Sweet Pickled Banana Peppers Recipe - Food.com (2024)

FAQs

How do you keep banana peppers crisp when pickling? ›

Pickles, including pickled peppers, can be made crisper by adding calcium chloride granules. Calcium chloride does not lower the acidity in the jar and is safer to use than lime. It is used in commercially canned pickles.

Pour in white vinegar to cover all peppers. Cover with a plastic lid if possible, as the vinegar will gradually corrode metal lids. Store the jar in the back of your refrigerator for up to 12 months. The peppers will stay crunchy for a few months but will gradually soften.

Unopened and kept in a cool, dark place (like a pantry), purchased pickled items will last years. Once opened, they should last about one year at near-peak quality. Homemade pickled items will last anywhere from 3-4 weeks to 2-6 months — depending on the recipe, method, and, well, who you ask.

It may be a normal reaction during fermentation caused by bacteria. If the pickles are soft, they are spoiled from the yeast fermentation. Don't use them. Using too weak a salt brine or vinegar solution may cause soft or slippery pickles, as can using moldy garlic or storing the pickles at too warm a temperature.

You need to use what commercial packers do, which is calcium chloride. Ball markets it as Pickle Crisp or you can look online for bulk foods purveyors who sell it in larger amounts. Just be sure you are buying food-grade.

Start with a Salt Soak

As the vegetables swim in salt, some moisture is drawn from the tissues, which helps to preserve crisp texture through the pickling process. I use sea salt, and then rinse the vegetables in cold water several times to remove excess salt when the soaking time is up.

Depending on how thinly you sliced the peppers, they could be ready to eat immediately or might need a couple of days in the refrigerator before they taste fully pickled (just sample one every now and then to find out!). They are best when relatively fresh, but keep well for at least a month.

Pickling peppers

Small peppers may be pickled whole but must be prepared in one of the following ways to increase the penetration of vinegar solution into the peppers. Blanch whole peppers in water or steam for 3–5 minutes.

They should be okay as refrigerator pickles for a week or two at the very least, but may not be safe for long term storage (months) unrefrigerated.

If you have too many and are looking for a way to preserve them, you can pickle them or turn them into jelly or salsa. They're also tasty on homemade pizza, turned in pepper poppers (with cheese), deep fried or stuffed, or even added to a salad dressing for some extra flavor.

Can you freeze banana peppers to pickle later? ›

Label the containers with the date and store them in the freezer. Frozen banana peppers can stay good for 8-12 months. Pickling:Prepare a pickling brine by combining vinegar, water, sugar, salt, and your choice of spices (e.g., garlic, dill, peppercorns) in a pot. Bring it to a boil.

Bad banana pepper is pretty easy to distinguish from a good one. They will become very soft, and after that, they become slimy. Mold develops quickly and will transfer to any peppers that are nearby. If they have an odd smell, toss them.

Pickles have high acidity and high salt concentration. So, bacteria is less likely to grow on pickles. The whitish layer that you see on pickles is kahm yeast. Kahm yeast is a harmless surface yeast.

To help keep the crunch in water bath-canned pickled peppers, follow the recipe's listed time for boiling the jars—over-processing will make them softer. The quick, refrigerator pickled peppers will be crunchier because they aren't processed in a hot water bath.

The fermentation process will resume. After a few hours at warm temperatures, some carbonation may develop in the jar, leading to a fizzy or tingling sensation on the tongue.

Add a Source of Tannin

Tannins work against softening enzymes and help keep pickles crunchier. They can be found in various sources, such as grape leaves, oak leaves, raspberry leaves, black tea, etc. Add some directly to your jars!

Soak Cucumbers In Ice Water Beforehand

If you're not canning your cucumbers immediately, leave them in an ice bath or in your refrigerator overnight to maintain firmness. Doing this before you start canning them will give you the crunchiest pickles you've ever had!

Our tips and recipes show you how to store banana peppers so you can enjoy them year-round. Refrigerate and freeze peppers or can pickled peppers.