Aka “Ghost in a Bottle”

Though this technique can be used with any of our dried chilis (use our chili heat scale to decide), we like using ghosts because of the daredevil aspect they bring to spicy cocktails.  The aji panca and pasilla negro chilis introduce extra fruitiness without bringing too much added heat.  Chopping the mild chilies up allows their milder flavor & color to infuse faster into the vodka while sending the pieces to the bottom.  Leaving the ghost chili whole keeps it from heating the alcohol up too fast, and the air trapped inside the chili floats it prominently at the top of the bottle (for a couple weeks at least)…so everyone knows what they’re in for.  Try using this to add pep to your bloody marys!

Ingredients:
1 liter good quality vodka
1 dried Ghost Chili
1 dried Aji Panca Chili
1 dried Pasilla Negro Chili

 Directions:

1. Always put on gloves before handling ghost chilies.
2. Sort through your ghost chilis for the one with the best profile that also fits through the mouth of your bottle (though we recommend a smaller one).
3. Remove the seeds, inner ribs (if you leave the ribs in they’ll float) and stems from the aji panca & pasilla negro chilis.
4. Chop up the aji panca and pasilla negro.  Leave the ghost chile whole for presentation & short-term heat control purposes.
5. Add diced chilis and ghost chili to your vodka.  Let steep 2-3 days.

Makes 1 liter of spiced vodka.

Warning: Your ghost chile vodka will get hotter the longer it steeps.  The heat was noticeable even after a couple hours.  Two weeks later, it had some serious kick (but still tolerable).  To control the heat, taste it every couple days and strain out the chilies once it’s as hot as you like, or regularly consume & replace part of the vodka in the bottle with fresh vodka (it’s a tough job, but somebody’s got to do it).  You could also mix your ghost vodka with plain vodka as part of your cocktail mixology.

To make milder (but still quite hot) vodka, replace the ghost chilies with a habanero chili (or an even milder organic Aji Cereza chili).  To add notes of smokiness, try chipotle chilies or smoked serrano chilies.

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Browse More:
Ghost Chile Recipes
Cocktail & Beverage Recipes
Dried Chile Recipes & Techniques