Hi there folks… recently I’ve become addicted to Trapey’s (or Trapy’s, whatever) whole pickled jalapeno peppers. This after I was addicted to Carrera jalapeno peppers. Problem is, spending 45 bucks a month on peppers gets somewhat pricy and I’d like to be able to avoid that sort of expense. When I was at my inlaws for this Turkey Day, I discovered that jalapeno plants are pretty easy to grow in this area.
So I’d like to make some pickled jalapenos, but I’d like some advice in how to set things up. For instance, I’ve googled a few recipes and I’ve seen everything suggested from frying peppers in butter and then putting them in a pickling brine to boiling peppers and putting them in pickling brines and every brine recipe from honey and vinegar to water and vinegar and olive oil and spices and…
Anyways, there’s no uniformity, and I’m not sure how to proceed based on such diverse information. If people who are old hands at pickling/preserving could comment, I’d really appreciate it.
What I do know is that I’d like some advice on:
-How to choose jalapeno plants/seeds for a fairly good yielding plant with medium to hot peppers. Should I look for local plant nurseries in the spring or order seeds online or what?
-How to prepare the peppers themselves to get them ready for the pickling process. Do I boil them, fry them, etc…?
-How to make the brine. Cider or white vinegar? Spices, if so which ones? Olive oil? Salt or no salt? How long/what conditions do I need in order for crunchy pickled jalapenos, and can a brine mixture/cooking preparation/storage method change the hotness of the peppers?
I highly recommend reading the Ball Blue Book or another Ball preserving book. It will explain the methods, and WHY you do certain things. Home preserving done wrong can poison you.
Vinegar - use distilled white vinegar or cider vinegar. I almost always use white because cider vinegar can cause browning. Whatever vinegar you use, make sure it is at least 5% acidity - aka 50 grain. If you want a less sour end product do NOT dilute the vinegar - add sugar.
My experience growing jalapenos is that if you can get the plants to overwinter the second summer will produce very hot peppers.
I have always used the basic Ball pickled hot peppers recipe. The result is a very simple pickled jalapeno where you can still taste the pepper:
2 pounds jalapeno peppers - use green, red or a combination
6 cups vinegar
2 cups water
3 cloves of garlic, crushed
Prep the peppers - don’t bother doing anything to them other than rinsing them, if you want whole peppers. otherwise slice them into the size you prefer
Combine vinegar, water and garlic in a large saucepot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Discard the garlic.
Pack peppers into hot jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Ladle hot pickling liquid over peppers, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Adjust 2-piece caps. Process 10 minutes in a boiling water canner.
Addition: if you are looking for a crisp pickle, you might want to look into either refrigerator pickles, or natural fermentation, neither of which I am experienced with.
Ah, thanks very much. And here I thought it was simple. I’m pretty certain that avoiding poisoning myself would be a very good plan.
I’ll find a Ball book on the net… although, do they also deal with refrigerator pickles or natural fermentation, or would I have to find something else for that?
I’ve pickled a few pepps myself, and I can tell you even if you start with fresh, young firm jalapenos they’re going to cook and turn a bit mushy during a heat bath.
A little googling reveals Trappey’s uses a “unique cold-packed process.” Whatever that is. I’d start looking specifically at cold pack canning recipes but you’ll discover cold pack is a bit misleading because it still involves heating. You might also look into refrigerator pickling recipes which would yield a crispier fruit and last a good longish time in the 'fridge, but obviously can’t be stored on a shelf for a year.
Awesome, thank you. I’ll definitely have to look into that. Mushy vegitables/fruit always squick me out a bit, and keeping them crunchy is pretty important in my master plan.
The fermentation freak in me can’t help but point out that preserving something in vinegar is not pickling.
Making naturally fermented pickled vegetables is shockingly easy, especially if you just eat them as you make them instead of canning them (which is where the real potential for toxins is- freshly pickled food should be too salty and acidic for harmful bacteria growth.)
To start, just soak the veggies in boiled salt water, pack them into a jar adding salt to each layer. Weigh down the veggies- a brine should form as the salt draws out water. You may need to add some boiled salt water. The brine should taste good and salty but not disgustingly salty. Weigh down the veggies on top so that they don’t float up and touch air (I use a plastic baggie of salt water.) Then, cover it tightly with a cloth and leave it in a warm place for a while. After a couple days it should start bubbling delightfully. Then the bubbling will slow and it’s time to stick it in the fridge and start enjoying it. In a hot climate, it should less than a week.
Here is an article on making sour pickles and a good rundown on the basics of vegetable pickling from the bible of guerrilla fermentation, “Wild Fermentation.” I’m sure you could adapt these techniques for use with jalapenos. I made my own sauerkrauts, kimchees and veggie pickles using these techniques for years, and it was always a lot of fun.
Sorry, here is a link that actually works to the basics of pickling vegetables. Fermenting is a lot of fun and I encourage every chef looking for a new challenge to try it.
you need to get a japanese pickle press it is a spiffy all in one thingy that has a part that holds the pickles down in the brine, no need to improvise =)
Get yourself a case of the extra large Ball Pickle Jars. A gallon of white vinegar, and a box of pickling salt. And of course a peck of Jalapenos, washed and destemmed, with an X or slit cut in the top or bottom of the pickle.
Empty the Gallon of White Vinegar into a large pot, fill the empty gallon vinegar container with filtered water, and add that to the pot, finally add a cup and a half of pickling salt, and bring to a boil.
Carefully fill the Boiled and Sterilized Jars (and lids) with the jalapenos, being sure to pack them tightly. Pour the hot brine over the jalapenos, let them saturate, top them off with the brine as needed. Screw the sterilized caps and lids on the jars, let them sit and cool until the lid “pops!”. Make sure they all pop, as that indicates a vacuum, airtight, seal. Store them on the shelf indefinitely. Rotate them out and into the fridge as needed.
Yeahhhh… just noticed that. I didn’t scroll down and thought you were talking about those crock things. :smack: Thanks, I’ll probably order a press pretty soon.
I’m really not trying to sound contrary, but according to wikipedia, something must be preserved in vinegar or acetic acid in order to be considered a pickle by American and European trade standards. From the tsukemono article at wikipedia:
Of course that’s not to say that practically, fermenting is not pickling- I’ve never done the natural fermentation thing yet, but I have been wanting to try my hand at an aged, fermented, hot pepper mash in order to try making a “vintage”, tabasco style pepper sauce, and that tsukemoniko press certainly has aroused my interest.
*Actually, these pickles should be kept refrigerated to be absolutely safe… do not store them on the shelf indefinitely. You would have to boil and can them for around 10 minutes for these to be absolutely shelf stable.
Here’s a great cold pack pickling recipe with pictures and clear instructions that should approximate the trappey’s jalapeno’s that you like, Finnagain. Simply follow the recipe but leave the jalapenos whole with an x or slit cut in the pepper.
