Canned Sweet Red Pepper Jelly

Sweet red pepper jelly is a Southern staple I personally can’t live without. Made with fresh red bell peppers, apple cider vinegar, sugar, spices, and Sure-Jell pectin - it’s cooked on the stove until thick, sticky, and perfectly sweet. While it’s still hot, it’s ladled into mason jars, left to cool overnight on the kitchen counter creating a natural sealing process to can. Serve it the classic way—poured over a block of cream cheese with crackers—for a crowd-favorite appetizer that never goes out of style.

Dips are my love language.

I don't even know how many dip recipes are on FSS at this point....but there is a lot... and for good reason!

Everyone loves a little something to nibble on before a meal. Easy cream cheese and pepper jelly dip is my personal go-to for when I make an appetizer for us, family, and friends. It is one of my most made recipes in my everyday "normal not food blogging" life 😉 We always have the ingredients on hand and it comes together in 60 seconds.

As a Southern cook, my mom taught me all of what I know when it comes to cooking and entertaining. This includes my canning recipe collection - which I know can be intimidating but recipes like canned diced green chiles and canning tomatoes without a pressure cooker make it less scary!

While you could buy sweet pepper jam from the store, like everything else, it takes so much better homemade! Let me show you how to make a homemade version of red pepper jelly, step by step, so you can always have it on stock for an easy app!

Equipment Needed

As I have made this pepper jelly canning recipe in my own home and helped my mom make this growing up many times, I have found a couple of pieces of kitchen equipment you will need to make everything just a bit easier for you.

1. Large Pot - this will be used to sanitize the mason jars before the recipe.
2. Canning Funnel - this will be wildly helpful in spooning the jelly into the jars after cooking. You want to ensure not to get anything on the rims of the clean jars otherwise they will not seal properly. Using a funnel will help this not happen.
3. Tongs - you will need these to raise the hot jars out of the boiling water after sanitizing. You can use regular kitchen tongs or canning ones.
4. Half Pint Wide Mouth Mason Jars - this recipe makes 4 half pints full of pepper jelly - you can also use 8-ounce wide mason jars or even 4 ounces jars - both of these smaller sizes would make great gift-giving sizes (and what I prefer to store them in personally).
5. New Seals and Lids - if you have Mason jars already grab some new lids and seals. Do not use old, dirty, or rusted seals and lids as the jelly will not seal properly causing it to spoil.
6. Blender - needed to blend up the peppers and vinegar into a liquid form.

This sweet pepper jelly fills 4 half-pint jars, but I prefer storing it in 8-ounce or even small 4-ounce jars. These smaller sizes are the perfect amount for 1 serving of pepper jelly dip with cream cheese but also make great little gifts. This recipe makes quite a bit, so it is perfect to share with loved ones!

For simplicity - this canning set on Amazon has many of the items listed above in one package for a great price (and less than you would pay for each one individually).

*All links above are Amazon affiliate links*

PRO TIP - if you have an abundance of red bell peppers at the end of the summer from your garden that need to be used up - this is a great recipe for that!

Let these jars cool completely on the counter. You will know they are properly sealed and canned by touching the top of the sealed jar. If you cannot press down on them with any give, then they are good to go for storage. If you can press down on the top and it gives and "pops", then the seal has been compromised and it needs to be consumed quickly - within the week. Store these in a cool dark place for up to 7 years (not that it will take you like long to consume - but they will last that long). Check about once a month to make sure they are still sealed correctly. Once opened, then store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

This is best served cold as a 2 minute cream cheese and pepper jelly appetizer. This also makes a great addition to a charcuterie board or gifts to friends and family around the holidays.

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