I just researched for a whole five minutes on Google to give you the correct name of this pepper, but “long hots” will have to suffice along with the picture below. Long hots seem to show up at most of my Italian family’s events and there’s no end to possible uses. Not sure if it’s a regional (Philly) thing, an Italian thing, or if it works family by family, but I’ve been cooking them a lot lately and I wanted to share my crazy easy method with you!
If you don’t like spicy things, just stop reading now. The heat varies from pepper to pepper, but prepare yourself for the worst as to avoid a scary surprise. I’ve been working on my husband’s spice tolerance since we first met, sneaking crushed red pepper into our dinners in increasing amounts. He still sweats when he eats these long hots, but it’s a happy, “bring it on” kind of perspiration – much like a boxing bootcamp class. On Christmas Eve I put out a big plate of long hots with focaccia bread as a sort of starter for the holiday soup. My in-laws (parents and brothers) came to the house before my Italian side, and I wasn’t sure if they’d attempt the peppers. I’m running around trying to get pictures of my child in her dress and since she LITERALLy never stops running, it took me a few minutes. I turn around and to my great surprise, the peppers were GONE. Tommy says, “what were those and are there more”. The English/Irish/Scottish folks like the peppers!
With this easy oven method, I’ll buy peppers in bulk and keep them in tupperware in the fridge. I’ve now topped fish, chicken, salads, and pizza with these peppers. A fun snack-y dinner option we occasionally do is fresh Italian bread, olive oil, balsamic syrup, long hots and sharp provolone or parmesan cheese. It’s happy eating and a GREAT change of pace – perfect for a weekend night in.
I buy these peppers at Gentiles in Newtown Square (you can get a giant bag of them for 2 bucks), but I have seen them in the grocery store. They might be labeled “frying peppers”. I’d love some feedback here – do you eat long hots? Have you seen them in your grocery stores? Have you used them in a way I didn’t list here? Fill me in!
*This is more of a method than a recipe, which is why I don’t have specific amounts below.
Roasted Long Hot Peppers
Long hots, stem trimmed off
Olive oil – enough to thoroughly coat each pepper
Kosher salt
Garlic cloves, optional (unpeeled)
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In an 8 inch square or 9×13 inch baking pan (depending on how many peppers you have), toss peppers in olive oil and spread in an even layer in pan (no overlapping). If using garlic, simply give the papery cloves a good smash – they will be imparting their essence here, and you will remove them before serving/storing. I would use 4 garlic cloves per 10 peppers.
3. Sprinkle generously with kosher salt.
4. Roast peppers for 35-40 minutes, or until completely softened and starting to turn golden brown.
5. Cool for ten minutes before serving, or cool to room temperature and store in air tight container in the fridge, up to two weeks.
Hi Becca! I have used these to make home made salsa. I’ve been told by my friend Nancy that it is the best she’s ever tasted! She actually grew and provided the long hots so I’m sure she was biased!
Becca!
I’ve been eating the same thing since I was a kid with my grandfather. I get mine from Produce Junction just because its closer to me in Drexel Hill. I think it is just a Philly thing because when I order them in other states people look at me funny. However I add just a little garlic salt or powder when I remix them with the oil I tossed them in after they’re roasted.
Enjoy!,
Chris
Hi there. I am from UPSTATE NY, Near Rochester NY and Elmira, NY. I am from an Italian family with a lotta Italians in our hometown. This is a staple in most Italian’s homes. They are excellent on Spaghetti, Tuna fish Sandwiches, sausage, gizzards or anything you want to spice up a bit 😉 YUM!
Hi Becca!
We had some downtime at work in S. Jersey last week and my work partner and I ran out just for long hots and provolone! We are both Italian, so working together always means great food and great conversation. I’m making peppers and eggs for lunch as I type-sweet peppers, of course.
Hi Donna! Ahh a fellow Paisano! Glad you love the long hots as much as I do. The peppers and eggs were also a family tradition of ours and my grandmom used to pack them for my dad’s school lunches when he was a little boy. It’s up to our generation to keep these time honored traditions alive! Happy cooking 🙂
Pepper and eggs! Yum! I think I found these as a plant in a local garden supply store. I love long hots, and I ended up buying a couple of plants. The store said they were long hots, but they labeled them as “hot ports.” I did a Google search, and I’m thinking “hot Portugal peppers” are the same as long hots. Does anyone know for sure? I guess I won’t know until they come to fruition. By the way, I’m in New York state, and long hots are usually available at the grocery stores here. It’s a heavily Italian area.
