Pickled Hot Banana Peppers… Straight From the Garden

Pickled hot banana peppers… yumm.  They pretty much make everything taste better.

We grew a plethora of peppers this year… cayenne, padron, habanero, jalapeno, serrano, caribbean,  banana, and who knows what else!  But when we saw our hot banana peppers going crazy in the garden, pickled peppers came right to mind.  This, I tell you, was one successful batch.  We’re already done with these and on to round two!!

They’re spicy (though if you don’t like that you can simply remove the seeds) and slightly sweet.  Just the perfect combo. in my little opinion.  They go great on breakfasts, lunches, and dinners… eggs, tacos, sandwiches- you name it, it probably works!  You can adjust the flavors as you wish- for less sweet add less sugar, or more for sweeter if you prefer- for extra spicy make sure you get all of little seeds in, etc.  The garlic, peppercorns, and mustard seed give just the right subtle flavoring… I wouldn’t switch those up much personally, but otherwise adjust away and get creative! 🙂

A small sampling of the some of the pepper mania going on in my yard.  It’s a teeny yard, but the plants seem to like it 🙂

Here’s yesterday’s breakfast… nothing will be the same now without these tasty peppers.  I’ll have to pickle and can away until I have a fully stocked pantry to last me through the year!! 🙂

approx. 10 hot banana peppers

INGREDIENTS

3 garlic cloves

1 1/2 cup white balsamic vinegar (or other white vinegar)

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

1/2 cup water

1/3 cup high quality sugar (evaporated cane, coconut, etc)

1 tsp whole peppercorns

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1 large sterilized glass jar w/ a lid

If you like spicy pepper, then you want to leaves those seeds in!

thin as you want… we went for about 1/2 inch rings

Most seeds will remain in the rings as you cut… the more you have, the more spicy it’ll be! 🙂

Place all pepper slices in a large glass jar (they shouldn’t fill it completely- aim for about 2/3 full)

Roughly chop garlic cloves (in half or even whole is fine if you like)

Toss in the jar with the peppers

In a small sauce pan, heat both vinegars and all remaining ingredients over a medium-high heat

Then remove from heat and let cool slightly before pouring it into the jar

Once the liquid has cooled a bit, pour it directly over the peppers and garlic cloves

Scrape all of the seeds and goodies into the jar, as well!

The jar should be mostly full, but not all the way to top… leave a wee space at the top 🙂

Let the liquid cool to room temp before placing the lid on the jar

You want the jar to be room temp before sealing it and placing it

in the refrigerator or else the glass may break- no bueno 🙂

We like to set it aside somewhere and forget about it for a

few hours… that way it’s not tempting us to get antsy!

Let it stay sealed in the fridge for at least three full days before you open- the longer it sits,

the better it will be, but if you’re anything like me, three days is about your max for waiting 😉

After three days, you can eat them as you please!

These will stay good for a very long time in there, but I highly doubt they’ll last long!

You’ll notice the longer they marinade, the lighter their color will be…

they’ll also become slightly sweeter with time 🙂

These little peppers are yummy on nearly everything- eggs, sandwiches, tacos, pizza- whatever!

Enjoy!!