Pickled Cherry Peppers
Pickled cherry peppers go into a strong vinegar brine whole, with two slits in each pepper so the brine gets inside. They're ready to stuff, slice, or eat straight from the jar.
Servings: 32 servings, makes about 4 pints
Equipment
- Regular Mouth Pint Mason Jars
- Small saucepan
- Rubber or Nitrile Gloves
- Bubble remover
Ingredients
For the Jars
- 2 lbs cherry peppers hot, sweet, or a mix, see notes
- Pickle Crisp 1/8 tsp per pint
For the Brine
- 3 cups vinegar 5% acidity, cider or white
- 1 cup water
- 2 tsp canning and pickling salt
- 1 1/2 tsp sugar optional
Optional Add-Ins
- 4 cloves garlic 1 per jar
- 4 bay leaves 1 per jar
- black peppercorns a few per jar
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes added to the brine, for more heat
- whole spices a pinch per jar, see notes
Instructions
- Prepare a water bath canner, jars, and lids. Preheat the canner water to about 140 degrees F for a raw pack.
- Sort the cherry peppers and set aside any with soft spots. Wash them under cold running water and drain.
- Put on gloves and cut two slits in each pepper with a paring knife, one on each side, about 1/2 inch down from the shoulder. Core any oversized peppers and cut them into strips. Leave the stems on or pop the tops off.
- Combine the vinegar, water, salt, and sugar in a saucepan, adding the red pepper flakes if using, and bring to a boil, stirring until the salt dissolves. Keep the brine hot.
- Put any add-ins (garlic, bay leaf, peppercorns, whole spices) in each hot jar. Pack the peppers in firmly to 1 inch headspace, pressing the top layer under the shoulder of the jar. Add the Pickle Crisp.
- Ladle the hot brine over the peppers to 1/2 inch headspace. Run a bubble tool down the sides and into the slits, top up the brine if the level drops, wipe the rims, and apply lids and bands fingertip tight.
- Load the jars into the canner and bring it to a full rolling boil. Process half pints and pints for 10 minutes or quarts for 15 minutes, adjusting for altitude (see notes).
- Turn off the heat, remove the canner lid, and let the jars sit 5 minutes. Lift them out and cool undisturbed for 12 to 24 hours, then check the seals.
Notes
Recipe source: Follows Colorado State University Extension, Making Pickled Peppers, and the Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving.
Yield: 2 pounds of cherry peppers and 4 cups of brine fill about 4 pints. Larger peppers may need more brine.
Brine: The brine is 3 parts 5% vinegar to 1 part water, and that's what makes this safe to can. Don't reduce the vinegar or add water. If you run short, 3/4 cup vinegar, 1/4 cup water, and 1/2 tsp pickling salt finishes about one more pint.
Whole peppers: Small peppers stay whole with two slits in each. Real slits let the air out and the brine in, so fork pricks won't do. Core peppers much larger than a golf ball and cut them into strips.
Optional add-ins: Garlic, bay, peppercorns, whole spices, and red pepper flakes don't affect safety. Cherry peppers are usually mild, so add the flakes to the brine for more heat. Garlic may turn blue or green in the brine, which is harmless.
Pickle Crisp: Recommended. 1/8 teaspoon per pint keeps whole peppers crisp and firm enough to stuff later.
Stuffing: Stuff the peppers after opening a jar and keep them refrigerated. Cheese, meat, and oil have no tested canning process.
Canning optional: Skip processing for refrigerator pickles. They keep a couple of months in the fridge with the peppers under the brine.
Altitude adjustments: Processing time in a water bath canner.
- 6,000 feet or less: Half pints and pints 10 minutes, quarts 15 minutes
- Above 6,000 feet: Half pints and pints 15 minutes, quarts 20 minutes
Nutrition
Serving: 2oz | Calories: 16kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 0.1g | Saturated Fat: 0.01g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.01g | Sodium: 149mg | Potassium: 92mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 270IU | Vitamin C: 41mg | Calcium: 6mg | Iron: 0.3mg