Do you like jelly? Have you ever tried blackberry pepper jelly? Blackberry pepper jelly provides the perfect combination of sweet, spice, and tart flavors that can increase the taste of other dishes like bread, cheese, chips, crackers, etc.
The fruity flavor of blackberry and spice kick of pepper can give warmth to the jelly which can be a favorite of anyone. So? Are you slaving imaging the taste?
Don’t worry. We are here to help you by providing a blackberry pepper jelly recipe with useful tips and tricks. Additionally, we will provide you with tips on adjusting the heat level in the blackberry jelly recipe. Be with us and read till the end to get all the tips.
Ingredients Needed for Blackberry Pepper Jelly
- Blackberries – 4 cups fresh or frozen
- Sugar – 5 cups
- Apple Cider vinegar – ¼ cup
- Fresh Lemon Juice – tablespoon
- Finely Diced Red Bell Pepper – 1 large
- Finely Diced Jalapeño Pepper – 1 medium-sized (optional for extra heat)
- Pectin – 1 packet of liquid pectin (or 1.75 oz.)
- Ground Black Pepper – ¼ teaspoon (optional, for extra spice)
Essential Kitchen Tools
- Saucepan: Saucepan is to prepare the jelly.
- Potato Masher: Potato masher is for mashing the blackberry to release the juice.
- Spatula: Spatula is to stir approximately without any hardship.
- Jars or Cans: Jars and cans to store the jelly.
- Induction: Induction is to provide heat.
Step-by-Step Guide to Making Blackberry Pepper Jelly: Simple 7 Steps
We are here with a homemade blackberry pepper jelly recipe with proper guidelines. We have divided the whole preparation process into simple 6 steps. Let us explain each step with the required tips and tricks.
Step 1: Prepare the Blackberry & Peppers
The jelly preparation process starts with preparing the blackberry and peppers.
- First, rinse the blackberry nicely if you are using fresh blackberry. You don’t need to rinse frozen blackberry but let the frozen blackberry thaw first at room temperature.
- Take a large saucepan and crush the blackberries into the saucepan using a potato masher to release the juice of the blackberry.
- Now, you have to add the diced red bell pepper. If you want add some diced jalapeno pepper for extra heat.
- Add some black pepper to intensify the spice. Experts suggest using black pepper according to your heat preferences. We will discuss controlling spice levels in another section.
- The berry-pepper mixture is ready.
Pro Tip 1: If you don’t have a potato masher, it is not a matter of worry. You can use a spoon to mash the blackberry instead of a potato masher.
Step 2: Cook the Mixture of Berry-Pepper
Now, you need to cook this mixture of berry-pepper.
- Take a medium saucepan and pour the berry-pepper mixture into the saucepan.
- Heat the mixture over medium temperature.
- Stir the mixture continuously while adding sugar, apple cider vinegar, and lemon juice.
- Apple cider vinegar and lemon juice provide a tangy flavor and also assist in preserving the blackberry jalapeno jelly for a long time.
- Don’t forget to stir frequently to ensure the complete dissolve of sugar and prevent burning.
- Bring a boil of this mixture first, then cook for 10 – 15 minutes over low heat and continue stirring occasionally.
Pro Tip 2: Do you face problems stirring frequently? We have a suggestion for you. You can use a long-tail spatula to stir the jelly with low effort.
Step 3: Addition of Pectin
After heating the blackberry-pepper mixture for 15 – 20 minutes, you need to add pectin in this stage.
- Add the pectin into the mixture and give a full rolling boil.
- Continue boiling for 1 – 2 minutes to prepare the sweet and spicy blackberry jelly.
Step 4: Identify the End Point
We have come close to the end of the sweet and tangy blackberry recipe.
- Take a spoonful of jelly.
- Let it be cool for a few seconds.
- Then, run your index finger through the blackberry and chili jelly.
- If the consistency doesn’t runny and wrinkles nicely, the endpoint has come off the pepper blackberry spread.
- Now, stop heating the fruit and peppery jelly.
Step 5: Fill the Jars
The sweet and spicy spread is ready. Now you have to fill jars with the jelly to store it.
- Blackberry pepper jelly for canning requires glass jars.
- Sterilize the jars by boiling in hot water for 10 minutes.
- Then, dry the jar properly.
- Now, pour the jelly into the jars.
- Keep ¼ inch of the headspace of the jars.
- Don’t forget to wipe the rims of the jars.
- You can use a clean paper towel to clean the rim.
