bags for later use.