How to Grow, Harvest, and Prepare Calabrian Chiles Infused with Olive Oil

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I love the heat and flavor of adding Calabrian chiles to my food, so I thought it would be fun to grow these flavorful fruits in my garden. However, finding these seeds from a reputable company was difficult. I ended up ordering the seeds from Sherwood’s Seeds Company (Calabrian Pepper Ristra Italian Picante Calabrese Spicy Pepper of Calabria Premium Seed Packet – Heirloom) through Amazon in early spring for $6.99, but to my surprise, the package only had 10 seeds. This didn’t leave much room for error in the germination process. I normally sow extra seeds in case some seeds don’t germinate, but since I had a limited number, I only planted four seeds. Luckily, they all grew into beautiful plants.

As the summer months continued, my confidence in getting a good crop of these little gems dwindled because the Northeast was hit with a lot of rain. As I stated in one of my previous posts, these plants and a few others weren’t thriving in their current location, so mid-season, I relocated them to an area that gets at least 8 hours of full sun. Check out my posts, Six Vegetables I Successfully Transferred Mid-Season and Update on the Vegetables I Transferred Mid-Season.

The peppers continued producing fruit into September before the temperature dropped. My plan was to harvest the peppers when they turned bright red, but because of the temperature and rainy weather, I decided to harvest them early, and store them in a mesh bag on the counter until they all turned red. The process took several weeks, but it was worth the wait. Since the pepper plants were strong before the weather change, I saved some of the seeds to grow the following year.

Sowing Calabrian Chile Seeds:

1. Purchase and read the seed package before planting.
2. Sow your pepper seeds indoors in the EarlyGrow 93763 Medium Seed and Herb Domed Propagator with Vented Side Height Extension from Amazon eight weeks before your area’s last predicted frost date or choose the seed starter of your liking.
3. Choose a bag of seed-starting soil mix like Espoma Organic Seed Starter Premium Potting Soil Mix from Amazon or Home Depot.
4. Find a sunny location indoors with enough light for seeds to germinate, or use a heat mat or grow light.
5. Plant at least 3 seeds in each cell.
   • Check the seed package for the correct planting depth.
   • Dampen the potting mix before adding the seeds to the cell.
   • Mist the soil and label a popsicle stick using a permanent marker with the seed
     name and date planted.
   • Keep the soil moist, and always water from the bottom of the tray.
6. As the temperature gets warmer in your area (above 50°F), prepare young plants for the outdoors by hardening them off over a 10-day period.
   • Hardening off means gradually introducing the young plants to a shady outdoor environment. Be sure to bring the plants back in each night. Once the temperature is consistently above 60°F and there is no danger of frost, plant your young plants outside and watch the magic happen.

Removing and Storing Seeds:

Removing seeds from hot peppers is easy enough, but I recommend wearing gloves and thoroughly washing your hands afterward. First, I washed and air-dried the peppers. Then I cut four peppers lengthways, removed the seeds, spread them on a plate to air dry, and stored them in a labeled mason jar to use in the future. If stored correctly, these seeds should last a few years.

I hope you enjoy the recipe.