Pickled Roasted Red Peppers

Do you like roasted red peppers? Me too!

In fact, I like them so much I can't bear to only eat them this time of year, when the red peppers are ripe and beautiful. I want to be able to eat them all year long!

Thank goodness roasted red peppers pickle and can well! In fact, pickling them adds even more flavor and more sweetness. The Ball people have a recipe for Pickled Roasted Red Peppers posted on their site. It's a simple recipe. You can make these, even if you're new to canning. You could even leave out the garlic and spices that they include in their recipe. Just don't alter the acids. Since they have been kind enough to share their recipe, I think it's probably alright to share it with you, here. I will reprint it for you at the end of this post... but check out their site anyway, they offer a lot of interesting recipes and information about home canning.

When I can a batch of Pickled Roasted Red Peppers I label them "Roasted Reds." The sweet, slightly vinagery taste adds an extra zing to most sandwiches. I also like to add them to scrambled eggs, omelets, quiches, and frittatas. They are really great on pizza. And they are good tossed into pasta dishes like Vegetable Linguine.

Making home canned Roasted Reds is a great time-saver, too! Opening a jar of already roasted peppers is much faster than roasting a fresh pepper every time you want to add a bit of roasted pepper to a sandwich.

Pickled Roasted Red Peppers
(from www.freshpreserving.com)
Makes about 4 (16 oz) pints

You will need:
 4 large cloves garlic, roasted, removed from skin and mashed
 1-1/2 cups white vinegar
 1-1/2 cups cider vinegar
 1-1/2 cups dry white wine
 1/2 cup water
 1 cup coarsely chopped onion (about 1 large)
 1/2 cup granulated sugar
 2 Tbsp dried oregano
 4 tsp pickling or canning salt
 20 medium sweet red peppers, such as red bell or Shepherd, roasted, peeled, seeded, deveined and cut lengthwise into serving-size pieces
 4 (16 oz) pint glass preserving jars with lids and bands

Directions:
1.) ROAST peppers and garlic cloves over hot coals, on a grill or under the broiler until charred, turning to roast all sides. Once the skin of the peppers wrinkles and chars and garlic has charred spots, remove from heat. Place peppers in a paper bag until cool enough to handle, about 15 minutes, then lift off skins. Cool garlic. Squeeze roasted garlic cloves to remove from peel.
2.) PREPARE boiling water canner. Heat jars and lids in simmering water until ready for use. Do not boil. Set bands aside.
3.) COMBINE roasted garlic, white vinegar, cider vinegar, white wine, water, onion, sugar, oregano and salt in a large stainless steel saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Reduce heat and boil gently for 5 minutes, until garlic and oregano flavors have infused the liquid.
4.) PACK room temperature peppers into hot jars leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Ladle hot pickling liquid into jar to cover peppers leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace, if necessary, by adding hot pickling liquid. Wipe rim. Center lid on jar. Apply band until fit is fingertip tight.
5.) PROCESS jars in a boiling water canner for 15 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Remove jars and cool. Check lids for seal after 24 hours. Lid should not flex up and down when center is pressed.