Making Pickled Peppers at Home

Making Pickled Peppers at Home

by M. Hill and P. Kendall ¹(3/08)

Quick Facts...

• Use only fresh, blemish-free vegetables and up-to-date, research-based recipes when pickling peppers and pepper blends.
• Use pure, granulated, non-iodized canning or pickling salt, high grade vinegar of 5 percent acidity, and fresh spices.
• Process pickled peppers in a boiling water bath for the altitude-adjusted length of time specified in a tested recipe.
• For oil peppers, use only fresh vegetable oil in the amounts specified in tested recipes.

Pickled peppers and mixed vegetable-pepper home-canned products are commonly prepared by many Colorado households. These products also have been implicated in botulism deaths due to the use of untested recipes, under-acidified products, addition of too much oil, or lack of processing.

Ingredients

Peppers. A variety of peppers work well for home canning. Common varieties are Cubanelle, Hungarian, yellow wax, sweet cherry, sweet banana and sweet bells. Thick-fleshed peppers with firm waxy skins and bright, glossy color, free from defects, give the best pickled products. Avoid peppers that are soft, shriveled or pliable, and dull or faded in color. As with all pickled products, the shortest time from pick to pack offers the highest quality pickled product.

Cut large peppers (Cubanella or bells) into jar-size pieces. Remove seeds and white inner core. Smaller varieties may be packed whole but must be slit to allow the vinegar solution to enter the hollow portion of the pepper. Make two small slits through the flesh of each whole pepper.

Other vegetables. For vegetable-pepper blends, follow a recipe with tested proportions. Select fresh, tender but firm vegetables. If the vegetables and peppers cannot be used within one or two hours after harvesting, refrigerate without washing. Thoroughly wash all vegetables in cold water before pickling.

Making Pickled Peppers at Home