Pickled Bell Peppers

Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers...


You can pickle any kind of pepper. I think jalapenos are probably the most common type to get pickled. I personally have a fondness for for pickled bell peppers. I think they make a lunch time sandwich more fun. They can be made more colorful by including some red or yellow peppers.

I usually make them with just garlic, but this time I decided to throw in some ginger too. A fun thing about pickles is that you can be creative about what spices you use.


Bell peppers happen to be just about the right height to fit 1/2 pint. They are kind of short for the pint jar I have them pictured in, so they are floating to the top.

Four peppers makes about 3 pints, so it is easy to determine how many jars you need.
Since the brine recipe here came from The Complete Book of Small-Batch Preserving:, it only makes enough for three 1/2 pint jars. It can simply be multiplied to fit the amount you are making.

Brine (for 1 1/2 pints)
1 1/2 cups vinegar
1/2 water
2 Tbs sugar
1 tsp canning salt


Cut the peppers into strips. Bring the brine to a boil. Put a garlic clove in each jar. Pack pepper strips into jar in a vertical position. Cover with brine leaving 1/2 inch inch headspace and process in a water bath. Process 1/2 pints for 15 minutes or pints for 20 minutes.

High altitude instructions
1,001 - 3,000 feet : increase processing time by 5 minutes
3,001 - 6,000 feet : increase processing time by 10 minutes
6,001 - 8,000 feet : increase processing time by 15 minutes
8,001 - 10,000 feet : increase processing time by 20 minutes