Re: [CH] Pickled Cherry Peppers and Garlic in Oil
Love2Troll (Love2Troll@kc.rr.com)
Fri, 14 Sep 2001 22:20:41 -0500
Mike S. writes:
>What if instead of pure olive oil, it was 1/3 cider vinegar, 2/3 olive oil.
>I have done peppers that way. The vinegar will introduce acidity which
>should protect against botulism
Why take any chance? Get a pH meter & be sure. Will copy & paste a relevant article below.
John
Hot Sauce: Playing it Safe
By Harald & Renate Zoschke
So you just "invented" the world's finest hot sauce. That's great. Whether you plan on going commercial or just cook up a mini-batch for your friends and family, it is important to play it safe.
To prevent the sauce from spoilage and development of harmful bacteria like the potentially deadly Clostridium botulinum that causes botulism, it is important to cook the sauce at a proper temperature for a sufficient time so undesired organisms are destroyed, and to "acidify" sufficiently. This means to bring the pH well below 4.6, preferably below 4.2. The pH of a food is the measure of that product's acidity or alkalinity on a range from 0 to 14. Any value smaller than 7.0 is considered acidic.
Monitoring Cooking Temperature
When a food product is acidified to a pH of 4.6 or less, according to FDA's "Good Manufacturing Practices," inhibition of growth of C. botulinum is assured. Hot sauce ingredients like chiles, other veggies and fruit are high in pH; i.e. they spoil easily without proper acidification. To acidify a hot sauce, vinegar, lime juice or other low-pH substances are added. Typically, a vinegar-based hot sauces has a pH in the range from 3.0 to 4.0.
Although our taste buds can recognize pH differences of various foods (acidic products taste sour, while alkaline products would taste bitter), measuring needs to be done more accurately. Measuring the pH is accomplished with litmus paper (an indicator which changes color depending on the degree of acidity), or--preferably and more precisely--a pH meter. This is an electronic instrument with a probe, and low-cost units are now available for less than US$ 100.00. One manufacturer and supplier of affordable pH meters is Omega; their Web site is at www.omega.com
Checking pH with a pH meter
(after calibrating the meter
using pH 4.0 and 7.0 buffer fluids)
It is very important to read the instruction manual, condition the probe, and calibrate the meter using buffer solutions (typically pH 4.0 and 7.0) accordingly. Also, the reading should take place at room temperature.
Going commercial?
For commercial products brought into interstate commerce, the requirements for registration, manufacturing, and process filing of "low-acid canned foods (LACF) and acidified foods (AF) in hermetically sealed containers" are issued and codified in Title 21, Code of Federal Regulations, Parts 108, 113 and 114.
Although the FDA does not approve, license, or issue permits for finished food products shipped in interstate U.S. commerce, all commercial processors of LACF and AF are required to register their establishments and file processing information for all such products with the FDA. Special forms are required for this, which are available from:
Food and Drug Administration
LACF Registration Coordinator (HFS-618)
200 C St. SW, Washington, D.C. 20204
Commercial products which fall into this category need to be cooked and packed by an operation that was also registered with the FDA, under the supervision of a properly trained and certified person. Now what's excatly required? One problem is that if you ask five people, you'll get five different opinions. Thanks to the Web, you can read the FDA regulations for yourself, for example at:
http://vm.cfsan.fda.gov/~comm/lacf-toc.html
So will you have to deal with the FDA? Or just the Dept. of Agriculture? It highly recommended to consult one of the experts in this field. For example Dr. Al Wagner, Texas A&M, or Dr. Bill Morris, University of Tennessee (Knoxville, TN). These specialists can also serve as the so called process authorities which are required if you have to file your products with the FDA. They also hold Better Process Control School classes. For other class locations, search the Web for "Better Process Control School".
Some Sites of Interest
FDA Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition
Good Manufacturing Practice (FDA)
FDA Requirements for Registration, Filing etc.
Food Labeling Guide (FDA)
Gateway to Government Food Safety Information
Food Safety and Food Preservation
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About the Authors
While running Suncoast Peppers, Inc. in St. Petersburg, Florida for four years, Harald and Renate Zoschke developed a line of award-winning hot sauces, including Florida Heat(R), Currybbean Fiesta, Liquid Ax, and Peppa Colada. Renate attended Better Process Control School at the University of Tennessee. While the Suncoast sauces are now owned and made by CaJohns Fiery Foods in Columbus, Ohio, the Zoschkes opened the first German hot shop on the Web, and Harald is Webmaster and designer for www.fiery-foods.com and his own site, www.pepperworld.com