Pro Tip 3: Filling hot jelly into the jar is quite risky. So, experts suggest using a funnel. It will help you to fill the jars easily.
Step 6: Seal & Process
After filling the jars of jelly, you have to seal the jars.
- Put the lids on the jars and tighten the jar lid strongly.
- If the jar is not sealed properly, the jelly may gain moisture and oxygen that will cause deterioration of the jelly.
- Again, boil the jar in hot water for 10 minutes to ensure fingertip-tight sealing. This boiling also helps to kill microorganisms and increase the shelf life of the jelly.
Step 7: Cool & Store
The jars of jelly are sealed properly. Now it’s time to cool the jars.
- After 10 minutes, remove from the water and allow it to be cooled at room temperature.
- Once the jelly becomes cool, check the sealing by pressing on the center of the lid. If you observe no popping sound, the jar is sealed properly.
- If it pop-back, you need to do the sealing process again properly.
- The jar of jelly is ready.
- Store the jars in a dark, dry, and cool place.
- Keep the jar from direct exposure to the sun to store the jelly for up to a year.
- After opening the jar, you should refrigerate the jar, then you can use the jelly for up to 3 months.
How to Adjust the Spice Level in Blackberry Pepper Jelly?
How to balance heat and sweetness in jelly is a common and important question. Therefore, we have come with 3 useful tips to adjust the spice level in Blackberry pepper jelly.
- Using Extra Minced Jalapeno
Blackberry pepper jelly is normally spicy. If you want more spice, you can add some extra minced Jalapeno. Jalapeno adds spice aroma and flavor that will be perfect for spice loPepper
- Using Extra Pepper
To increase spice level, adding extra pepper is a great way. Pepper helps to intensify and enhance the spice flavor and increase spice level. Therefore, if you want extra spicy blackberry pepper jelly, you can add some extra ground black pepper.
- Using Extra Sugar
Till now, we have mentioned how to increase spice level. Now, we will tell you how to reduce the spice level for sweet lovers. You can add extra sugar, or sugar syrup, or corn syrup to decrease the spice level.
Blackberry Pepper Jelly Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 Cups Blackberries Fresh or Frozen
- 5 Cups Sugar
- ¼ Cup Apple Cider vinegar
- Tablespoon Fresh Lemon Juice
- 1 Finely Diced Red Bell Pepper Large
- 1 Finely Diced Jalapeño Pepper Medium-sized
- 1 Packet Pectin
- ¼ Teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
Instructions
- First, prepare the blackberry, then mash them in a saucepan to release the juice
- Add the bell pepper, jalapeno, black pepper into the mashed blackberry
- Then pour the mixture into a medium saucepan and add sugar, apple cider vinegar, and lemon juice
- Bring a boil and cook for 10 – 15 minutes
- Add pectin to get the desired consistency
- Stir continuously throughout the process
- Now, identify end point doing finger test
- Then, fill the jar with jelly and seal the lid of the jar
- Apply sterilization process
- Then, cool the jar and store at cool, dry, dark place
Nutrition
Conclusion
This article is all about how to prepare blackberry pepper jelly at home easily and quickly. We have mentioned all necessary tips to make this recipe easy and effortless.
You can surely follow our steps to prepare the recipe like a pro. You can use our exoert’s tips and suggestions to avoid any problem during preparing and storing the jelly.
So! Try to make the jelly in your kitchen. You can experiment with our recipe to make your customized version. Keep following us to get more such useful recipes.
FAQS
What Are the Best Uses for Blackberry Pepper Jelly?
We can pair the blackberry pepper jelly with various dishes. Here, we are giving you 3 most important uses of blackberry pepper jelly.
- With Biscuits or Crackers
- Spread of Sandwich
- Salad Dressing
How to Store and Preserve Blackberry Pepper Jelly?
The intact Blackberry pepper jelly can be stored for up to 1 year in the refrigerator. Once you open the lid, you need to maintain the proper storage process to store the jelly. There are generally 2 preservation methods. They are;
- Refrigeration
Keep the jelly jar in the refrigerator to preserve them for upto 3 months.
- Freezing
Freezing will help to long term preservation. You can freeze the jelly and preserve the jelly for upto 1 year.
How Long is Blackberry Pepper Jelly Good Tools
Sealed blackberry pepper jelly will be good for up to a year. But opened jelly can deteriorate easily. If we refrigerate the jelly we can use the jelly for up to 3 months. However, without refrigeration, opened jelly can be good for up to a month maximum.
