First, I'll tell you what you should do, and what I have done many times in the past, to create a beautiful, tasty jalapeno jam. Then, I'll tell you what I did do this time around as a what not to do. Servicey!
The Right Way
With thanks to My Kitchen Addiction for the fabulous recipe that I started with.
You'll need:
4 cups of seeded and finely diced peppers (whatever ya got, long as they're hot but not, you know, too hot – and you'll want a mix of red and green for the pretty; say about 10 green jalapeños, 2 red peppers, 4 smaller, hotter red peppers)
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 package of low-sugar powdered pectin*
2–3 cups granulated sugar
6 1/2 pint (250 ml) jars
6 snap lids and rings
*You can substitute regular pectin and use about 5 cups of sugar. That would be delish. I would definitely steer away from the no-sugar pectin for this recipe though. I tried it once and it had sort of a chemically taste to me.
Directions for cooking and canning:
Wash your Mason jars in hot soapy water. Rinse well.
Combine your diced peppers and vinegar in your cooking pot. As it heats, add the pectin and stir it in well until dissolved.
Over high heat, bring mixture to a full rolling boil. Add the sugar.
Stirring constantly, return mixture to full rolling boil that doesn't calm down even when you stir it.
Boil hard 1 minute, stirring constantly.
Quickly ladle hot jam into jars, using a wide mouth funnel. Leave 0.5 cm headspace. Important: make sure your jars aren't cold or they might react quite dramatically to hot jam. I find this is not a problem in a hot summer kitchen, but you may be a fan of frigid air conditioning, in which case you might want to heat your jars in the oven or water bath before filling.
"Bubble" each jar with a skewer or chopstick to release any trapped air. Wipe each rim with a clean damp paper towel. Place the snap lid down and screw the ring on finger tip tight.
Put the jars into your water bath canner. Make sure there is at least an inch of water above the top of your jars. Put the pot lid on and return to the boil for 15 minutes. Don't start your timer until the water is boiling.
Remove jars from the canner (or let them sit in the canner until everything calms down).
Enjoy! This spread is fabulous on brie and crackers. It's one of my go-to's whenever I'm looking for a snack or hors d'oeuvres that feel a little special for guests. I also gave a jar as a thank-you gift to a friend, who said he enjoyed it served on vanilla ice cream! You do you. It's fail-safe.
The not-as-right way to make jalapeno jelly
And now for a version that is not as good, but I tried it so I want to share. I won't be making it this way again. Live and learn.
You'll need:
12 medium (about 3/4 lb) jalapeno peppers or other peppers (again, follow your bliss), stems and seeds removed
6 cups sugar
2 cups white or cider vinegar
2 packets (1 box) liquid pectin
5 1/2 pint (250 ml) jars
5 snap lids and rings
Directions for cooking and canning:
Wash your Mason jars in hot soapy water. Rinse well.
Heat 1 cup vinegar in pot with peppers. Boil for a couple of minutes. I'm not sure why I felt like this was a good idea. I think I was thinking it would soften the peppers and make them easier to puree. Or maybe I was planning to strain the liquid and thought this would give more flavour?
Puree peppers and vinegar. If you've cooked them first, you are now dealing with a hot mixture in your food processor. This wasn't my best idea. Also, the mixture just wouldn't fully puree, so I really just ended up with finely minced peppers in vinegar.
Put mixture back in pot. Add remaining cup of vinegar and sugar. Bring to a boil and boil for 10 minutes.
Add liquid pectin and boil for 1 minute.
Heat snap lids in a small pot of water.
Quickly ladle hot jam into jars, using a wide mouth funnel. Leave 0.5 cm headspace.
"Bubble" each jar with a skewer or chopstick to release any trapped air. Wipe each rim with a clean damp paper towel. Place the snap lid down and screw the ring on finger tip tight.
Put the jars into your water bath canner. Make sure there is at least an inch of water above the top of your jars. Put the pot lid on and return to the boil for 10 minutes. Don't start your timer until the water is boiling.
Remove jars from the canner (or let them sit in the canner until everything calms down).
Here's this rather muddy looking jam. I gotta take a pic of jam made with the other recipe. It's lighter and more golden in colour with gorgeous green and red flecks.
So... this is sort of pretty much like the directions that came with the pectin, except for the extra boiling at the beginning. It's really not your best way to go. It didn't set perfectly; it's a little runny. Plus, it's a little muddier in colour and not as attractive as the recipe above makes. I probably could have improved it by adding food colour, but that's not really my preference. It tastes good. It's just not as good as the my fave version.
