Easy Pickled Banana Peppers

📖 Description:

These Easy Pickled Banana Peppers are sweet, tangy, and slightly spicy — the perfect condiment to elevate sandwiches, salads, pizzas, or even grilled meats. Made with simple pantry ingredients and no canning required, these refrigerator pickles are crisp, flavorful, and ready in just 24 hours. A must-have for pepper lovers!

📝 Ingredients for Easy Pickled Banana Peppers

• 3–4 cups banana peppers, sliced into rings (about 6–8 peppers)

• 1 cup white vinegar

• 1 cup water

• 2 tablespoons sugar

• 1 tablespoon kosher salt

• 2 cloves garlic, smashed

• ½ teaspoon mustard seeds (optional)

• ¼ teaspoon celery seeds (optional)

• ¼ teaspoon turmeric (optional, for color)

• ½ teaspoon black peppercorns

🍳 Instructions:

1. Prep Peppers:
   Wash and slice banana peppers into rings. Remove seeds if you prefer milder pickles.

2. Sterilize Jar:
   Use a clean, sterilized quart-sized glass jar with a lid.

3. Make Brine:
   In a saucepan, combine vinegar, water, sugar, salt, garlic, and spices. Bring to a boil, stirring until sugar and salt dissolve.

4. Pack Jar:
   Pack sliced banana peppers tightly into the jar.

5. Pour Brine:
   Carefully pour hot brine over the peppers until fully covered. Tap jar to release air bubbles.

6. Cool & Seal:
   Let cool to room temperature. Seal with a lid and refrigerate.

7. Wait & Serve:
   Let sit in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours before using for best flavor.

🗒️ Notes:

• Use yellow or green banana peppers — both work great.

• You can substitute apple cider vinegar for a more mellow, slightly fruity flavor.

• Pickled peppers will last up to 2 months in the fridge.

💡 Tips:

• For spicy pickles, add a few slices of jalapeño or a pinch of red pepper flakes.

• Make multiple jars and experiment with different spices (like dill or coriander).

• Label jars with the date you made them to track freshness.

🍽️ Servings:

Makes 1 quart jar (approximately 10–12 servings, depending on usage size).

⚖️ Nutritional Info (Per 2 tbsp serving, approx.):

• Calories: 5

• Carbohydrates: 1g

• Sugars: 1g

• Sodium: 150mg

• Fat: 0g

• Protein: 0g

• Fiber: 0.2g

✅ Benefits:

• Low calorie & guilt-free snack or topping

• Preserves banana peppers for long-term use

• Adds probiotic-friendly acidity (great for digestion)

• Great source of Vitamin C (from fresh peppers)

• Customizable heat level and flavor

❓ Q&A:

Q: Can I use this method for other peppers?
A: Yes! This brine works well with jalapeños, bell peppers, serranos, or mixed varieties.

Q: How long until the pickled peppers are ready to eat?
A: They’re best after 24 hours but improve in flavor over 2–3 days.

Q: Do I need to boil the jars for canning?
A: No, this is a refrigerator pickle recipe — no water bath canning needed.

Q: Can I reuse the brine?
A: It’s best to make fresh brine for each batch for safety and flavor consistency.

Q: Are these sweet or sour?
A: Slightly sweet with a tangy, vinegar-forward kick — you can adjust sugar to taste.