How to Wash Hot Peppers Off Your Hands

Video Transcript

"Hi, I'm Michael Foreman, I'm Head Chef at Around The Table in Camas, Washington. Today I'm going to show you how to wash hot peppers off your hands. If you're anything like me, you love spicy food, and with spicy food comes hot peppers. The best way to keep them off your hands is to wear rubber gloves, but most people don't have them around their house and I forget all the time. Just like motor oil, capsicum oil, sticks to your hands, it is almost impossible to get off. I've heard that you can use milk which has an enzyme that neutralizes. Any kind of acid like white distilled vinegar, lemon juice, or anything will also help break up the oil. But I think the best way after all the years of being a chef, and the easiest and most on-hand, is just plain dish soap. You want to get your hands good and coated in the soap prior sticking in water, turn on the water as hot as you can stand it. Usually twenty to thirty seconds is good, if you're using something like a habanero or a lot hotter peppers, maybe twice through the rinse will good. You can use a brush to get under the finger nails, if you have long finger nails. And that's the best way I've found to get hot peppers off your hands."