I air dry my chilies by stringing them up by the stem. The weather must be a dry wind - not a sea breeze - otherwise they can be strung up in the airing cupboard. To usr: Open chilli - strip (or not) the seeds (to keep for seed next year) and fry in hot oil - drain on absorbant paper, then flake or blitz to a powder.
Thank you everybody for sharing your experience with overwintering and using chillis - definitely taking everything on board. I have Paper Lantern, Trinidad Scorpion and Carolina Reaper - they are already safe in the conservatory, as the nights are too cold now. And another one - Basket of Fire - is still outside, apparently it’s ok with colder temperatures. It is indeed covered with fruits and flowers, and the little pointy chillis are ripening nicely. 😊
I have two Apache, four Blue Christmas and two Carolina Reapers ... the CRs are only just beginning to form fruit whereas the others are covered with them. I’m thinking of trying to overwinter some in our studio which is a glass-walled room in our house so bright and kept at a liveable temperature. 👍
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
This is my chilli Basket of Fire. Very decorative, nice bushy shape and very productive. At the moment it has chillis at all stages - from tiny green babies to fiery red ripened peppers. And some flowers on top 😊
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I throw those I can't use straight away directly into the freezer.
The plant is winding down now as the fruits seem to be getting much smaller. Think the temperature is too low at night now.
OP - I think Dove is right, they will ripen anyway.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.