Monday, August 15, 2005

Smelly Fingers




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Originally uploaded by ryanmshea.

So last week I pickled up my first batch of peppers, proving that something productive would come from that garden regardless of what mr. tomato had to say about it. One of the ingredients in my jar-o-fun is a chopped up garlic clove. Garlic is some pretty strong stuff, and needless to say it'll make your hands smell a bit like garlic, even after washing. Little did I know that this smell would persist the entire week. I found myself making extra trips to the bathroom to scrub my hands in hopes of once and for all ridding myself of the stale garlic smell. On Saturday, just as the smell was finally fading beyond noticibility, it was time again to do more canning. Again, I chopped up the garlic and smellified my fingers, but this time I was determined to rid myself of the stank. I made up a little cup of bleach and hot hot water and rubbed it all over my hands, scrubbing away at every nook and cranny. Then after a normal hand washing (ok, maybe 5 of them) I emerged victorious. My chapped feeling hands had no detectable garlic scent. Well, today, the smell is back. I give up.

7 comments:

  1. Hah. I cook with garlic all the time so I don't even notice the smell anymore. Maybe garlic sented hands have just becoming part of my "aura"? At kitchen stores they do have this "garlic stone" thing. It looks like a bar of soap, but is made out of some metal material and apparently if you wash your hands with it then they stop smelling.

    I'm excited to try some of these pickled peppers of yours. If you have a mini-party you could put them out in bowls for people to snack on. Or maybe they are too spicy??

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  2. Lemon Juice. I used to work at a seafood joint and that stuff worked for me.

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  3. I'm not so sure they'd be snackworthy to people other than me. I ate one of my jalepeno peppers before pickling or cooking and I thought I was going to die. So far I've got nine jars and I'm sure I'll build up enough tolerance to be able to eat them regularly, but I doubt they would be appreciated by the masses.

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  4. Hey now... there is something to be said about eating eating something that a friend has made. I am totally interested in trying some of your peppers - and if they are so darn toasty hot that the bring tears to my eyes... all the better. I may not have spent any time outside the fence with poster boards saying "Way to go Peppers" or "C'on Tomatoes, You can DO IT!"... but I still consider myself to be a fan of your garden. I look forward to trying a peck of your pickled peppers.

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  5. I bet wearing thin rubber gloves during your garlic workout would keep your hands smelling latex fresh. I don't imagine the rubber would hurt the vegies.

    The canning job looks really cool, nice colors. Thought about doing one of those big bottles that you see in the stores all lined up with peppers inside? Always wanted to try that myself.

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  6. Try rubbing your hands on a piece of bare metal copper or aluminum foil. I've heard that works, but have never tried it.

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  7. actually, if you just keep a cut lemon handy, or even a lime, you can rub it on your hands and the high acid content will rid your fingers of the garlic smell.

    there was a restaurant in san fran that was called the stinking garlic. didnt get to eat there but it is for the most dedicated garlic fans.

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