Omg, I also searched and searched. I’m sure it’s an Italian thing cause I grew up with them. All in the ways others commented and loved everything, made me hungry! I use to live near produce Junction but moved to Lancaster Pa. The people here thought I was crazy too. I did find some at some produce places but seldom. One actually labeled them “long hots”. They were a necessity when having roasted pork sandwiches with sharp or provolone cheese but also needed Broccoli Rabe! Does anyone know what that is? Can’t get that in Lancaster County either! I craved them so much, we drove to Phila to get them! Well needed to comment, thanks for going down memory lane!
Hey Becca!
I LOve the Long Hots..There are a lot of different varieties. I purchase my plants from Cross Country in New Jersey and they ship them whenever you want depending on what Zone you live in. This year I tried the Cayenne Large Thick..Cayenne Portugal, Cayenne Carolina and Charleston Hot. All plants turned out well. Just got frying up the peppers. I use about a cup or two in my 16 Qt Le Creuset Dutch Oven. It works quite well but you have to stir and stir to make sure that the peppers cook evenly. The next batch I will try your way in the oven at 375. I love these peppers on everything. Today I used them on a round roll with ham, tomato, lettuce, onion, sharp provolone, genoa salami, salt, pepper and some extra virgin olive oil…Yummy for Me…Tomorrow I am cooking up some roast beef. I will cook up some Broccoli Rabe with garlic to go with it…Roast Beef, Broccoli Rabe, little brown gravy, extra sharp provolone, long hot peppers on a roll (Round or Long).
Hey Wheels and Michele! Wheels, reading your comment literally made my mouth water – thanks for that 🙂
Michele I have a recipe on here for broccoli rabe too – you need to make! Isn’t Italian food the best!??
frying peppers is another name for cubanelle peppers, used in sofrito and puerto rican cooking… they are not hot
Hey Becca, I am reading these comments and as soon as I am done responding I am headed out to get a few bags and some Jeresy Tomatoes to add to them. Dee-lish.
As a novice years ago I made the mistake of sauteeing them! You could’nt breathe in my house for an hour.
Hey Chuck – love it! Mmm Jersey tomatoes – nothing better really. I could eat one like an apple. Even roasting some crazy hot long hots makes my family cough a little extra but it’s soooo worth it! Hope roasting them goes well for you 🙂
Try cutting up six long hots, one medium yellow onion, and two cloves of garlic. Saute in olive oil until the onions are translucent. Add five or six cups of cubed eggplant, 1 cup of water, and cook until delicious. I use this “eggplant relish” as a topping for hamburgers, and just about everything else. (For an interesting “non-Italian” twist, add some seame oil and soy sauce to the mix before cooking.)
Yum – Arnie – sounds like ratatouille but with powerful heat. Love it! Thank you for the suggestion!
I cant believe I just read this article…. I recently visited the eat coast for the very first time(California native). Visited a friend in New Jersy and she introduced these “long hots” to me. WOW I love them! She just sent me a pkg…..a box of long hots!!…WHat I would like to know is why have I never heard of these peppers before in my lifetime? And I am no “spring chicken”. Being in California one would think I would have knowledge of many kinds of peppers…. Anyhow thank you for the article.
Hi Robin! I talked to a farmer at my grower’s market recently and he seemed to think there are several varieties that could be “long hots” – I think roasting them down with lots of olive oil and garlic is what makes them the Italian long hots you can buy at any Italian speciality foods stores. Anyways.. so glad you know how to cook them down, now. Enjoy!
Not just a Philly thing. Any good Italian deli in Ct has threm
Hey Thanks! Great news 🙂
HI Becca! Fellow Philly girl here. Great article – I LOVE long hots. I’m also curious about the “real” name of these peppers as I’d love to share some recipes on my food blog, but I don’t think these are available throughout the country (maybe only a Northeast thing)? I grew my own this year, and they were amazing!!!
Hey Marie! I talked to a farmer at my Grower’s Market and he had a basket of the peppers.. I asked if they were Italian “long hots” and he basically said that there are so many varieties of “long hots”, a bunch of different names. I DID get a comment from someone on this blog that says she get’s them readily in California… maybe they just call them something else out there? Either way, I love that you grew some yourself – I’m envious as I have only shade and can’t grow produce 🙁
I live in San Diego, and have cousins in New Jersey. I love love the long hot peppers. I can’t find them here. Please help.
Debbie C – I’d love to help but I’m still in your camp! I asked a farmer at my grower’s market and he basically said there are lots of technical names for “long hots” – I suppose if you find a pepper that looks like it could fit the bill, roast it up and give it a try! The end result will be worth your efforts.. LOVE these things. Making tonight to top pizza!
