Hot Pepper Jelly

This easy jalapeño jelly recipe cooks down fresh hot peppers, sweet red pepper, and a touch of sugar into a glossy, savory spread with just the right kick of spicy jelly. It's delicious spooned over cream cheese, served as an appetizer dip, or brushed onto anything that needs a hint of candied heat. You'll get clear steps that show exactly how to make jalapeño jelly at home so your homemade batch turns out like the best pepper jelly every time. Pin this now so you always have a go-to jalapeño jam ready for snacks, parties, and gifting.

Pin

Why is this the best hot pepper jelly recipe

This hot pepper jelly recipe is versatile. It's perfect for any family gathering, allows your guests to use it as a topping for their own liking. And you'll find many ways to use it, from sandwiches to appetizers and even on meat and chicken.

This easy hot jelly recipe is absolutely delicious! The combination of sweet peppers, jalapeño's spicy heat, and jelly's sugar is always a big winner.

This recipe makes the best jelly anytime! Every spoonful is a delightful bite for both children and adults. No one will want to stop eating this hot pepper jelly, whether you pour it over cream cheese, goat cheese, or a main dish and add crackers, crostini, or tortilla chips. For your holiday parties, this is a perfect addition to your charcuterie board or appetizer spread.

Pin

This is an easy recipe for any beginner jelly maker. Start by adding bell peppers, jalapeños, vinegar, and pectin (it's what sets the jelly!) to a pot and bring it to a boil. Pour in the sugar & return to boiling. Ladle hot jelly into sterile jars and seal. That's all there is to it!

Jalapeno jelly makes a great gift! My family is trying to cut down on gifts that create clutter, so food gifts are always welcome. Hot pepper jelly would be a welcome gift for almost anyone, because it's not as spicy as salsa or hot sauce, but it is full of flavor. Attach a note with some of my serving suggestions (below, near the bottom of the page).

The ingredients for the dish are common and easy to find. You likely already have most of the simple ingredients for this easy hot pepper jelly recipe in your pantry. If you need an ingredient or two (like pectin), you can easily find them in many local grocery stores or on Amazon!

This jalapeno pepper jelly recipe tastes amazing! This jelly is absolutely delicious on its own, whether you use it on sandwiches, as a topping on a main dish, or as an appetizer! To add texture and flavor, you can mix it with very soft cream cheese and serve with crackers, crostini, or tortilla chips.

Pin

What you'll need to make the jalapeno jelly recipe

Equipment

• Kitchen scale - If you buy pectin in bulk, you will need to measure it out by weight (three ounces - not fluid ounces) rather than by volume (which would be something like three tablespoons). If you buy pectin in small boxes, you won't need a scale.
• 8 half-pint jars - This recipe makes about 64 ounces of jelly, and that is exactly what 8 half-pint jars will hold.
• 6-quart pot - This is to cook your pepper mixture to make the jelly.
• ladle - This is the easiest way to scoop up the jelly to pour into jars.
• canning funnel & canning tongs - You will also need a pot big enough to hold a water bath. See the article linked below that explains how to can this jelly.

Ingredients  

Pin

See the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page for all measurements and nutritional information.

• red bell pepper - I suggest red because that's what we used in our photos, but any combination of red, orange, yellow, or green will be great. They should be finely diced. See the photos for an example of the size of the peppers.
• jalapeno - This is more than one jalapeno. It should be seeded and finely diced, similar to the bell pepper. If you leave the seeds in, the jelly will be very very hot.
• white sugar - You need a lot of sugar to make jelly. Probably more than you're expecting. The sugar combines with the pectin (below) to make the jelly set up as a semi solid rather than a liquid.
• white vinegar - Peppers are a low acid food, and in order to make shelf-stable jelly, you need a high acid mixture. Thus, we add vinegar to the jelly. I like this ratio of apple cider to white vinegar for flavor, but you could use all white if you needed to.
• apple cider vinegar - This adds acid but also gives the jelly flavor. I would not recommend using all apple cider vinegar in this recipe.
• kosher salt - This enhances the other flavors but also helps to make the jelly shelf-stable.
• powdered fruit pectin - This must be measured by weight (ounces and pounds) rather than by volume (tablespoons and cups). Pectin comes from apples, and it is the compound that makes the liquid juicy mixture thicken and form a gel. It reacts with the sugar and acid to partially solidify the pepper mixture.
• red gel food color or green - This is optional. Our photos below do have contain any added coloring.

