peppers facts, scvolle etc

Frequently Asked Questions (with Answers)

Order Specific

Can I order By Telephone?

Yes. Please call 1-800-296-9646; You may get the voicemail - make life easy for yourself, leave a detailed message and we'll call you back! We're on Eastern Standard time, so leave your time zone, so we don't wake you!

Something is wrong with my order (broken bottle, etc.)

Much as we try to make sure every order is perfect, sometimes things do go wrong. Please email humans@firegirl.com and tell her about it. She will replace any broken bottles, and will fix any errors.

Wholesale

Please call for wholesale inquiries. 1-800-296-9646. Or email humans@firegirl.com.

To Place an Order By Mail

To place an order via the mail, send check or money order to the address below. With a credit card, you may also fax your order to 215-798-1004:

FireGirl
P.O. Box 1045
Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006

Make it Easy Tip:  Pretend you are placing an order on line, enter the shipping info, print out the page, send it with your check!

Shipping

Shipping Costs

We, at FireGirl, have done our best to offer the most cost-effective, reliable and trackable shipping options to you.

If USPS offers $4.95 shipping, why am I paying so much? Boy, do we wish we could offer you that! We'd both win. Unfortunately USPS offers that for flat rate shipping box, that would barely contain my underwear...or a video cassette. USPS only offers two boxes that may fit 1-3 bottles (with the packaging material that would prevent breakage), unfortunately at a minimum cost of $10.35 to $13.95. Hence, we have decided to offer what we believe is the most cost-effective shipping option to you -- Fedex Ground for mainland USA.

The following shipping options are available for continental USA: Fed Ground, 3-Day, 2-Day, or Next Day - your choice. For APO/FPO, Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and other US territories, we only offer U.S. Mail service. (Select APO/FPO Alaska Hawaii as shipping method.) International orders are sent via USPS Mail, but please check your country's import restrictions before ordering. More details for each service are provided below.

Orders received by 10 am EST will, in most cases, be shipped within 48 hours. FireGirl ships Monday - Friday on all business days.

International Shipping Quote

If you go to the web site, and put these things into your shopping basket, then go to "checkout" then enter your shipping address, and select WORLDWIDE EXPRESS it will give you an exact quote. Any quote I could give you without your doing that would be a guess. Please be sitting down when you do this because it's VERY expensive. However, all brokerage fees are included, and it will arrive in 3-4 business days.

My Expedited Order did Not Arrive on Time

If an order is placed before 11am, and ordered "expedited," it is guaranteed to arrive on time. If we don't have the products in stock, we email the customer as quickly as possible to let them know so they can make an alternate selection. Expedited days are counted starting with the day after shipping, only counting M-F, and no holidays. So, if a person places a next day air order on Friday, it will arrive on Monday.

If the order genuinely did not arrive on time, we will refund their money. However, sometimes things happen like they gave the wrong address, or weather-related stuff, or terrorism - any uncontrollable circumstance doesn't count.

General FireGirl

Catalogs

We do not publish a catalog, but everything is located on the web site. If there's something in particular you're looking for, I can help you find it.

Regarding the Private Label Program

The price is $3.65 per hot sauce bottle. There are price breaks starting at 96 bottles. I need the following in order to get started.:

1. The quantity required (minimum 48 bottles)
2. The flavor (jalapeno, cayenne, cayenne-garlic, habanero)
3. Ideas for artwork, sending logos, etc. to humans@firegirl.com. Plus, we will need the blurb for the side of the bottle
4. The mailing address where the hot sauce will be shipped, and the "must arrive by" date
5. A 50% deposit. (Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Discover)

Once those are done, we will work up the label, and email it to you. You'll make suggestion for changes until we have it exactly as you want it. Then, we'll print, and ship. The price of $3.65 includes the artwork design, the label printing, the hot sauce, and putting the labels on the bottles. The only cost not included is shipping.

Call 1-800-296-9646 with questions.

Donations Policy

Thank you for requesting a donation from FireGirl. We try our best to give back to the community in as many ways as we can. In order to be considered for a donation, please note the following guidelines:

Any organization requesting a donation must have the following:

• A web site from which you can place a link to FireGirl and to which FireGirl can link.
• A posted non-discrimination policy that includes sexual orientation.

If your organization meets this criteria, please make a specific request that includes:

• The name of the organization making the request
• The mailing address of the organization
• Shipping address
• Your name
• The mission of the organization
• The legal type of your organization (eg. 501c3 non profit organization, no legal status, etc.)
• The phone number and web address of the organization. If the non-discrimination policy is not on the front page, please also give the address of that web page.
• The time-frame that you will need the donation
• The exact request (ie. one bottle of hot sauce, etc.)

If your group is not a formal organization, please answer the questions to the best of your ability.