I just got home from Gentile’s with my peppers and looked up a recipe and this is what came up first! Meant to be! They’re in the oven. Thanks
Oh how I love Gentiles! I just made a batch this weekend put them on top of pizza – esp. with sausage (which I didn’t have) – SO good! Glad you found the easy way to cook them and I hope they turned out great for you!
Becca , I wanted to check out a new way other then the frying pan for my long hots tonight, I am going to do it your way. Thank you sounds much easier. I wanted to share a couple of other dishes that l enjoy them in, I add them to my pasta red gravy, angel hair and long hots throughout….yummy! And sautéed chicken in garlic maybe with mushroom if you like over rice. Also very tastey. Thank you! Enjoy !
Shannon – thanks for that great info! Hope they worked well in the oven for you!!
Thanks for the info I usually fry them ,but wanted to try in the oven if u want to make a good thing better next time u make them put them in pan or pot add can of whole tomatoes fresh basil n lots of garlic let simmer bout 1/2hr their great! If I love heat look up nearby cross country nurseries @chileplants.com
My grocery just calls them Italian frying peppers. As you said, variable heat. Need to.use them when I make up a mess of Utica greens (escarole with peppers, garlic and Parmesan.) Yes, I live in central New York, an Italian enclave.
Utica greens sound delicious, Debra! I might need to try that!
Long hots are large cayenne peppers. If you can find red ones, you’re lucky. I grew up in Utica New York, long hots have a long been a staple of our table. I can find them here in Chicago, but sometimes it’s difficult. There is a restaurant in Utica called the Chesterfield, who does some remarkable things with long hots. Slice them in half stuff them with Italian sausage, mozzarella,blue cheese, breadcrumbs, under the broiler wow. Personal favorite, sautéed long hots with orange and yellow peppers, Italian sausage, potatoes garlic. Lots of extra out olive oil to dunk some really crusty Italian bread!
Rick – thanks for that great info! I think I need to visit Utica, I keep hearing great things about this place (and the delicious food available 🙂
I make peppers about 10 different ways, and this is by far the easiest. I also shop at Gentiles in Newtown Square PA where the peppers are the cheapest anywhere outside of 9th Street Market in South Phila.
next time you invite the inlaws for Italian food, tell them the party starts a half hour after i get there!
Haha! You got it, Dad 🙂
The name for Long Hots is MESILLA HYBRID
You can order the seeds from http://www.tomatogrowers.com/MESILLA-HYBRID/productinfo/9123/
Charlie – AWESOME. Thanks so much!!!
Hello all, I am a native Philly boy and long hots were a staple growing up and still are one my most desired foods that I crave…I have some roasted in my frig as I write this. A new recipe I recently came across is to slice the pepper long ways on one side and stuff with sharp provolone set in a bed of spicy marinara add some thin prosciutto to garnish and roast at 375 till the cheese melts…about 10-12 minutes…Reading these comments brings back nostalgia especially the pepper and eggs…Special thanks to Becca for this site.. and also Charlie last post for providing the name and a website to this awesome pepper!!!
Brian – that concoction sounds absolutely delicious! We’ve been doing homemade pizza on Friday nights and roasted long hots make a GREAT topping. That side dish with the cheese would be a great non-pasta alternative with meatballs or chicken cacciatore! Thanks so much for your input 🙂
I want to grow long hots in my yard this year..I am originally from upstate N.Y and live in California…Can anyone let me know where I can buy the plants online? I have been looking everywhere..Thanks, Frank
I’m living in Israel and we get the peppers here. I tried your recipe and it worked perfectly. Thank you. andy
Wow – Israel! That’s incredible! Thanks for posting, Andy!
I was introduced to longhots quite a few years ago by one of my South Philly relatives. Recently I saw them as a side or on pizza/grinders at a great place in Wolcott, CT. I found they are available locally and I learned the proper way to fry them from a Youtube video. I think the guy in the video was from Philly, he mentioned the Italian Market and he had the Philly accent. Soon I’ll try using your oven method. Around here, prices are between $3.49 – $3.99 per lb., and they are never very fresh. Last week I was at the Reading Terminal Market in Philly and they were $1.99 lb. My cousins go to Gentiles, next time I visit I may bring home a couple bags. I live in Wallingford, CT
These are great peppers and popular plants to grow not only because of their great taste but also because of their high yields. They can be grown in containers if you don’t have a garden. I have so many, has anyone ever tried this type of recipe and then freezing them? Would love to serve them as an app with bread and cheese at the Christmas Eve Seven Fishes dinner!
