Back in August, I posted my recipe for Refrigerator Garlic Dill Pickles. This recipe uses the same basic principle and is equally easy. The hot peppers it produces are ridiculously good – if you like that sort of thing. That sort of crunchy, fresh, garlicky heat kinda thing. Larry cries real tears when we finish off the last jar each year.
If you want to make grown men weep at your own house, here is one way do it.
The brine:
2 quarts water
1 cup cider or white vinegar
1/2 cup canning & pickling salt
Bring to a boil and stir to make sure salt is completely disolved. Keep at a low simmer until you use it. This much brine will make about 3 quart jars of pickles. I made a batch and a half and came out with the 5 quarts you see here.
You also need 1 or two cloves of garlic for each jar – peeled.
Then you need some peppers. Any kind of hot peppers will do. I am using a mixture of jalapenos, red cherry peppers and hungarian wax or banana peppers.
You can also blanch some cauliflower, onions, carrots and celery, along with the peppers and make some Giardiniera. Today though, I am using just the peppers. Wash them very thoroughly and slice however you like. You can even leave them whole though not as many will fit in a jar – just be sure to poke each pepper 5 or 6 times with a toothpick so the brine can get inside. Slicing, as I mentioned, means you can cram more of them into a jar and also results in a more uniform final result.
Each jar gets 1 or 2 cloves of garlic, as many peppers as you can cram in there and is then filled to the top with the simmering brine. Put on the lids and wipe down the outsides. Again, as with the garlic dills, I like to use widemouth canning jars because they are meant to stand up to the heat of the brine. I use these plastic lids [I think I got them at Walmart] because they too are reusable. You can use any jar with a screwtop lid, but try to fine ones that are thick – a spaghetti sauce jar for instance, rather that one that held mayo.
That is about it – leave them out on the counter for about 48 hours and then refrigerate. Remember – these MUST be refrigerated. They are ready to eat in a couple weeks and will keep for 3 or 4 months usually.
Those are gorgeous. I don’t eat hot peppers, but I would make it just to look at them when I open my fridge!
These are really beautiful and look equally as yummy. But I’ve never tried anything like this before for fear of poisoning my family!
That's colorful & interesting!
I’ve always wanted to pickle peppers. You’ve given me my next project. Thanks!
I know what you mean about the tears. My boyfriend sheds a few every time we finish the last jar of his Grandmother’s pickles! I’m definitely going to give these a try. I love your idea of throwing in some cauliflower and carrots. I think I’ll make them that way.
I’ve never attempted to pickle anything, but we all love Giardiniera in my house, so I just might give this a try with some cherry peppers and veggies. Thanks :)
These look really great. Love the colors! Where do you get the pickling salt? Do you need to boil the jars for safety, or is keeping them refrigerated enough?
Somehow, my answers to questions didn’t make the trip from blogger along with the rest.
Deb – they are quite safe. Between the salt, vinegar and refrigeration, little nasties haven’t much chance of survival. Still, use common sense and don’t eat them if they look bad. There shouldn’t be any scummy looking stuff in them and the veggies will stay pretty crisp. We usually finish them off in January sometime, but the sooner you eat them, the less chance there is of something going wrong.
Maggie – pickling salt can be found in the spice aisle at any grocery store. It had a larger grain than table salt and no iodine. It is smaller and more uniform than kosher salt which should not be used as it is not as salty and won’t preserve as well. I don’t boil the jars or lids – just wash them very well or run them through a full cycle in the dishwasher and they will be fine.
These look gorgeous! I was just looking for some way to pickle my banana and jalapeno peppers, now I want to go buy some other peppers just for the color. Thanks for sharing!
save that jar on the right for me!
I am attempting to grow the hottest peppers in the world.All are over the million mark on the scale.Bhut Jolokia,Binh Jolokia,and Naga Morich.Do you think your recipe will work for Them?Any other sugestions on preserving them?
Thanks,Rick
Sounds intriguing Rick – we love all sorts of hot peppers. I am sure this would work just fine with them – we actually just finished the last jar of the ones I made last fall and they were still crisp and tasty. I have to say that I can’t imagine eating such hot peppers the way we do these – wow!
Can’t wait to try the recipe! I have banana, yellow and red peppers growing in my garden right now and should be ready for harvest in a week or two.
tell me how long you have to blanch the carrots onions and cauliflower.
So sorry Mark – missed this until now. I blanch the carrots the longest – maybe two minutes, one minute for cauliflower, 30 seconds for onions. You don’t want anything cooked, but the blanching does help the brine absorb better.
I made this wonderful recipe on Sept 15, however I forgot to put the the jars in the fridge until today. Is that ok? I closed the jars around 9 pm on the 15th, and put them in the fridge at 8 am on the 20th. I really don’t want to have to throw the away, but I also don’t want my family to get sick.
I answered Kim by email – what I told her was that they would probably still be fine, but to use her best judgment as to appearance and how they smelled when opening and only to use if they look look & smell ok.
These look fabulous!
What a fabulous way to preserve summer hot peppers – I love spicy peppers!
Hi Donalyn,
The colors of the peppers in the jars look so appetizing. I pickled sliced jalapenos this summer, but didn’t think to do it with the other peppers I grew. My husband and I love pickled peppers and put them on just about anything. I printed out your recipe for next years crop. Thanks!
Wow, so beautiful! I LOVE pickled veggies. Thanks for the great recipe. :D
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Thanks for the inspiration! Made some of these today.