Portuguese Hot Pepper Paste (Massa De Malagueta) - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 lb hot red pepper (wear gloves!) or 1 lb hot red chili pepper, rinsed and patted dry (wear gloves!)
1/2 cup coarse salt
1/3 cup olive oil
1 -2 tablespoon vinegar (optional)
16 ounces jelly jars, sterilized

Preparation

Remove and discard the green caps and stems of the peppers but do not discard the seeds. Finely chop the peppers either by hand, or in a grinder or food processor. Transfer the chopped peppers to a medium bowl. Stir in the salt (and vinegar, if using), mixing thoroughly.
Let the mixture stand in this bowl (covered) for 8 days in the refrigerator, giving the mixture a few turns every day.
On the eighth day, pack the mixture into a sterlized jar, top it off with 1/2-inch of olive oil and refrigerate.