Jason L
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Canning jalepeno peppers help please

I lost a recipe I got two years ago from someone who is unable to get me the recipe due to failing health. It was very simple vinegar and canning (kosher?) salt and water as far as I remember. This was then boiled and then poured into the sanitized jars filled with the peppers with their tops cut off to allow the liquid to get into the peppers. Lips wiped off and lids and rims placed. As they cooled the seal would go plink so you'd know they sealed. But I don't know the ratio of each to the water. I only wanted a basic preserve the peppers whole as I was (am) not all that interested in doing anything fancy like how making different kinds of pickles (dill bread ad butter) and a brief google search and that was all I was coming up with is fancy pickling kind of stuff for them. Anyone know what the ratios might be? Perhaps if I have a lot more peppers next year I can get all fancy and try and make different kinds.

valley
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Hi again Jason, Thankyou. You just told us how to put up peppers as what described to you. All you need are all you need is the ratio of ingredients. My suggestion is to do it to your taste, well, stronger than tastes good to you if you tasted a teaspoon full. Follow the plan you just gave us.

I use distilled white vinegar. For every quart of vinegar I add only 1 cup of water and no more that a teaspoon of non iodised salt or no salt at all. I don't boil the ingredients or cut off the tops, we add our spices .

You can't go wrong Jason, if when you eat the first bit you've pickled and think: I want it a little more this way or that, do the next batch exactly as you like. Hope this helps.

Richard

Jason L
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I see so there is no wrong way to do it then? I was concerned tht if I didn't have enough vinegar or salt that they would spoil. I seem to recall it being more water than vinegar and salt. I liked how they came out last time. Not too soft (but softer than fresh picked) and mostly retained the flavor prior to canning. My batch from two years ago lasted for a year and a half before I ran out stock. I used them in salsa, pico de gallo, and chili. I'm not quite sure how to do it by taste. I liked the results from before and would like to get that as best I can given the circumstances. I'm not sure if this info helps bring us any closer to how much vinegar and salt I need. I have maybe a quart or so of peppers to can currently. If I understand your post correctly you don't boil the liquid to add to the packed jar(s) of peppers?

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applestar
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Here is ONE recipe your could try. I haven't tried it myself.
But note that even with 5 cups of vinegar to 1 cup of water ratio, it is hot waterbath canned.
ï‚· Peppers (see step 1) 4 lbs hot long red, green, or yellow peppers
OR 3 lbs sweet red and green peppers, mixed
ï‚· 5 cups vinegar (5%)
ï‚· 1 cup water
ï‚· 4 tsp canning or pickling salt
ï‚· 2 tbsp sugar
ï‚· 2 cloves garlic
https://www.pickyourown.org/pdfs/pickledpeppers.pdf
https://www.pickyourown.org/pepperspickled.htm

As it is noted in the instructions, if they are not pickled (with sufficient amount of vinegar) then I'm sure peppers should be pressure canned for safety.

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Lindsaylew82
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The garlic makes it ridiculously tasty!

If you don't add enough vinegar, they will have to be pressure canned.

Your initial description didn't mention water bath canning. The recipe that Applestar posted is a really good recipe. But it still needs water bath canning. The recipe calls for water bathing.

You could skip water bathing them and just put them in the fridge!

I just love pickled jalapeño!

valley
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Hi Jason,, You're right vinegar is the answer, most often I use little or no water. When making Tolshi, a type or pickle with mixed veggies I add Garlic cloves as Lindsay mentioned and I use a large mouth 1gal jar in the fridge, if putting up hot peppers I would add no spice. I don't boil or water bath like they're talking about unless I was putting up tomatoes. Putting up peppers I'd do as pickles, I don't do sweet pickles, I do it more Old Country style, like we would use for meza, you know to eat with olives, cheese, bread and wine. Wifey makes sweet pickles, more like the ladies are talking about, good,,,, but if I had to choose. The way many do it is more like true canning rather than pickling.

So you've had a go at it and liked how they came out, what was the method you used?

