# HotCC ## Green Soap (CC0) ### Method - 300G green Cayenne-type peppers (see note) - halved, veined, seeded - pulsed in food processor/vitamix until well chopped (see note) - ADD one head young garlic (see note) - peeled, chopped - ADD 6g salt (2%) (see note) - mix well - PACK into vacuum bag - vacuum seal on max pressure (see note) - AGE until bag fully inflates (see note) - ~100G cilantro roots and lower stems (see note) - finely chop - ~500mL pineapple vinegar (see note) - COMBINE all above - process in high-speed blender, ramping speed to max, until smooth liquid forms, allow to cool and repeat as needed - allow 24 hours to infuse - STRAIN by pushing through medium chamois/mesh strainer or food mill to remove residual chunks - PACKAGE and REFRIGERATE ### Yield Approx 600mL ### NOTES: - most types of unripe cayenne-type peppers will do, try to choose organic to take advantage of useful cultures residual on the skin (wash very thoroughly otherwise) - we're chopping this mash because (1) the peppers aren't superhots so you won't be teargassing the kitchen (2) we want a relatively quick fermentation/tissue breakdown so we maximize surface area, also see below - by "young garlic" I mean garlic past the "green garlic" stage (i.e. skin has formed and the tops have been removed) but before the "cured" stage (fully dry skins for storage) -- the reason is that we want some of the green garlic character with some of the ease of handling/separation of cured garlic, but use whatever you have on hand - we're brining on the low end (2%) because we want a quick ferment that preserves much of the vibrancy of the fresh veg -- 3-5% brine is more typical for whole peppers but here we're sprinting for the finish with a small chop and light brine (the vacuum method also allows lower % without molding) - I use a chamber vacuum, which allows me to seal foods with a lot of liquid without too much trouble; you may need to experiment with bag orientation or using a paper towel as a barrier in the fluid catcher if you have an edge sealer model you can also use a conventional wet brine in a jar if you don't have a vacuum sealer, in this case cover the mash with water and weigh (making sure to tare out the container), add 3-4% salt and weigh down with a saline-filled ziplock bag - lacto fermentation produces a good deal of CO2, causing the bag to inflate -- a good proxy for the progress with higher sugar foods (like pineapple, see far below) you may need to repeatedly bleed the bag and re-seal it, but in this case we should be at a good place after just one cycle (NB: add math on sugar/co2/volume/pressure) this should probably take 5-7 days depending on the ambient temp, specific peppers used, etc - stems and roots of cilantro are commonly discarded, sometimes even before reaching the shelves; this is wrong, the roots are by far the most aromatic and complex part of the plant - I use a homemade pineapple vinegar, which is easy to make but beyond the scope of this article, substitute apple cider ## Simple Green (The Degreaser) (CC-BY) ### Method: Proceed as above but substitute 50g Papalo leaves for the cilantro ### NOTES: Papalo (Porophyllum ruderale) is a very pungent herb used in Mexico and parts of South America. The aroma is sometimes likened to a mixture of cilantro, citrus, and mint, but to me it smells more like industrial degreaser, in a good way. ## BURIAL (TBD) ### Method - 300g Carolina Reapers - 150g Serviceberries - Koji?