EASY 3 INGREDIENT Candied Jalapenos recipe! You only need jalapenos, sugar and water to make refrigerator candied jalapenos! Use these as a appetizer dip, on top of crackers or in dinner dishes! Store in refrigerator or use for canning!
The Best Candied Jalapenos
These 3 Ingredient Candied Jalapenos. Oh goodness gracious. Don’t ask me how many I ate over the past few days. Ok, don’t ask me. Seriously don’t. Ok I might have eaten a entire jar already and made another today. I said don’t ask me! Honestly, I have no self control with these.
Some people refer to these as Cowboy Candy because of how addictive they are to eat! They’re sugary just like candy, but also spicy due to the jalapenos.
They’re sweet. They’re spicy. They’re just right. They are the perfect combo of sweet jalapeno with a kick. They are amazing on crackers with a little piece of cheddar cheese (my favorite). The cheese balances out the heat with a little coolness.
You can even eat them right out of the jar with a spoon. I won’t judge you because I might do that too…. 🙂
Love sweet candied recipes? Then you need to try my Candied Kielbasa after you make these jalapenos!
Best Recipe for Jalapeno Pepper Plants!
Our jalapeno plants in the garden are growing like crazy! I feel like we’re picking pounds and then a few days later it’s a few more pounds. Our green bell peppers are always warriors and grow great but who knew their cousin Mr. Jalapeno was such a warrior too?
And look at the size of them too!
I’m totally ok with these plants yielding so many peppers because I’m absolutely crazy with this candied jalapenos recipe! I am going to make a few jars of these jalapenos to last me a few months but I doubt they are going to last that long!
How to Make Candied Jalapenos on the Stove
You only need 3 ingredients for this candied jalapenos recipe: fresh jalapenos, sugar and water.
First you will want to slice your jalapenos using a knife. I like to remove the seeds because with the seeds they’re too spicy for me, so use your judgement. Either way, wear gloves during this process because your hands will feel the heat!
Add jalapenos, water and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to a low boil. Reduce temperature and simmer until the liquid has reduced and it resembles syrup. This process takes about 30 minutes to 1 hour.
As soon as you see the water turn into syrup, turn the heat off – they’re done! Don’t keep cooking them, as the syrup is important for them to remain soft and not to crystallize.
How to Store
Store these candied jalapenos in the refrigerator in a glass jar. These will last in the refrigerator for a few months, but honestly good luck not eating them all within a few days!
If you have a bunch of jalapenos in the garden and don’t know what to do with them – make these! If you bought a bunch of jalapenos from the market and don’t know what to do – make this recipe.
What else can you do with candied jalapenos?
Besides eating them straight out of the jar, or putting them on cheese and crackers, they’re great to adding to recipes too!
I love chopping them up to add to ground beef to add to homemade cheeseburgers or sloppy joes. We also like to add them on top of tacos, taco casserole and nachos. Oh, and don’t forget to try them on a fried green tomato sandwich or pulled pork sandwich too – delicious!
Enjoy!
More Recipes You Might Like
Half Sour Pickles
Stewed Tomatoes
Cherry Tomato Sauce
How to Make Diced Green Chiles
How to Dry Basil in the Oven
Pin for later:
Sticky Sweet Candied Jalapenos
PrintIngredients
- 2 1/2 cups sliced fresh jalapenos
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup water
Instructions
- Slice jalapenos into rounds. Remove the seeds if you don’t want them extra spicy. If you want them extra spicy leave the seeds. I would suggest wearing gloves during this part.
- Place jalapenos in a small sauce pan.
- Add water and sugar.
- Cook over medium/high heat until boiling.
- Reduce temperature and simmer until the liquid has reduced and looks like syrup, stirring occasionally. This takes approximately 30 minutes to 1 hour.
- Let cool and place in jar.
- Store in refrigerator.
Jane says
This is a regular for me. My best use is on a charcuterie tray. So easy and so good. (Sad story, I just found a moldy jar in the back of the fridge. How they lasted long enough to mold I’ll never understand.) Making more now.
Alane Scott says
This recipe is great – nice and easy! But with that being said, I think I waiting too long for the juice to turn into syrup – after everything cooled and I went to try it – it’s very hard to get out of jar. How do I loosen it up? The taste is good – but it’s almost too hard.
