How to fix too much pepper? (7 ways)
In this brief guide, we are going to answer the question “How to fix too much pepper?”, and discuss the details of each way to fix pepper.
How to fix too much pepper?
Peppers are a versatile ingredient to be added to a variety of recipes including meat, fish, eggs, soups, and salad. But when you are preparing such dishes, it is common to add the wrong amount of pepper to them. This can happen often, either because you misread the recipe or because the cap of the container falls off the container mid-dash.
The severity of such a situation depends not only on the amount of the pepper but also on the type of the pepper. For example, if you happen to add too much white pepper or cayenne pepper, you will need a bigger fix. But if you add too much black pepper, it can be fixed quite easily.
To fix too much pepper, you can either strain the extra pepper if possible or you can add some neutralizer to lessen the intensity of too much pepper.
7 ways to fix too much pepper
As the addition of too much pepper can occur often, you need to know how to counteract the situation if it occurs. For this, you can go through the following tricks and use them depending on the recipe at hand. Make sure to proceed with caution. And start by adding small amounts at a time and tasting the result as you go until you reach the desired flavor.
Dilute the dish
The easiest way to tone down the excess pepper is to dilute the dish. For dilution, you can also use the ingredient that is already used in the dish. This method holds the least of the risk for spoiling your dish under preparation.
The ingredient to be added varies with the type of dish you need to fix. For instance, to fix pepper in soups and stews, you can add meat, vegetables, or broth. Among vegetables, potatoes serve the best option, as these bland and starchy tubers tend to absorb the extra pepper well.
Breadcrumbs can be added to dilute dishes like meatloaf or casseroles. The addition of an extra egg along the breadcrumbs can also be helpful.
Corn starch and flour can also be used in some dishes to serve the purpose.
Balance the flavor with seasoning
The addition of a new ingredient to a recipe can also help you balance the flavor. Seasoning the dish with new herbs and spices can provide you a balance that complements the flavor of both the food and pepper. For instance, you can use curry powder, cumin, and garlic in Indian and Spanish dishes. For Italian cuisine, basil and oregano may work.
Add something sweet
Adding something sweet to your dish can also be helpful to compensate for too much dish. By adding sweetness to your dish, you can trick the taste buds by distracting away from the taste of extra pepper.
To fix your dish with something sweet, you can add carrots, tomatoes, or other sweet vegetables to soups and casseroles. For heavily peppered meat, you can use barbecue sauce or honey glaze.
Strain to remove excess pepper
Straining the dish to remove extra pepper is also a good and easy trick. If you added too much pepper in soups or sauces, simply pour them through the cheesecloth or strainer into a second pot. This method is very helpful for people who are hesitant to add ingredients to dilute their dish.
Use acidic ingredients
The logic behind this trick is satisfied by chemistry. Pepper, being the base, can be easily neutralized by some acidic substance. So, for Asian dishes, lime juice is a perfect solution. For pork dishes, apple cider vinegar can serve the purpose.
Neutralize pepper with fats
This trick also works chemically. Fats have the capability to denature the enzymes of the pepper that are responsible to give pepper its flavor and heat. For a casserole, you can simply add cheese. In a stir-fry dish, coconut milk is an excellent ingredient to neutralize the pepper. For lasagna, spaghetti, and other Italian dishes, the addition of a bit of olive oil can be very helpful.
Reduce the amount of salt
This trick may not work for all dishes, but it is very easy and quick to carry out. Salt is not spicy, but it enhances the flavor of your dish in a way that might taste similar to pepper.
For instance, if you want to neutralize pepper in pasta sauce, you can reduce the amount of salt in the pasta water.
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Conclusion:
In this brief guide, we answered the question “How to fix too much pepper?”, and discussed the details of each way to fix pepper.
