How To Can Pickled Banana Pepper Rings – An Easy 6 Ingredient Recipe

When you find yourself with several banana peppers, and you don’t know what to do with them, turn them pickled banana pepper rings and can them for use throughout the year. It is a great way to preserve your fresh picked peppers from the garden before they go bad.

The tangy and zesty pepper rings are a great condiment to serve on sandwiches, hamburgers and hot dogs. Although we also love to add them to our homemade pizzas and even as a tasty kick to our lunchtime salads.

And with only 6 ingredients, they couldn’t be easier to make! With just a few spices, vinegar and of course banana peppers, you will have several jars made in under an hour.

However, if you don’t grow your own banana peppers and purchase them at a Farmer’s market or grocery store, you need to know there are different varieties of banana peppers to choose from.

And it is critical to know the difference so that the pickled peppers turn out exactly how you want them.

Peppers Varieties

In general terms, banana peppers can be divided into two categories, sweet and hot peppers. However, you can’t tell the difference simply by their appearance.

Both the sweet and hot banana peppers are visually interchangeable. Although the same can’t be said about their taste.

Sweet Banana Peppers

Sweet banana peppers are the most common type and have a mild, tangy flavor. They are typically picked when they are yellow, they can also turn red, or orange if left to ripen.

Some popular varieties of sweet banana peppers include:

• Hungarian Yellow Wax: This variety is known for its bright yellow color and sweet, mild flavor. It is a good choice for both fresh eating and pickling.
• Long Sweet Yellow: This variety produces long, slender peppers that are sweet and crunchy. It is a good choice for stuffing or grilling.
• Sweet Banana: This variety is a good all-purpose pepper that is sweet and mild. It is a good choice for both fresh eating and to can pickled banana pepper rings.

Hot Banana Peppers

Hot banana peppers are less common than sweet banana peppers, but over the last several years have grown in popularity. They are the preferred variety when making our popular Hot Pepper Mustard.

They have a slightly hotter flavor than sweet banana peppers, but are still relatively mild when compared to other hot chili peppers. However, for some reason, the ones that we grow at the farm pack in way more heat than the ones that you get at the grocery.

Some popular varieties of hot banana peppers include:

• Hungarian Hot Wax: This is the most popular hot variety is a good choice for those who are new to hot peppers. It has a mild heat level that is comparable to a jalapeno pepper.
• Black Hungarian: This variety is a bit hotter than the Hungarian Hot Wax pepper, but still has a relatively mild heat level.
• Pepperoncini: This variety is the hottest of the banana peppers, but it is still considered to be a mild pepper. It has a slightly fruity flavor and is often pickled in its original form.

When choosing a banana pepper variety, it is important to consider your personal preferences for heat level and flavor. If you are not sure which variety to choose, a sweet banana pepper is a good place to start.

How To Pickle Peppers

No matter what type of banana pepper that you choose, the pickling process remains the same. And it all begins with slicing the peppers into rings.

First cut off the top stem and remove any damaged areas on the skin. Then cut the peppers into 1/2 = 1/4 inch rings. However, if you like super thin pepper rings, I suggest you use a mandoline slicer.

I strongly recommend you use gloves when cutting hot banana peppers. The capsaicin is a colorless, odorless oil that can cause a chemical reaction when it touches human skin. This can cause a burning, tingling and even arthritis type symptoms in the joints of the hands.

Set the pepper rings aside while you prepare the pickling brine. Do this by placing the vinegar, water and pickling salt in a medium saucepan and heat until boiling.

While the mixture comes to a boil, pack the pepper slices in half-pint or pint size mason jars. Then divide the spices among the jars.

Once the brine comes to a boil, pour the mixture over the peppers until they are covered in the liquid. Now all that is left to do is to can the pickled banana pepper rings!

If you are new to canning, don’t worry, this is one of the easiest canning recipes to make. That is because that you will use the hot water bath method and won’t have the worries of using a pressure canner.

What You Need To Can Banana Pepper Rings

You will only need a few basic items to can pickled banana pepper rings.

1. Canning Jars – I prefer to can the pepper rings in half-pint jars. However you can also can them in pint size jars as well

2. Funnel – Although not 100% necessary, a wide mouth funnel will make pouring the brine easy. However, you could use a ladle as well.

3. Plastic Utensil – Once the brine is in the jars, you will need to remove any air bubbles caught in the mixture. This will help the pepper rings from becoming mushy when stored.

4. Lids/Bands – You will need to cap each jar with a canning lids and band before placing the jars in the hot water bath canner. If you are using new Sure-Tight canning lids you will not need to heat them before placing them on top of the jars.

5. Jar Lifter – A jar lifter is vital for moving the jars in and out of the water bath canner safely.

6. Hot Water Bath Canner – You will can the Pickled Banana Pepper Rings in a hot water bath canner. Just be sure that you use one large enough to hold your canning jars, or you will need to process the jars in batches.

Pickled Banana Pepper Rings Recipe

(Canning Instructions Included)

*Complete recipe instructions including specific measurements, cook temperatures and times are located in a printable recipe card at the bottom of this article. However, be sure to keep reading for helpful tips and tricks when making this recipe.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 lb sweet or hot banana peppers
• 3 cups apple cider vinegar, (5%)
• 2 cups water
• 3 tsp. pickling salt
• 3 cloves garlic, divided (optional)
• 3 Tbsp. mustard seed, divided
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. celery seed, divided

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Sterilize half-pint or pint canning jars and keep warm. Prepare hot water bath to near boiling.

2. Using gloves, wash and cut off the stems of the peppers. Then slice each pepper into 1/8-1/4 inch slices. Set aside.

3. Place vinegar, water, and pickling salt in a medium sauce pan and heat until boiling.

4. Fill each jar with 1/2 clove of garlic (optional), 1 1/2 tsp. mustard seed and 3/4 tsp. celery seed. Then add the pepper slices, making sure to leave 1/2″ of headspace at the top of the jar.

5. Ladle the hot liquid into the jars filling to cover the peppers, maintaining the 1/2″ of headspace. Use a plastic utensil to remove any air bubbles, adding more liquid as needed.

Canning Instructions

6. Wipe the rim clean and then add the lid and finger tighten the ring. Process in hot water bath that is already close to boiling for 10 minutes for half pints or pint jars. *Adjust for altitude as necessary.

7. Use a jar lifter to remove the jars from the water and place them on a thick towel. Let the jars cool for 24 hours. Check to make sure the jar is sealed prior to storing.

*If jars did not seal (the lid bounces up and down), place in refrigerator and use within 2 weeks. Store sealed jars in a cool dark place.

It is best to let the pickled banana peppers sit, undisturbed for at least two weeks before using. Be sure to shake the contents of the jar before opening and serving so the spices can be redistributed.

*For a small batch recipe that doesn’t require canning use our Refrigerator Pickled Banana Peppers Recipe.

Enjoy!

Mary and Jim

Jim and Mary Competti have been writing gardening, DIY and recipe articles and books for over 15 years from their 46 acre Ohio farm. The two are frequent speakers on all things gardening and love to travel in their spare time.

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