Dean says
The kids vacuum sealed. Do they still have to go in the fridge?
Sara Du Bois says
THANK YOU! I had made these before and loved them, but every recipe I was finding this time was for “cowboy candy”, which is NOT the same! I love this stuff.
Susan Hazen says
Pamela, how many jalapeños by weight make 2 1/2 cups?
Pamela Reed says
My best guess is around 30-35! Next time I make them I will try to remember to count for you!
Susan Hazen says
I haven’t made this yet but I know I’m going to love it. I will chop some up in cornbread along with grated cheddar cheese. Yum!
Tracy W Gaddis says
I made these from this recipe and OH MY GOSH. These Candied Jalapeños Could make a puppy drag a freight train. So delicious!!
Pamela Reed says
Hahahaha, I’ve never heard that phrase before! 😂 😂 Thank you! 🙂
Judy says
This is so easy and so perfect for using up a plethora of jalapeños we have every year!! So glad I found this recipe.
Kathy says
Nothing but delish! Ritz crackers topped with cream cheese and candied jalapeños!
Carol M says
I made this with some seeds, but not all. First served it with baked Brie, strawberry preserves and the jalapeños. Everyone loved it! Then I chopped them up small and stirred them into a Brownie mix. I actually saw a woman running up to a group next to me with two brownies on a napkin say “oh my God, you need to try these!” Next time on a strawberry cheesecake. Thank You!
Gedzy says
Very nice! Used candy thermometer to watch temp. Syrup at 230 and pulled it off. Perfect. Took about 45 mins for 2 1/2 cups of jalapenos, 1 C sugar and 1/2 cup of water. Final yield, about 1/2 cup of finished product.
David Seymour says
This recipe was so easy and so delicious! Have been giving them to my friends
Pamela says
So happy to hear you liked these candied jalapenos! Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
Sheryl Neville says
I would love to try your recipe but I would like to can them. I was reading and saw that a few people said to add lemon juice – how much???
CHRISTINE says
Does this thicken up as to not be soupy sauce?
Pamela says
The liquid will turn into a syrup. Continue to simmer until it thickens.
Markeita says
This was delicious! Thanks for sharing!
Linda says
Candied Jalapeno recipe. This was absolutely amazing! After refrigerating them in a glass pickle jar, it was hard to stop eating them on pizza, crackers with cheese!
Pamela says
Right!? They’re so addictive (especially on cheese and crackers – my favorite!). Keep on enjoying! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Bob says
I Just made this using pickled jalapeno slices, and it turned out perfect. I plan on adding them as a topping on hamburgers for dinner tonight. Thank you very much for the simple and delicious recipe.
Lucy says
How much lemon juice does thus need for water bath canning
Mrs. Thomas says
This is so great! I had 3.5 pounds of jalapeños, took seeds out of most of them, left a few small jalapeños with seeds cut into the mix and it turned out the perfect sweet heat taste. Thank you for this simple recipe! I can’t wait to share my little jars with family and friends. Next time making them I will buy even more jalapeños. The 3.5 pounds made six 4oz jars.
JonnieTerrell says
This is fantastic! I had 10 cups of sliced jalapeños to use and these will make perfect gifts. I wore a mask and gloves and still was coughing and sneezing! Lol
Kelle Brisky says
Great Recipe! So easy. I used red jalapeños (perfect for Christmas) and left some seeds. Perfect! Do not cook more than 30 minutes.
Kim Lum says
I cannot believe how easy & DELICIOUS this recipe is. You are right, I cannot stop eating them.
Janina says
Do I make the recipe then do them in a hot water bath?? How long do they last on the shelves when canned??
Patti says
I love adding some of the candied jalapenos to watermelon salsa
Sherry says
What do I need to add to this recipe for canning purposes
Maggie says
Water bath. 10 minutes for half-pints, 15 for pints. 🙂
Make sure the jars are submerged and when you remove them, don’t tip the jars to remove the water on top. Let them cool naturally and they’ll be good for several years! But they won’t make it that long.
Frank says
Do you know how much lemon juice you would use when using hot water bath method of canning to make sure the acidity level is sufficient? Thank you.