Pickled Jalapeños

Crisp, tangy, and just spicy enough, these canned pickled jalapeños use a simple 6 ingredient vinegar brine adapted from Ball's Hot Peppers recipe. One batch makes 3 pint jars and are shelf-stable for up to 12 months,

4.59 from 31 votes

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 10

Total Time 40

Ingredients

2.5 - 3 lbs jalapeño peppers fresh
6 cups white vinegar
2 cups filtered water
¼ cup pickling salt
¼ cup granulated sugar
4 cloves garlic crushed

Instructions

Prepare Canning Jars:

This recipe makes 3 pint jars and does not require sterilization due to the processing time. Prepare your jars, flats, and rings by washing in hot soapy water and rinsing well before setting aside on a clean kitchen towel until you're ready to use them.
Fill a water bath canner, and set to boil over medium high heat.

Make The Brine:

Add 6 cups of vinegar, 2 cups of water, 1/4 cup pickling salt, and 1/4 cup granulated sugar to a large saucepan. Bring the brine to a boil.
Meanwhile, wash 2 1/2 - 3 lbs jalapeño peppers well, and slice into even sized rings.

Fill And Process The Jars:

Once the pickling liquid comes to a boil, remove from heat and add the jalapeño slices and crushed garlic cloves. Soak the jalapeños for 30-60 seconds – they will change to a deeper, duller green, this is normal.
Place a canning funnel on top of the jars and ladle the jalapeño rings and hot brine into the jars. Top off each clean jar with brine, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. If desired, run a canning spatula or clean chopstick along the edges of the jar to release the air bubbles.
Wipe the lip of each jar before placing the lid and tightening the rings finger-tight. Transfer filled jars to the prepared boiling water canner using a jar lifter, ensure the jars are covered by 1-2 inches of water, cover the canner and return to a full boil.
Once the water bath returns to a boil, begin to process for 10 minutes (at 0- 1,000 feet above sea level, see notes section for altitude adjustments).
When processing is complete, turn off the heat, remove the lid from the water bath canner, and rest for 5 minutes before removing the hot jars and transferring them to a heat-proof surface to cool untouched for 24 hours, before wiping down, labeling with the contents and year and transferring to your storage pantry.

Notes

Altitude Adjustments:

Elevation / Processing Time
0-1,000 feet / 10 minutes
1,001 - 3,000 feet / 15 minutes
3,001 - 6,000 feet / 20 minutes
6,001 - 8,000/ 25 minutes

** Processing time for pint sized jars only

Expert Tips

Glove up. Slicing 2-3 pounds of jalapeños bare handed is how you end up sleeping with your hand in a bowl of milk (ask me how I know). Wear rubber or latex gloves, and if you forget and your hands start burning, rinse your hands in cooking oil before washing with dish soap to help breakdown the capsaicin.
Adjust your time. Don’t forget to adjust your processing time based on your elevation. The table above has you covered. Higher up means longer in the water bath, every time.
No seal? No deal. If a jar doesn’t seal after the 24 hour rest, don’t panic, just move the jar of pickled ‘penos to the fridge and use them within a few weeks. They’re still safe to eat, they just won’t be shelf stable anymore.
Patience, peppers. Fresh canned pickled jalapeños tend to taste sharp and aggressively vinegary when they’re fresh out of the canner. If you give them 2-3 weeks on the shelf before you crack one open, the brine mellows, the heat settles, and I find that the flavor gets better as they mature!
Don’t skip the dip! Soak the sliced peppers in the hot brine for 30-60 seconds before jarring – it’s the difference between peppers that pack tight and peppers that float.
Finger what? Finger-tight is such a vague term, here's how I tighten my jars: screw the bands on until the jar starts to turn on the counter, then back off about a 1/8th of a turn.