Super Easy Pickled Peppers

Time to harvest the fruit and vegetables that have been growing in the garden! In my "urban" garden, our peppers really took off in late summer. I wanted to preserve them in some way - without needing to worry about canning methods or equipment. This whole process took about 20 minutes. Easy enough for anyone! The brine can be altered to your taste. Have fun.

Pickling some Peppers

Glass Jars with lids

1 pound fresh jalapeno peppers, washed (I added in 1 habenaro into each jar for color)

2 1/2 cups water

2 1/2 cups vinegar (I used white distilled vinegar)

3 tablespoons sugar

3 tablespoons canning salt
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons whole coriander seeds
3 cloves garlic, peeled and whole

2 tablespoons black peppercorns

1. Prepare the peppers: either slice or stab. I made one jar of sliced and two jars of whole peppers. For the whole peppers - cut an X in the tip and stab a few times in the sides. This helps the pickling juices penetrate the pepper. Put the peppers in the clean glass jars, leaving about 1 inch at the top.

2. Make the Brine: In a non-reactive saucepan, bring the other ingredients to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for five minutes.

3. Fill the jars: Remove from heat and let cool for five minutes, then pour the brine over the jarred peppers. Place the lid on the jar and let cool. Once cool, refrigerate for at least a week before using, if possible.

Serving: whole peppers can be seeded before using if you want to difuse the heat. Otherwise, use these anytime you want a little heat. Great in quacamole, on baked potatoes, or on eggs. Anything really!

Storage: must remain refrigerated! These are not "canned" and do not have a shelf life. They will stay in the fridge for up to 6 months.

Special Thank You to M&H for the birthday gift card that paid for this little experiment! It covered 12 glass jars, that HUGE box of canning salt and vinegar. Looks like I need to do some more pickling!