Richard

imafan26
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If you have a lot of peppers left, you could also freeze them. My friend is a chili head and she eats frozen Jalapenos like candy. If you do freeze them, chop them up before adding them or they will be mushy.

valley
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imafan, Good idea, do you mean: chop them up before freezing?

Richard

Jason L
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valley wrote:
So you've had a go at it and liked how they came out, what was the method you used?
Here in is the problem I have. It was two years ago and I somehow lost the ratio of water, vinegar and salt. All that I can remember is that I thought it was more water than vinegar. And I know for sure I boiled the water, viegar and salt mix; and poured that into jars already packed with the peppers. And I had cut their tops off so the liquid could get into the insides of the peppers. I wiped the mouth of the jars and placed the seals and screwed on the rims. Let the jars cool so they would seal. I was concerned that at least one didn't seal right so I refrigerated the whole batch (I think it was 8 quarts). I still have the 1 gallon bottle of vinegar I bought from the batch. I don't use vinegar for anything else. It is about 75% full. I'm not sure if this additional information is enough to narrow down the ratio. Unfortunately I don't have freezer space to preserve stuff from the garden. It is mainly needed for meats (80% and a handful of other frozen items we get from the grocery store (20%). If nothing else I guess I could just try some simple things like the one applestar quoted and do one pint of each if there are several to try and see what I like best. So "water bathing" is the method I described here in my post? I didn't know it had a name.

imafan26
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I froze the peppers whole. Larger pieces freezer burn slower. Use a vacuum bag or double seal and try to get most of the air out. Chop them when they are still half frozen, they are easier to handle and less mushy.

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applestar
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So "water bathing" is the method I described here in my post? I didn't know it had a name.
No. What you described is a method typically used for refrigerator pickles, and require the jars to be stored in the refrigerator. I believe usually they say this method is effective for up to about 3 months.

Hot water bath canning, which is described in the link I posted earlier, means you put the filled and lidded jars in a very large pot (canner) of water and bring to boil. Depending on the recipe, the canner is already almost boiling and you put in hot jars filled with hot boiled contents -- important thing is that the temperatures are about the same.

The jars sit on a rack on the bottom of the pot and must be COMPLETELY submerged with x inches depth of water over the lid. Once the water comes to boil, it must continue to boil for x number of minutes. This varies with size of jars and altitude where you live (boiling point of water).

Once properly hot water bath canned, the jars can be stored at room temperature in the pantry or cupboard.

Jason L
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I see, thanks for the clarification on water bathing, I guess it is a good thing I didn't keep that batch in the pantry then they would have all gone bad. I am shocked they kept up to a year and a half in the fridge though after reading your post. So I should use 5 cups vinegar to 1 cup water ratio as that recipe and follow what they do in that recipe. I'm not sure I want to use the sugar though. I assume it is optional? I pretty sure I seen mentioned in the recipe that the salt is optional. Is peeling the peppers optional? I didn't peel them last time and didn't feel the skin was tough.

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Lindsaylew82
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You could omit the sugar. I personally would omit the sugar. With an acid content that high, it'd be safe to do so. I guess you could omit the salt, but I wouldn't. Salt is flavor.

I don't peel hot peppers like jalapeño, or wax or banana, but I do char and skin larger peppers like poblano and bell.

My brine is as follows:

8 1/2 cups of water
2 1/2 cups vinegar
1/2 cup pickling or kosher salt

Boil and pour over packed fruit or veggies. Then, you'll need to process the jars like mentioned above in the posts. Hot water bath method. It's very simple. You should get a Ball Canning Book. They have tons of recipes. They're very inexpensive, and they answer every question in the small books. Very nice tool to start out with.

I use this brine for ALL non-sweet pickles veggies and fruits. Add a clove or more of garlic to every jar, it is SO worth it! For dill pickles, I pack the bottoms of the jars with fresh dill, mustard seeds, black peppercorns, and some other secret stuff. Spices are a freebee with canning. They don't change anything but flavor! :). I say do some experimenting, but only with flavors.



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