Pickled Jalapenos

If you’ve read this blog at all (have you?) then you know that I love spicy food. I pretty much want everything to have a little heat to it, or else it just feels like something is missing. So when I came across this recipe for Pickled Jalapenos on Steph Chows, it was sort of like falling in love for this first time. First of all, I love pickles. Secondly—spicy! Yes. Yes. Let’s do this. And, by the way, pickling is stupid easy. I love pickles that you get at the store, including pickled jalapenos, but there is something about pickling your own that is so much fresher and more delicious. So grab a jar (or two or three) and a handful of jalapenos and get to pickling!

10 jalapenos, whole or sliced
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup water
1 tbsp peppercorns
2 bay leaves
3 cloves of garlic, lightly pounded
2 tbsp coarse sea salt
1 tbsp sugar

The first step is to slice up your jalapenos (unless you want to pickle them whole but I think sliced is better). Cut them into rings, not too thin but not too thick either. You could take the seeds out if you want them to be less spicy but if that’s the case, what the heck are you doing pickling jalapenos anyway? Sheesh. Put the sliced jalapenos in a canning jar. I actually used three small jars because that’s what I had on hand.

Next combine the rest of the ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat. You want to bring it to a simmer, then lower the heat and let it simmer for about 5 minutes. You may also want to stir it some to help the salt and sugar dissolve. Remove and toss the bay leaves, then pour the hot liquid over the jalapenos in the jar. Seal it up and let it cool. I let it cool outside of the fridge, not for any particular reason that I know of, but it just seems like the right thing to do. After about 5-7 hours, you can try your jalapenos. They will be very crisp at this point, and not so pickled, but some people like that. Or you could wait a few days and they will be more pickled and less crisp. Either way, they are really spicy but also nice and vinegary and salty and just plain awesome.