Pickled Jalapeños

A bumper crop of jalapeños sparked the need for a recipe. I found one in my Ball Blue Book of Canning for mixed Pickled Hot Peppers, I figured it could easily be adapted for just one type of hot pepper. 

Now if you've never made pickled hot peppers before, take note that you will need rubber gloves for this. If you don't use them, don't say I didn't warn you. Last time I cut dozens of hot peppers, my hands burned for days. Seriously, days. So rubber gloves always now, it's worth it.

You will need:
Rubber gloves
Pickling jars w/ lids, sterilized

2 1/2 - 2 3/4 6 cups white vinegar
2 cups water
3 cloves of garlic, crushed

First you'll need to sterilize your jars. You can do so by running them through the dishwasher, boiling them in water for 10 minutes, or by putting the jars on a cookie sheet and placing in the preheated oven on 250 for 10 minutes.

Once your jars are sterile and set aside, you'll need to make the brine. Put the 6 cups of white vinegar and 2 cups of water in a saucepan with 3 cloves of crushed garlic. Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes.

While brine is simmering, wash and dry the peppers, then cut off the stems. Next, slice them into 1/2" slices and rinse them in a colander for a couple minutes to remove some of the seeds. If you really like heat, you can skip this step. Place in sterilized jars, leaving 1/2" of head space.

Fill jars with hot brine, leaving 1/2" of headspace. Remove any air bubbles and put lids on. Lids should only be finger-tight. Process for 10 minutes in a boiling-water canner. Remove bands for storage once cooled.