Send the request to humans@firegirl.com. Please expect processing of the request to take up to 2 weeks, and then another week to 10 days for the donation to ship.

Please note that not all requests are granted. We reserve the right to deny any request for any reason. However, we will notify you of our decision as soon as the decision is made.

Thank you.

Sauces with Chipotle

Psycho Bitch Habanero-Chipotle---> heat level 7, very smokey, wonderful sauce.... manufactured by us here at FireGirl. Of course I am biased because it's FireGirl's recipe, but it's my absolute favorite. (http://firegirl.com/hs1380.html)
Jump Up and Kiss Me with Chipotle ---> heat level 6, http://firegirl.com/hs1226.html
Bufalo Chipotle Hot Sauce---> heat level 5, http://firegirl.com/hs1114.html
There are more.... click here for an automatic search of the catalog: http://st24.yahoo.com/cgi-bin/nsearch?catalog=hotsaucecatalog&query=chipotle

Where can I buy this in my hometown?

FireGirl does not have a retail location. However, we can ship most things to you the same or next business day.

Do you carry such and such sauce?

FireGirl does not carry that sauce, but I've tasted it, and I can recommend ... Or... I have not heard of it. Can you describe it? Maybe I can recommend a suitable substitute.

How come I can only put one thing at a time in my shopping basket?

You must have cookies turned on for the shopping cart features to work. If you prefer, you can place an order by fax: 215-798-1004, or by telephone: 800-296-9646.

Your prices are too high

FireGirl sincerely believes that its prices are fair, based on the philosophy that if you treat customers well, and offer quality goods and services at a reasonable profit, you will maintain a loyal customer base.

Will FireGirl carry my sauce?

FireGirl sells hot sauce and other spicy foods. Of course, we are always looking for great products to add to your extensive line. To have your products considered for our online catalog send the following:

Company information
length of time in business
contact people and owners/principles
contact information
press releases, etc.
proof of insurance

Product information
all marketing materials
recipes
awards, etc.
full-size sample
marketing plan

Send to:

FireGirl, Inc.
P.O. Box 1045
Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006

Chileheads Mailing List

The chileheads' mailing list is a way-cool collection of people who talk about nuthin but chiles. Check it out: http://globalgarden.com/Chile-Heads/list_info.phtml

About Chili (the stuff you eat from a bowl)

The National Chile Appreciation Society has a web site that you will probably find helpful. Visit them at http://www.chili.org/

What is a Chipotle?

A chipotle is a dried and smoked jalapeno - like a raisin is to a grape, a chipotle is to a jalapeno.

Frost and Pepper Plants

Dave Dewitt says, "Generally speaking, if chiles start to ripen, they will continue to attain full ripeness. If picked totally green, they usually will not ripen.

"For light frosts, cover the plants with floating row covers, or even old bed sheets or towels. This usually helps. For a hard freeze, these won't work."

Dave Dewitt is the author of several books on chiles, including The Pepper Garden Book

Horseradish

FireGirl knows very little about horseradish. We do sell Ass Kickin' Horseradish Hot Sauce http://hotsaucecatalog.com/hs1802.html.

Believe it or not, however, there is a web site all about horseradish at http://www.horseradish.org

Pepper Identification

There are lots of hybrids, and lots of local names, so your best bet is to try it, and see what you think... good luck with that. Have some milk handy in case it's VERY hot.

Peppers In Oil

Preserving in oil is not recommended because of the danger of botulism. If you like the taste of peppers in oil, mix them just before eating. If you really want to try preserving in oil, please consult with your local extension office, through the department of Agriculture in your state. If you're not in the US, I'm not sure who to send you to, but please don't try it without consulting a food scientist or other expert.

Mammals in Your Garden

The best thing I can recommend is to buy one of our hottest sauces and mix it with a cheap oil, then spray it around your plants. Be careful that you don't spray the stuff in your eyes, or get it on your skin. Deer, rabbits, etc. don't like the heat, and will stay away - this advice from gardening experts. I have not tried it myself.

Our hot section is at http://hotsaucecatalog.com/off-the-scale-hot-.html

Reducing The Heat in Dishes

The only way to reduce heat after you've already added the peppers is to either add more of everything else, or to add a dairy product - if that makes sense in your recipe. Otherwise, freeze it, and have it on a different night when you invite tougher people to dinner.

When to Pick Peppers

Pepper Joe says: Most peppers eventually turn red when ripe so for fully mature ones wait till they are ripe. You can pick them in the earlier stage (green, purple or yellow) but they will not be as hot. Some peppers ripen a different color (such as the Golden Habanero) but they are the exception to the rule. No peppers are fully ripe when purple or green.

What Makes a Pepper Hot?

A chemical in peppers called capsaicin actually makes pepper hot. Its concentrated in the upper regions of the pepper (the stem side is UP), but the chemical is found throughout the pepper.