For you local Delco people Wolff’s Applehouse in Middletown township sells quality Mesilla plants at the beginning of the gardening season.
So funny! I just googled roasting long hots and your page came up first – and I live in Newtown Square and shop at Gentiles. Small world.
Love that, Kristen! Gentiles is the best 🙂
I just finished baking long hots, This is the first time they came out with skin that was tough and un able to chew. Was it me or the peppers?
Hey Jim Doc – could have been that particular pepper? Maybe they needed a longer bake time? I find 45 minutes to be the minimum for me – I like them totally soft and roasty and sometimes it takes up to 15 extra minutes. The end result is the kind of pepper you can cut with a fork (so, pretty tender). Maybe try again with a different batch and don’t be afraid to roast them longer than stated. good luck!
Live Gentiles!!!! Simple and delicious recipe…..I throw a little vinegar on them to give a little more zip. Great with sausage….
I am about an hour south of Philly in Oxford PA and I grew some this year. When I bought them, they were called “long horn” peppers. Believe it or not, I found them at Lowes. They look and taste exactly like long hots. I am getting ready to start roasting them right now. I have a pork shoulder slow roasting in the oven right now to take to the Eagles game in the morning. I was looking for a good recipe for roasted long hots when I came across your site. Thanks for the recipe! Can’t wait to try them tomorrow!
Brian
We in Schuylkill County PA like our hot peppers too. I believe the type of peppers you are referring to are Cayenne. You can see them here:
http://www.chileplants.com/search.aspx?ProductCode=CHICLT&SearchButton=Pressed
Thanks Stan!
Thanks for the recipe, I always did mine in the frying pan, and searched for 20 min for your easy to do recipe!!!
A must have on a roast pork sandwich. These peppers alway catch me by surprise. You would think after all these years I would know better and maybe slice one in half.
Not just a Philly thing. I grew up in Utica, NY, and they are all over, Syracuse, Albany… Anywhere there are Italians. You’ll see them on restaurant menus. Fried, also split and stuffed. Italian sausage, fresh mozzarella and breadcrumbs are my favorite when I visit. I live in Chicago, and I find them here. My neighbor grows the best tomatoes, and I talked her into planting some long hots for me. Mama Mia, where they hot! Sautéed with sausage and crusty bread. Wow!
Hey Rick, where in Chicago have you found the peppers? I am from Syracuse, NY and would love to get my hands on some of them. Thanks
Family from Philly. I live in CA. I searched for “long hots” for years. I finally solved the mystery; they are cayenne peppers which do turn red. I have yet to find fresh big cayennes here. The produce guys at the various markets have no clue. So, I still need my family to fedex them to me. In turn, I send them hatch chilli peppers from New Mexico when they are in season in August. Check out the hatch. Roasted as well. Family in south Philly love ’em. Melissa’s sells them as well.
Thanks, Laura! I love that you have your family fed-ex them – a true fan 🙂
morning. fryin’ up outside using electric skillet x olive oil. does no one slow fry and save the fabulous resulting hot oil? that’s a few generations there. we keep the oil in the frig and use with pasta. omg. too wonderful. many many varieties work well to season the oil.
Hi Becca. I can long hots. They’re great on cheese steaks or any type of hoagie. I add them to venison dishes too.
Very easy to can too. Wash and slicd pepper in about 1/2″ slices. Fill mason jar with sliced peppers, fill 3/4 with white vinegar than the rest of the way with water. Put lid on and put them in the cabinet, let sit for about a month then they’re ready to enjoy.
Thanks, Terri! That sounds delicious!!!
Hello Becca!
I’m English-Irish-Scot and just discovered long hot peppers at Pete’s Produce in Westtown PA – near to your source. Nobody at Pete’s could tell me anything about the hot-level of lnng hots. I’d never tried them before, so I bought just two. Being a newbie, I just sliced the raw pepper like I would a jalapeno and added cut up tomatoes, some cucumber slices and the long hots. I added balsamic vinegar, some olive oil, and it made a delicious salad. Wish I’d thought to add garlic but next time. However, the raw peppers are definitely HOT! I made sure I only had half a slice in each mouthful but my was it good! Do they have to be roasted? Does roasting make them milder? Thanks for your great website!
Hey There Sangazure! Nice to know they taste great raw, but I’ve only had them roasted. Like I said in the post, my mom pan fries them which works, but I like to roast them because it’s “hands off” and because by roasting them you bring out the sweetness. The heat is still there, but that roasty toasty affect combined with the spice, along with a good dose of kosher salt and garlic is just HEAVEN. They can be mild or freaky hot but you don’t really know till you’re a few bites in (part of the fun I suppose). As people have said on here, they’re fantastic with roast pork or chicken, cheeses like provolone or asiago, and even as a pizza topping. Have fun!
