Pickled Jalapeno Peppers
You can save the taste of summer with home-canned Pickled Jalapenos. Do just a bit of work now and you can enjoy a little summer heat all winter long.
Table of contents
A simple recipe for homemade Pickled Jalapenos
When you find yourself with an end-of-summer bounty of hot peppers what can you do with them?
First, did you know you can pack peppers, sliced or whole, into bags and store them in the freezer? They will soften as they defrost, but frozen peppers are fine to use in soup, stew, cornbread, chili and jelly.
There’s another simple and tasty way to save the excess fruits (yes, they’re fruits). For low-acid produce like peppers pickling is a great and safe way to preserve the harvest.
I think home-made Pickled Jalapeno Peppers are so much better than the canned peppers from the store.
Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
- Jalapeno Peppers – You can use red or green jalapenos for making pickles.
- Garlic, Oregano, Cumin – These are added for flavor but can be eliminated or replaced with other herbs or spices.
- White/Cider Vinegar – Use 5% vinegar. You can alter the amount of cider vs. white vinegar, but do not reduce the total amount of vinegar.
- Salt – This recipe includes kosher salt. If you use table salt or pickling salt reduce the amount to 1 tablespoon.
Process photos
See the recipe card for detailed measurements and instructions.
- Place a sprig of oregano (or a pinch of dried oregano), a sliver or small clove of garlic and 1/4 tsp cumin seeds in each of the sterilized canning jars.
- Wash the peppers and remove the stem. Leave the seeds intact.
- Combine vinegar, water, salt and sugar in a saucepan and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Meanwhile, slice the peppers and pack them into the sterilized canning jars.
- Pour the hot brine over the peppers. Leaving 1/2″ of head space in each jar. If you need to top off the jars, use a little extra cider or white vinegar.
- Use a damp paper towel to wipe the rim of each jar. Place a canning lid and screw-top onto each jar.
- Transfer the jars to the boiling water canner. Make sure the jars are covered by at least 1″ of water.
- Process the jars at a low boil for 10 minutes. Use canning tongs to remove the jars from the water. Place them on a clean kitchen towel.
- As the jars cool and the lids seal you’ll should hear a little “pop” and see the circle in the middle of the lid indented rather than popped up. This means the lid has formed an air tight seal.
- Once the jars are completely cooled unscrew the tops and check that the lids are firmly sealed. If any lids don’t properly seal, refrigerate and eat those peppers first.
Storage
- If you make a small batch of pickles and end up with just a jar or two they can be refrigerated. Eat within a few weeks.
- As long as you use proper canning jars and you process the jars in a hot water bath to make sure they’re sealed, these Pickled Jalapeno Peppers will keep for a year in the pantry.
How to Serve Pickled Jalapenos
- Add Pickled Jalapeno Peppers to tacos, nachos, chili and other Mexican and Tex Mex dishes.
- Pickled jalapenos are delicious on a sandwich with peanut butter.
- Add slices of pickled jalapenos to your grilled cheese sandwich.
- Add chopped pickled jalapenos to macaroni & cheese.
- Add pickled jalapenos to your charcuterie boards.
More Recipes for Preserves
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Pickled Jalapenos
You can save the taste of summer with home-canned Pickled Jalapeno Peppers. Do just a bit of work now and you can enjoy a little summer heat all winter long. Makes 6 pints.
servings
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Ingredients
- 6 small sprigs oregano
- 6 small cloves garlic (peeled, or use slivers of larger cloves)
- 1 ½ teaspoons cumin seeds
- 2 pounds jalapeno peppers (stems removed)
- 24 oz white vinegar (3 cups)
- 8 oz cider vinegar (1 cup)
- 24 oz water (3 cups)
- 2 tablespoons kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
Instructions
- Bring a large canning pot of water to a full boil. Sterilize your canning jars and lids by boiling in the water for 10 minutes (or with the sterilize setting on your dishwasher).
- Use a jar lifter or tongs to remove the hot jars from the water. Line them up on a clean kitchen towel.
- Place an oregano sprig (or a pinch of dried oregano), a garlic clove (or slice) and ¼ teaspoon cumin seeds in each sterilized jar. Slice the jalapenos and pack them into the jars.
- Combine 24 oz white vinegar, 8 oz cider vinegar, 24 oz water, 2 tablespoons kosher salt and 2 tablespoons granulated sugar in a small saucepan and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Immediately pour the brine over the peppers (a canning funnel in handy here), leaving ½" head space at the top of each jar. Use a damp paper towel to wipe the rim of each jar. The rim needs to be clean for the lid to seal properly.
- Place the lids and screw tops on the jars. Bring the water in the pot back to a full boil. Use the tongs or jar lifter to lower the jars into the water. Make sure there is enough water to cover the jars by at least an inch. Cover the pot and bring back to a low boil. Once the water comes back to a boil start your timer.
- Process the jars for 10 minutes. Use the jar lifter or tongs to remove the jars. Place them on a kitchen towel to cool. As the jars cool and the lids seal you should hear a little "pop" and see the circle in the middle of the lid indented rather than popped up.
- Once the jars are completely cooled unscrew the tops and check that the lids are firmly sealed. If any lids don't properly seal, refrigerate and eat those peppers first.
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Notes
For More details on home canning visits the Ball Canning website.
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @eileen.bakingsense or tag #bakingsense!
Thank you for this recipe. Jalapeno has very delicate taste. And we love it. Definitely we’ll repeat it next year
Eileen , thank you for this recipe, my family and friends love the result. I will be picking 10 bushes soon and we now have a family day making pickling the jalapeños, they are better than any store brought ones,
Kym
Adelaide South Australia
Do you have a recipe for pickled jalapeños that doesn’t contain sugar?
Well, since there’s only 2 tablespoons of sugar in the recipe you could leave it out without compromising the preserves. I like the slight sweetness with the heat. But you can leave it out if you prefer no added sugar.
@Charles Strunk, use Stevia …. hubby is diabetic and I use Stevia when I make pepper jelly …. works fine.
I have been doing a lot of canning with my jalapeno harvest this year, and I have a question. Where I live (Poland) it is next ti impossible to find 5% white vinegar. The only option is 10% white vinegar (I can get 5% apple, but sometimes I dont want to use purely apple vinegar). Does anyone know if I can use twice less vinegar if it is 10%?
Hi Kyle, Sorry for the delayed response to your question. I was on vacation when your comment posted and I just saw it.
The white vinegar I used for this recipe was 5% vinegar. I would say that if you’re using 10% vinegar you could use half as much and replace the rest with more water. So instead of 3c white vinegar, 1c cider vinegar and 3c water you can use 1.5c white vinegar, 1c cider vinegar and 4.5 c water.
Eileen
I sadly don’t have time for canning this year as we are moving and all my canning supplies are packed but I am definitely earmarking this for next year. Thanks for sharing at Celebrate with 8.
Thanks, Wendy. Good luck with the move.