Cowboy candy is a hit every summer when our jalapenos come in. You only need a handful of ingredients and a little bit of time to make these crowd pleaser sweet and spice candied jalapenos.
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Sweet Heat
I first heard of cowboy candy years ago when I was watching Pioneer Woman and I didn’t think anything of it. I personally don’t care for spicy flavors so I never thought to make it.
Fast forward to my beginning days of canning and I thought it was the perfect recipe to use up the overflowing jalapenos I had coming from the garden. It certainly helped that my husband loves some heat in his meals, so I researched and came up with the perfect cowboy candy recipe.
Favorite Flavors
As I mentioned previously, I am not a spicy flavor connoisseur, however, my husband is. He’s come up with some interesting ways to use up the cowboy candy.
For breakfast, my husband will make your typical egg and cheese sandwich but with a twist. Spread a little peanut butter and a little cowboy candy before adding your egg and cheese. This is probably the best way he likes to eat his candied jalapenos.
Another way he enjoys the sweet heat is my making an omelet, adding peanut butter and cowboy candy in the fold. Can you tell he likes salty, sweet, and spicy?
Not only can you use cowboy candy the way my husband does, but you can also add these candied jalapenos to salads, dice them up and mix them with your burgers, throw them in salads, burritos, add to some egg salad.
The possibilities are really endless.
Jalapenos or Bust
Traditional cowboy candy as mentioned in the title is really just candied jalapenos. Now, with that said, don’t be afraid to use any kind of hot pepper. Over the years, I have been ready to make up a batch and realize I don’t have quite enough jalapenos, so I use what ever hot peppers I have on hand to make the proper amount.
I always make sure to use jalapenos for the majority but I have also added in Habaneros, Santa Fe peppers, and Hungarian Wax peppers.
One year I carelessly threw in a few sweet peppers just because it was all I had. Unfortunately, this took a good amount of spice right out of the peppers. So while I don’t think there is a problem using a variety of peppers, be sure you use hot peppers if you want to keep the heat.
Want more summer canning recipes? Read more here.
Cowboy Candy Recipe
This recipe is for canning purposes but you can also allow this recipe to cool and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for a few weeks.
For this recipe you will want:
- 4 pounds Jalapenos
- 3 cups White Vinegar
- 2 teaspoons Canning Salt
- 4 cups White Sugar
- 6 cloves Fresh Garlic – chopped
- 1 tablespoon Turmeric Powder
Kitchen Tools Needed:
Here is what you will do:
Start by slicing your jalapenos into thin slices. You can remove the cores and seeds if you would prefer, however, I find it unnecessary and only remove the stem.
Once you have your jalapenos sliced, add the vinegar, canning salt, sugar, garlic, and turmeric to a large pot and bring to a boil.
Once the mixture has come to a boil, add your jalapenos to the pot and allow to simmer for 15 minutes.
While the jalapenos are simmering, prepare your water bath canner and jars. This recipe allows for roughly 7 – 8 half pints.
When the 15 minutes are up, remove from heat, and add the jalapenos to your jars. This works best if you use a slotted spoon to scoop the jalapenos and then go back in with a ladle to cover with the brine.
Fill your jars leaving a half inch headspace. Place your rings and lids finger tight and process in your water bath canner for 15 minutes.
After the 15 minutes, turn off the heat remove the lid, and wait 5 minutes before removing the jars.
Using a jar lifter, remove jars and allow to sit on a towel on the counter for 12 -24 hours before removing rings, washing, and storing in a cool, dark space.
Not only is this great for the spice lovers in your life, it makes the perfect addition to any gift basket. I have been known to add this in with Christmas gifts because it’s just loved that much! I hope you and yours love this recipe just as much as my husband does!
Until next time,
Cowboy Candy
Equipment
- Water Bath Canner
- Canning Salt
- Half pint jars
- large pot
- ladle
Ingredients
- 4 pounds jalapenos
- 3 cups white vinegar
- 2 tsp canning salt
- 4 cups sugar
- 1 tbsp turmeric
Instructions
- Start by slicing your jalapenos into thin slices. You can remove the cores and seeds if you would prefer.
- Once you have your jalapenos sliced, add the vinegar, canning salt, sugar, garlic, and turmeric to a large pot and bring to a boil.
- Once the mixture has come to a boil, add your jalapenos to the pot and allow to simmer for 15 minutes.
- While the jalapenos are simmering, prepare your water bath canner and jars. This recipe allows for roughly 7 – 8 half pints.
- When the 15 minutes are up, remove from heat, and add the jalapenos to your jars. This works best if you use a slotted spoon to scoop the jalapenos and then go back in with a ladle to cover with the brine.
- Fill your jars leaving a half-inch headspace. Place your rings and lids finger tight and process in your water bath canner for 15 minutes.
- After 15 minutes, turn off the heat remove the lid, and wait 5 minutes before removing the jars.
- Using a jar lifter, remove jars and allow them to sit on a towel on the counter for 12 -24 hours before removing rings, washing, and storing them in a cool, dark space.
