Stringing Peppers

• 1). Pick your Red Rocket red peppers when they are bright red and still firm. Wash the peppers with soap and water, rinse them completely and allow them to air dry.
  
  
• 2). Cut a piece of quilting thread 24 inches long. Tie a craft stick or a stick from your yard to one end of the thread. Thread a heavy needle with the other end of the quilting thread.
  
  
• 3). Push the needle through the stem of one Red Rocket pepper. Push the pepper down the string until it is about 1 inch from the stick at the end. Loop the thread around the stem and push the needle back through the stem again, in the same direction you first threaded it. This looping and threading twice will prevent the peppers from sliding along the thread while they're hanging.
  
  
• 4). Push the needle through a second Red Rocket pepper and slide the pepper along the thread until it's about 1 inch from the first one. Loop the thread around and push the needle through the stem again. Continue stringing the peppers using this method until you have about 6 inches of thread left.
  
  
• 5). Tie the loose end of the thread to the edge of your porch roof, your garage overhang or somewhere else that will allow the peppers to get bright sun and fresh breezes every day. Allow the peppers to dry for about 2 weeks until they are leathery and tough.
  
  

Oven Drying Peppers

• 1). Wash the peppers and inspect them to find any that are soft, rotting or otherwise damaged. Discard any bad peppers you may find.
  
  
• 2). Put on rubber kitchen gloves to keep the pepper juice off your hands. Slice the peppers in 1/4-inch rounds.
  
  
• 3). Arrange the pepper slices in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Place the cookie sheet in a preheated oven which has been set at the lowest possible setting, such as either 140 degrees Fahrenheit or a "Keep Warm" setting. Leave the oven door slightly ajar.
  
  
• 4). Turn the peppers over once every hour until they are completely dried.