This pepper sauce recipe is a Southern family favorite. Perfect to serve with cornbread, greens or black eyed peas, this pepper sauce recipe is one you’ll turn to again and again.
Good ole Southern Pepper Sauce is a favorite condiment to serve with any number of dishes in the South – from black eyed peas to pinto beans, collard or turnip greens and some even like a little bit of it with their BBQ. A jar of this spicy sauce could just about always be found on the supper table, making it a staple item to make each year.
Actually, at the end of each summer, Daddy would gather a bunch of peppers from his garden to make a good number of jars to use, keep in the pantry and to share with friends.
Here’s how he made his pepper sauce. This recipe is for one pint jar.
Southern Pepper Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup distilled white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, or pickling salt
- 1 teaspoon olive oil, optional for extra hot pepper sauce
- about 30 small peppers
Instructions
- Clean jar, lid, and band and rinse well. Keep warm.
- Mix together sugar, salt, vinegar, and optional olive oil in a stainless steel saucepan.
- Cook over medium heat until it begins to boil.
- Fill jar with peppers and pour hot vinegar mixture over the peppers. Leave about 1 inch of headspace from the top of the jar
- Remove air bubbles in the jar by tilting jar slightly to allow bubbles to escape as press peppers against opposite side of the jar.
- Wipe jar rim to clean. Place lid on top of jar and tighten ring.
- Allow jars to seal by setting on countertop to cool with about 1 inch in between each.
- Test seal after about 12 hours by pressing finger to the center of the lid. If sealed, it will not pop back. If not sealed, refrigerate and use.
- Store in dark, cool cabinet or pantry for up to a year.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
Second question – what’s the purpose of the sugar? Does it act as a preservative, or is it there for flavor or some other reason? Specifically, could I either leave out the sugar, or replace it with stevia powder?
I’ve not used stevia in this recipe and am not able to answer from personal experience how it works.
Well, the question was why do you use the sugar in the first place? Do you use it to add sweetness, or as a preservative, or what?
Hi Jan,
Happy Thanksgiving! We use the sugar in the pepper sauce as a preservative. I hope you enjoy it.
I’ve read that after you bottle the pepper sauce, you should chill it for three weeks to let the heat intensify, whicH I assume means setting it in the freezer. Have you done this? Do you recommend it?
It does make sense that the longer the pepper sauce rests the more the liquid with have the pepper flavor. I’ve not heard of chilling it like that, however.
u can use it within 24 hours of making it the longer it sits the hotter it will get. but why would u want to freeze it? that makes no sense at all lol u can always refrigerate it. but if u freeze it then it will not be able to get infused with flavors until u thaw it out
How long do I have to wait after canning to use the sauce?
You can use the sauce immediately.
How many jars will this recipe make approximately, using jalapeños?
Hi Robyn, I just made these and can’t wait to e
Eat them. I use to make pepper sauce in ornamental jars that don’t need to seal and we would add vinegar to it when it would run low. Since this is sealed does it have to be refrigerated after it is opened? Thank you!
Hi Kay,
I can’t wait to hear how you like it! It’s a favorite in my family.
Enjoy! Thanks!
I’m planning to make your pepper sauce and the answer maybe listed in your older comments but what does the teaspoon of olive oil do that makes it hotter?
Hi Michael,
It definitely does make it hotter – I was always told that – so I’ve passed it along. 😉
I’m not sure if it is because it changes the makeup of the liquid and makes the peppers release more of their heat…or what happens…I am not positive of the exact reason it does it.
Sorry I can’t give you the technical answer, but from experience I know it sure does!
Thanks so much!
Capsaicin molecules, the ‘heat’ in the peppers, are hydrophobic, meaning they will not bond with the water molecules in your mixture (like oil and water). Adding the olive oil, I’m guessing, allows the added oil to bind, and ‘extract’ more of the capsaicin from the peppers.
Thank you so much, Scott! This is great information!
I am 70 years old and have always made pepper sauce like this. The only thing olive oil does is keep the vinegar from rusting your lid. Remember jar lids are tin
One thing I’ve always wondered, can you use apple cider vinegar, or red wine vinegar in this recipe? I’m actually in the grocery store parking lot, because I’m out of white vinegar, getting ready to go in and buy some… Seriously.
I’ve always used distilled white vinegar, Joe. I’ve not tried the other vinegars, so I’m not sure how they taste.
Thanks so much!
I use white wine vinegar…its super! The color changes the product..but if you find the vinBegar tasty I think you will enjoy the pepper sauce as well. Try a small jar first as a tester!
Someone gave my husband a jar of pepper sauce which also had chunks of green tomatoes in it. I’m wondering do I have to can that differently?
I’m not sure about that one, Candy. I’ve never added tomatoes to my pepper sauce.
I’ve used this recipe for years, and it is undoubtedly the best I’ve had, including ANY store bought. Very simple.
Thanks.
Thanks so much, Joe! I’m happy you like it!
I can attest that this is what I was looking for. I made a quart with Serrano peppers and this is literally the hottest thing I have ever tasted or close to it. I added the olive oil. A teaspoon will make a bowl of soup spicy. I made the mistake and put a tablespoon in some the first time and was unbearable. I have had pepper sauces before and at relatives and have made it with cold vinegar, but none of those compared to this.
Hi Sam!
I’m glad to hear this is what you were looking for in a pepper sauce recipe! I’m sure it is quite spicy with the Serrano peppers…but I bet it tastes good when you use a little at a time. Try it with different kinds of hot peppers – that’s what we like to do each year with our peppers from our garden. Oh so good over freshly cooked peas and so much more!
I hope you continue to enjoy the recipe! Thanks so much!
What type o peppers do you use?