The fridge is often treated as the safest spot to keep green vegetables fresh, and green chillies are no exception. Yet a common complaint many people have is that even after bringing home fresh chillies and putting them straight into the fridge, they turn shrivelled, wrinkled and dry within just a few days. The truth is that simply placing chillies in the fridge is not enough. There is a correct way to store them, and that method decides how long they will actually last.
Why chillies dry out even inside the fridge
The real culprit is the air inside the fridge. A fridge is designed to keep the moisture inside it low so that food does not spoil quickly. This same low humidity, however, becomes a problem for vegetables like green chillies, because they start losing their natural moisture. When chillies are left open or uncovered, the water inside them gradually escapes. As a result, the chillies shrink, their green colour fades and they end up looking dry and wrinkled.
The right way to keep green chillies fresh for longer
If you want your green chillies to stay fresh and fiery for many days, a few simple steps will do the job. Start by snapping off and removing the stems of the chillies. Next, take some water in a bowl, mix in a little turmeric powder and wash the chillies thoroughly, then rinse them again with clean water so the turmeric washes off.
Now comes the most important step. Using a cotton cloth or towel, wipe and dry the chillies completely. Make sure not even a single drop of water is left on them, because leftover moisture can cause the chillies to spoil quickly. Once they are fully dry, place the chillies in a ziplock bag and add 2-3 peeled garlic cloves along with them. Seal the bag properly and put it in the fridge. This method stops the chillies from drying out and keeps their freshness and heat intact for a long time.
How green chillies are used in the kitchen
Green chillies are the kind of ingredient that can transform the flavour of countless dishes in an Indian kitchen. To temper dal, vegetables and curries, they are chopped and dropped into hot oil along with mustard seeds, cumin or curry leaves, which lifts the taste of the food enormously. Beyond that, green chillies can be ground with coriander, mint, coconut, peanuts or curd to make tasty chutneys and dips. If you like, you can also mix them into an omelette or into stir-fried vegetables to give them an extra kick.
How the heat of a chilli is measured
To find out how hot a chilli really is, the Scoville scale is used. This scale measures the heat based on the amount of a compound called capsaicin present in the chilli. The result is expressed in Scoville Heat Units, or SHU. In simple terms, the higher the SHU of a chilli, the hotter it is considered to be.