How to make the best pepper jelly recipe

1. Wash and sterilize the canning jars according to manufacturer's directions. Set aside.
2. Add the bell peppers, jalapeños, white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, salt, and powdered pectin to a 6-quart pan. Bring the mixture to a boil for 1 minute.
   Pin
   Pin
3. Add the sugar all at once and bring back to a rolling boil (a boil that can't be stirred down) for 1 full minute.
   Pin
   Pin
4. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in food coloring, if using.
   Pin
5. Follow the instructions for water bath canning on the Ball Mason Jars website. (Ball is the company that actually makes the jars you're using, and they do a much better job of explaining the process than I can.) Basically, you need to fill your jars, put the lids on, and boil them for 10 minutes. But please go get the real instructions because if you do it wrong, your jelly will spoil in the jars.
   Pin
6. Use a jar lifter to remove the jars from the water bath and let them sit on the counter until fully cooled and all the lids have popped and sealed.

Cook's Tips for the Best Hot Pepper Jelly

I use the instructions for water bath canning from Ball Mason Jars. This is the company that makes the canning jars you're likely going to use to hold your jelly, and they know their stuff. I'm not providing you with instructions for this process because I am not a canning expert, and if I failed to explain some part of the process correctly, your jam will spoil and possibly make you sick, and I don't want to take that chance. The Ball instructions are top-notch.

Do not touch or move the jars, especially on their tops, after removing them from the water bath until they have cooled or they may not pop and seal properly. This will lead to spoiled jelly.

If you live above 1,000 feet, you'll have to Adjust for High-Altitude Canning (from Ball® Mason Jars)

If you want to cut down the time it takes to dice all those peppers by hand, use a vegetable dicer.

Substitutions & variations

Include the seeds from some of the jalapeños for a hotter jelly.

This recipe was created using regular fruit pectin, but you could try using no sugar pectin if you wanted to cut the sugar content. (No sugar pectin still requires some sugar, despite the name.) I would hesitate to do this because my favorite thing about hot pepper jelly is the sweet and spicy contrast, and that would not be as pronounced if you used less sugar in the jelly.

Food coloring can be added just to add a little color to the jelly, but it is only for decorative purposes and is not a necessary step. We did not color the jelly in our photos, so you could see what it would look like without added coloring. You can use it in yours if you want it to be more red or more green.

You can use any style of bell pepper and any flavor of hot pepper, but keep the ratio the same the first time you make it. (3 cups sweet pepper to 1 cup hot pepper) If, after you've made it once, you want to play with the ratio, you can do that. For my palette, more than 1 cup of hot peppers will make the jelly unpleasantly spicy.

Serving suggestions

This sweet, spicy, and tangy jelly is delicious served over softened cream cheese with crackers, crostini, or tortilla chips and makes a great appetizer for any party.

You can blend half a jar of jalapeno jelly (or more) with a block of very soft cream cheese for a different kind of hot pepper dip that is equally delicious.

You will find lots of uses for your hot pepper jelly, including:

• On charcuterie boards
• Poured over cream cheese
• Mixed with cream cheese
• Spread on chicken, salmon, or shellfish as a glaze
• As a dip for shrimp (grilled or breaded)
• Spread on a cheese sandwich (or any sandwich!)
• As a dip for French fries
• Spread on a burger

I could go on and on. This jalapeno jelly is so good, and I promise you'll find lots of uses for it.

Pin

Storing leftovers

Once the jars have sealed, they can be stored at room temperature, but after the jars have been opened, they should be refrigerated.

This recipe makes 8 cups of jalapeno jelly which is way more than you can eat in the 1-2 weeks it will stay good in the refrigerator. There are 2 ways you can store the jelly for long-term storage: water bath canning or freezing. The water bath method is referenced above.

If you don't want to can your jelly, you can make freezer jelly instead. Freeze the jam up to one year. Use containers especially for keeping jelly in the freezer, and wait to fill them until the jelly mixture has fully cooled.

Pin

Check out more delicious condiment recipes

• Spicy Jalapeño Pimento Cheese Dip
• How to Make Sweet Teriyaki Sauce
• How to Make Watermelon Jam - This also makes enough to gift.
• Red Lobster Copycat Pina Colada Sauce for Coconut Shrimp
• Honey Sriracha Mayonnaise
• Cajun Remoulade Sauce
• How to Make Homemade Sweet Chili Sauce

Recipe