Candied Jalapenos Recipe For Canning

Candied jalapenos are a delicious way to preserve jalapeno peppers. These spicy peppers are candied in sugar and vinegar and create the perfect hot pepper preserve to add to sandwiches, bread, casseroles, and so on.

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To be honest, I am not a huge fan of spicy peppers. It’s funny, really, since my roots are Moroccan and my mother cooks a lot of delicious spicy food. But even though my tolerance to spicy food is really low, I still grow hot peppers in my garden every summer. 

I do like to add them to different dishes like shakshuka or my fermented cucumbers, for example. I like fermenting some of my jalapenos, and I also grow them for the farmer’s market. Most people seem to love hot peppers.

Candied Jalapeños Recipe For Canning…

A couple of years ago, I simply had too many jalapenos in the garden. I only planted a few plants but they took off and produced a million beautiful peppers. I took some to the market but I had a hard time getting rid of all of them (I live in a very small town).

I also sell jams and other preserves and that year, maybe because there were so many jalapenos on my table, people kept asking if I had candied jalapenos for sale. I was thinking to myself… What in the world are cnadied jalapenos??

A short Google search revealed that candied jalapenos (also often called Cowboy candy) are indeed a thing! Basically, jalapenos (or another kind of hot pepper) cooked in a syrup of apple cider vinegar, sugar, and spices.

I knew immediately that the people of this small Southern town were going to love it. It is rather simple to make, and since I already had a bazillion jalapenos that I didn’t know what to do with, I decided to give it a try. I changed the original recipe a bit, added garlic (of course) and mustard seeds and it turned out amazing. The jars flew off my table like hot cakes!

Ingredients…

• Jalapeno peppers – feel free to use other kinds of hot peppers or just mix in other kinds with the jalapenos. I usually start with a little bit more, like 2.3 pounds so that after I cut off the stem I am left with about 2 pounds.
• Garlic cloves. 
• Sugar
• Apple cider vinegar
• Turmeric
• Mustard seeds
• Chilli flakes

This ingredients makes about 6 half pint jars or three pint jars.

Kitchen Tools…

• Cutting board
• Knife
• Gloves – I really recommend that you use gloves to protect your skin from the spicy peppers.
• Measuring spoons
• Measuring cups
• A pot or deep pan
• Wooden spoon

You can definitely keep your candied jalapenos in the fridge if you’d like, it will last a very long time, however, if you’re going to can your candied jalapenos, make sure that you have all the canning equipment that you’ll need.

• Half-pint jars – I like using half-pint jars for these but you can also use pint jars. You’ll need new lids but you can reuse bands.
• Large spoon
• Paper towel
• Canning utensils
• Water bath canner

How to Make Candied Jalapenos…

Step 1 – perp the peppers. Start by washing your peppers well… Then, remove the stem and slice the jalapeno peppers. You can choose to leave the seeds or get rid of them. The seeds add a lot of heat and since cooking the peppers tamps down their spiciness a bit I usually leave the seeds to add a little more heat.

Step 2 –  cook the syrup. To the pan, add the sugar, apple cider vinegar, turmeric, chili flakes, sliced garlic cloves, and mustard seeds. Place the pan on the stovetop and turn the heat to medium-high. Bring this mixture to a boil, lower the heat and let boil gently for 10 minutes or so until the syrup reduces and thickens just a bit.

Step 3 – add the peppers. Add the sliced jalapenos and stir to coat them with the syrup. Cook for 5-10 minutes until the peppers change their color to dark green. 

How to Can Candied Jalapenos…

Step 4 – prep for canning. While the syrup and peppers are cooking, fill your water bath canner with enough water to cover the jars by at least an inch. Set it on the stovetop and turn the heat to high. Bring the water in the canner to a simmer (180 degrees F). Wash the jars, lids, and rings well with hot water and soap. Since we are going to process the candied jalapenos in the canner for more than ten minutes, there is no need to sanitize the jars.

Step 5 – fill the jars with candied jalapenos. Use a ladle and canning funnel to fill the jars with the jalapenos and syrup leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Use the bubble remover to remove bubbles by scraping it along the inside of the jar. Then, use a clean, damp paper towel to clean the rim of the jar before centering the lid and closing the jar with the ring finger tight.

Step 6 – process the jars. Set the jars on the rack of the water bath canner and lower the rack into the simmering water. Process half pint jars for 10 minutes and pint jars for 15 minutes. 

Remember to adjust processing time according to the table above if you live in altitudes above 1,000 feet in elevation.

Step 7 – let the jars cool. Once processing time is over, turn the heat off and uncover the canner. Let the jars stay in the hot water for 5 minutes before using the jar lifter to remove them. Set the jars on a kitchen towel on the counter to cool completely, undisturbed, overnight.

Storing Candied Jalapenos…

Before you store your candied jalapenos, make sure that the jars have sealed by pressing on the center of each lid. If there is no movement there, the jar has sealed. If you find that you have a jar that didn’t seal, you can store it in the fridge to use first or you can try to process it again. Remove the bands from your jars (because they rust and stick), wipe the jars and store in the pantry or a kitchen cabinet for up to 18 months.

Serving Candied Jalapenos…

Before I give you some ideas on how to serve candied jalapenos, I have to say that many people report that these are highly addictive and that once they open the jar they just eat the whole thing with a fork! If you have a little bit more self control you can add these candied peppers to so many dishes.

• Any sandwich – My little girl who actually loves spicy food adds them on top of toast with butter or cream cheese (or add them on top of crackers with cream cheese).
  They will be a great addition to any sort of meat sandwich like a burger, pulled meat wrap, or a BBQ sandwich.
• In bread – in bread, as in… in the dough. I would try to add them to this no-knead bread dough before baking or to any cornbread recipe.
• Caserrols – They’ll also be a great addition to casseroles like this Mediterranean zucchini casserole or others. The options are truly unlimited!

Kitchen Notes…

• Feel free to add other kinds of peppers. It doesn’t have to be just jalapenos. In fact, feel free to add other kinds of vegetables! Maybe carrots will work?
• You can try to use a sugar substitute like honey or maple syrup. If you do, storing these in the fridge instead of canning them might be better. If I were to do that, I’d probably use 3 cups of maple or honey instead of the four cups of sugar.
• Someone was asking in the comments if I am sure that it’s fine to water bath these… Don’t we need to pressure can them? We don’t! Peppers are indeed low-acid food, however, we add plenty of acidity with the vinegar here. Water bath processing is just fine.
• Seasonings – try whatever you’d like! Some people love adding celery seeds or whole peppercorns… You can make this a bit different each time.
• You can choose to leave the seeds or get rid of them. The seeds add a lot of heat and since cooking the peppers temps down their spiciness a bit I usually leave the seeds to add a little more heat.

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This is one of those must-have-on-hand canning recipes in my opinion since it’s a great, simple way to candy any type of hot pepper and the result is delicious! I hope that you’ll give it a try and I hope that you’ll like it.

Other Ways to Preserve Peppers…

• How to make Red Pepper Paste
• Canning Roasted Peppers
• Canning Hot Peppers
• Mediterranean Stuffed Peppers
• Preserving Peppers in Vinegar and Salt
• How to Roast Poblano Peppers
• Canning Poblano Peppers

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