Hi,
I’m Italian-American however my family is from northern Italy and most of our meals were not as spicy as they make them in the south. However we do have parmigiano reggiano cheese!! 😉
I am from Brooklyn originally but live in southwest Florida and have a wonderful farm store close by that labels these beauties “hot Italian peppers”. They also have “sweet Italian peppers”. I’m so happy I acquired a taste for spicy hot foods as an adult!!!
I’m roasting them whole with olive oil onions and garlic gloves and will serve over sautéed chicken breast for a wonderful healthy meal!!
I try to keep my husband and I on a Mediterranean diet. We are retired seniors!!
Hi im from Staten island these were a staple in our house, my mother fried them in garlic and oil and they went with everthing from steak to pasta on a sandwiche or
scrambled with eggs..can’t wait to try the naked..
I found this post through Google search for “how to roast long peppers”….not much out there but I had to laugh out loud when I read that you buy yours at Gentiles in Newtown Square (which is of course where I get mine)….I had no idea this was so regional (or even local!!),
Melissa – how great is Gentiles? Best place every, I’m actually going tomorrow night! Maybe I’ll see you there buying some long hots! Haha!
Since I was a young girl my grandpa D’Amico roasted tomatoes and peppers on a grill, shredded them added olive oil, salt and a little water, a loaf of Italian bread….oh what a meal! To this day I make this dish frequently for my kids, it is a summer frequent request. Love it…..so delish!
Hi there,
I was searching ‘how to jar Italian frying peppers.’ This is how I found you. I too live in Newtown Square, PA. I came across Italian frying peppers at Pete’s. The last time I had these peppers was when I lived at home.
I am first generation Italian. My parents immigrated from Calabria to Canada. Most of our produce came from our garden. Unfortunately, I never learned to cook (my mother warned me I would regret it. And now I regret it 🙂 I’m trying to recreate the dishes I grew up on. So far, I wasn’t doing to badly until I got to these peppers.
My mother would put out a jar of peppers and serve it as an antipasto with home cured cracked olives, cheese, etc. I have no idea how they prepared the peppers. They seemed to have oil, I don’t remember if they were marinating in vinegar. They had a silky texture. I think they roasted them? Sadly, I don’t remember. I loved eating these peppers with fresh bread.
Have you jarred Italian frying peppers? Also, I’m trying to find raw green olives to cure. Any idea where I can get them?
Josie
Hey Josie! If I were you I’d check Luigi and Giovanni, on St. Alban’s circle in Newtown Square. They might have what you’re looking for! I roast my long hot peppers but have never jarred them – I would think you could though, easily! Just store them that way. Good luck!
I cook ,in oil,a large quanity of mixed hot peppers and jarred them in 4 oz ball jars.can I just refrigerate (or freeze) them until I use them individually or must I preserve them by sealing them by pressure.thank you in advance
Tom – that’s a good question! I would think if you intend to use them within a few weeks then keep them refrigerated without sealing them. If you want to make them shelf stable and use in the next few months, you’d have to seal them. Great idea!
Hi – too funny I was checking out recipes for the bag of Long Hots I got from *Gentiles and lo and behold I came across your site- I wanted to roast them and pack them in oil for various uses including eggs in the morning- I usually just pack a few extra containers of them when we go to Chubby’s in Roxborough as that is the only place I know to get them other than making them! I am going to try balsamic syrup with them, sounds yummy!
glad to find a fellow Philadelphian’s site!
Laura – love that! Gentiles is THE BEST, right???
Laura, Chubby’s has the BEST hots in their oil! wish i had their recipe.
Hi Becca! I live in NJ, love the long hots on EVERYTHING! Besides roasting in the oven, I have often split the pepper long ways with a knife, stuff it with prosciutto and very sharp provolone, top with lots of olive oil, and salt, then roast in the oven till peppers are tender…. you will have no left overs! I often take then to parties, and they are always a hit.
Thanks for the blog. Due to lack of seeds for “long hot” peppers, I’ve just ordered plants from White Flower Farm, online. They call them Italian Roaster peppers. They should be arriving here in mid April, and hopefully they are the real deal!
Hi Connie! Thanks for the great comment! Aren’t long hots the best? Your recipe for the prosciutto and prov sounds AMAZING! My husband would go nuts for that! Also, great tip on getting the seeds. I wish I had more sun but I’m lucky to grow a few herbs with all my trees. Thank you, again!