Trying lots of different jalapeños over the years has left me with some strong opinions. Some were too mushy or too hot. The key to perfect jalapeños is (as with all pickles) to get them as fresh as possible. Get them as firm as possible from the store or harvest right off the plant. Whether you want to use your jalapeños in other dishes, like baked into corn cookies or cornbread, or use them cold out of the jar, you’ll get the right consistency every time. A jalapeño doesn’t have to start out mushy to be soft when baked into a bread. So when you make pickled jalapeños, you have a ton of choice for what you want to use them in.

A couple of notes about jalapeños first. Pickled jalapeños will end up tasting amazing, not like raw jalapenos, or the spices you are putting into the jar as in pickle recipes. Just like if you were to roast them, the flavor changes. And the way to get that distinct taste is to make sure they get cooked the right amount in the hot brine as they sit.

You can add these as a spice into burritos, on top of nachos, hot dogs, on eggs and salsas, or even eat them plain… whatever you want. Now that I have your attention, here is the recipe.

Ingredients

About 4 large jalapeños

1 cup filtered water

3/4 cup white vinegar

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1 clove garlic (or more, I’m not the boss of you)

5-8 black peppercorns

Process

Dice up your garlic (or slice thinly) and add that to the jar along with the pepper.

Slice your jalapeños as thin or as thick as you like, and fill the jar with them. Want them spicier? Include more seeds. Less spicy, they get taken out. Kitchen style, not mafia style. This isn’t a real good rule, sometimes the pepper is just out of this world spicy!

Add water, vinegar, and salt to your cook pot and bring to a boil.

When boiling, add in sugar and boil for a few minutes longer with lid on.

Fill your jars and screw the lid on tight. Allow to sit on the counter until the jar reaches room temperature, then refrigerate! They will be ready next morning in an omelet or in an egg sandwich. Yum! Are breakfast nachos a thing?

What’s that? Someone you love likes pickled jalapenos? Make these with them! Show them that you care. Food brings us closer together and you need to honor that in your life.

Thank you for reading! If you liked these, consider giving the recipe a share. Let us know if breakfast nachos are a thing, it’s a burning question.