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Canned chipotles


john b

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What is the shelf life of unopended canned chipotles? I found a can hiding in the back of the pantry, and I know it's about ten years old. Open and enjoy, or toss it??

John

"I can't believe a roasted dead animal could look so appealing."--my 10 year old upon seeing Peking Duck for the first time.

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What is the shelf life of unopended canned chipotles?  I found a can hiding in the back of the pantry, and I know it's about ten years old.  Open and enjoy, or toss it??

Ten years is a long time. But, there is so much vinegar in it that I would definitely open and taste it. I have used it after say six years.

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I would go with taste it and see as well.

I have a similar question, how long do they keep after being opened and what it the best way to store them. This is one product that is almost impossible to use the entire can of in one dish. I have had half a can in a tupperware case in the refrigerator for over 6 months now and since it hasn't molded yet I am assuming it is ok.

How does everyone store this after opening?

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

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i puree everything in the can together, and freeze it, thereby avoiding the molding and throwing away step. we just chip out a teaspoon at a time.

"Laughter is brightest where food is best."

www.chezcherie.com

Author of The I Love Trader Joe's Cookbook ,The I Love Trader Joe's Party Cookbook and The I Love Trader Joe's Around the World Cookbook

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I would go with taste it and see as well.

I have a similar question, how long do they keep after being opened and what it the best way to store them. This is one product that is almost impossible to use the entire can of in one dish. I have had half a can in a tupperware case in the refrigerator for over 6 months now and since it hasn't molded yet I am assuming it is ok.

How does everyone store this after opening?

That was my next question, assuming I didn't die after eating ten year old chiles. :biggrin:

(I opened them and they looked/smelled ok...they seem to be ok, chopped and mixed in with sweet potatoes, reduced OJ, maple syrup and butter.

John

"I can't believe a roasted dead animal could look so appealing."--my 10 year old upon seeing Peking Duck for the first time.

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i puree everything in the can together, and freeze it, thereby avoiding the molding and throwing away step. we just chip out a teaspoon at a time.

I do something similar, except that I line an ice cube tray with plastic wrap, put a tablespoon of the chipotle in each, cover, and freeze. Then I transfer all the frozen tablespoons to a plastic bag that keeps in the freezer.

Do you puree the sauce, too? I just do the pepper itself, as that's what the recipes most often call for.

Sean

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Do you puree the sauce, too?  I just do the pepper itself, as that's what the recipes most often call for.

Sean

When I puree them, I puree the sauce as well, and then strain out the seeds, so I have a completely smooth product. Usually if I have a recipe that calls for the pepper only, I used dried peppers reconstituted with hot water.

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I also puree the canned chipotles.  I also take a couple of cans and puree with guava paste.  The little sweetness and guava flavor goes really well with the chipotle

i am so doing this next time...sounds wonderful!

Edited by chezcherie (log)

"Laughter is brightest where food is best."

www.chezcherie.com

Author of The I Love Trader Joe's Cookbook ,The I Love Trader Joe's Party Cookbook and The I Love Trader Joe's Around the World Cookbook

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I would go with taste it and see as well.

I have a similar question, how long do they keep after being opened and what it the best way to store them. This is one product that is almost impossible to use the entire can of in one dish. I have had half a can in a tupperware case in the refrigerator for over 6 months now and since it hasn't molded yet I am assuming it is ok.

How does everyone store this after opening?

These are all good. I always have a medium-large size of the puree in the fridge because I normally cook them myself and also use a lot of them in recipes. For the occasional user, the fridge is OK. I don't remember any of them going bad. The only prob with freezing would be freezer burn in which case SeanWalberg's solution is great! It's like flash freezing then repackaging in a double bag - those will keep forever since the pH is so low to begin with.

Tora, you can use an entire can in a chili recipe, or make a chipotle-cream enchilada sauce, but I sort of cook predominently that kind of cuisine.

Let me say that I never tried chipotle/guava in the past, Scoob. Sounds like a great addition to seared pineapple salsa.

Also I never throw away the puree left in the can. It takes hours to make this. Chipotles are so pungent that unless I actually need the whole chile, I always use the puree. Or stronger.

John S.

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I figured freezing it in ice cube trays was my best bet, I did this with baby food for many, many years.

Would you say 1 T is equal to about one pepper?

I love the idea of mixing it with a quava paste, I might have to wait until a trip back to the US to find it though. How easy is it to find?

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

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I figured freezing it in ice cube trays was my best bet, I did this with baby food for many, many years.

Would you say 1 T is equal to about one pepper?

I love the idea of mixing it with a quava paste, I might have to wait until a trip back to the US to find it though. How easy is it to find?

Canned chipotles in puree - you need a Mexican market or order online. Guava paste - don't know really, but I bet online as well. In CA The guavas are usually available from Mexico or Hawaii. Something else good is mango instead of guava in chipotle puree. Yep with chipotles or Jals, one chile is about one tsp.

edited to add the conversion

Edited by John S. (log)
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