Use this sweet and spicy peach and pepper jam on cheese and crackers or try it as a glaze for chicken or shrimp.
I am seriously addicted to the flavours of this peach and pepper jam. Sweet peaches pair with red and jalapeno peppers, to make a jam that is both sweet and spicy, delicious and versatile.
There is possibly nothing finer than this jam on top of a round of melted brie. I’ve also enjoyed it with crackers and cream cheese. Or aged cheddar. If you’re adventurous, enjoy it on toast or a scone. And that’s not all! It makes a great and flavourful glaze for chicken or shrimp. Or serve it on the side as a sweet and spicy condiment.
This jam makes great hostess or Christmas gifts. If you decide to make lots, make some small jars and have them ready for gifts any time.
Cook’s Notes
Unless you properly preserve this jam (sterilized jars and lids and hot water bath), you will need o refrigerate this jam after making, for shorter term use.
While I always aim to be as helpful as I can, I am not a Master Food Preserver and as such, I am not qualified to instruct on the procedure for preserving this jam for longer term, room temperature storage. (It’s a liability thing). I recommend you seek out a reputable safe-canning resource or a Master of Food Preserving for guidance.
You can make a half-batch if you don’t think you can use it all in the short term, or just hand out out to friends and family to enjoy, as they’ll surely appreciate it, too :)
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Ingredients
- 4 cups peaches, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 medium red bell pepper, seeded and finely chopped
- 3 medium jalapenos, seeded and finely chopped
- 1/2 tsp. grated lemon rind
- 2 Tbsp. cider vinegar
- 2 oz box pectin powder, 57g *see Note 1
- 5 cups white sugar
Instructions
- Place peaches in a large, non-reactive pan. Combine peppers, lemon rind, cider vinegar and pectin powder with fruit in pan. Stir well to combine. Place on the stove-top over high heat and stir until the mixture comes to a full boil. Stir in sugar and bring to a full rolling boil. Boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim off foam with a spoon and discard. Pour into clean warm, sterilized jars, filling to within 1/4-inch of rim.
- Refrigerate in jars for short-term use.
Notes
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Hi! I’m Jennifer, a home cook schooled by trial and error and almost 40 years of getting dinner on the table! I love to share my favourite recipes, both old and new, together with lots of tips and tricks to hopefully help make your home cooking enjoyable, stress free, rewarding and of course, delicious!
Hello, I made this today, it’s wonderful but a bit sweet. Is it possible to substitute lemon juice for the grated lemon?
Hi Jackie, adding liquid lemon juice may upset the balance and affect the set. I’d be more inclined to increasing the grated lemon first and see how that works.
Hi Jennifer. I like using the liquid Certo. Can I use 1 pkg. 85 ml. Instead of the powder Certo?
Hi Diann, I have’t tested this with liquid Certo. You might want to search out substituting one for the other and see if there are any other considerations or adaptations.
New to this sort of thing and have a couple questions as I am extremely worried about bacteria.  Can you define ‘short term use,’ regarding perserving? Would like to use for Christmas gifts but do not want to make anyone sick. Could freezing fresh peaches and then making be better closer to Christmas than making now and hoping it holds for 4-6 months?
Hi Teresa and yes, 4-6 months in the fridge is probably optimistic, so I would definitely go with freezing peaches and making it closer to Christmas. Refrigerated jams like this are best used within about 3 months.
Hi, Can you freeze this ?
Hi Ronda and I’m not certain how it holds up to freezing, as I haven’t tried it. I have had success freezing jam though, so my guess would be that you could.
Made this today. I added a small amount of red pepper flakes for an added kick. Used sure gell. Great recipe, thanks for sharing.
So glad you enjoyed it, Beckie! Thanks :)
followed the instructions, used US packet of Sure-Gel, the jam has already set up. It has a wonderful color, great aroma and a smooth taste! thanks for the recipe
So glad to hear, Will! Thanks so much :)
Delish! Just made it since the neighbors peach tree limbs have bowed down into my yard. I helped myself and havent even made a dent in the peaches. I may have to make it again and again. I only had 8 oz canning jars and it made 3 1/2 8 oz jars. I doubt they last 3 weeks so I will just put them in my fridge but I think I am going to can these for gifts. Its a subtle hint of hotness. I added hot peppers as someone else suggested. Next batch for us will need a lot more peppers but this is perfect for gifts. First time making jam and excited.
So glad you enjoyed it, Tonya :) Thanks!
If it only makes 3 1/2 jars can you double the recipe?
Hi Sarah and yes, you can double the recipe.
First, the one and only negative is the time. Way longer than 45 minutes. Peeling peaches, chopping of everything is almost 45 minutes by itself. This is more in the area of 2 hours and I do a lot of canning.
That being said, this is an excellent recipe. Stonewall Kitchen makes something similar and this is way better than what they sell. I did add about 1/4-1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes for a little more spicy taste. Personal preference. The amount of pectin is spot on at 59 grams. Wound up with 9 8oz jars. Did hot water canning for sealing, which yes did add that amount of extra time.
Many thanks for this great share!
Luther, did you water bath yours? How long did you boil them and did you use pints or half pints please?
Hi Phil! I’m making mine right now. Got 6 1/2 pint jars and am processing now…10 minutes but an extra 5 because of my elevation. Hope that helps
I’ve made this recipe four times with fresh peaches and have had great success. The fifth time I tried canned peaches (the kind in syrup). The jam did not set up well and is runny. I’m assuming that I should rinse the peaches and pat dry perhaps to have better success. It taste great and will go well as a baste for my chicken just not so well on crackers. I just love the flavor obviously as I’ve made 5 batches. I’ve had to share pints with friends after they’ve tried it!
So glad you are enjoying it and for letting us know that it doesn’t work that well with canned peaches. I wonder if frozen peaches might perform better? I haven’t tried anything other than fresh peaches myself (even out of season ones seem to work quite well). I love the flavour, too :) Thanks so much!
Hi Jennifer, Do you think the recipe will work using frozen or canned peaches?
Thanks,
I haven’t tried it Elizabeth, but I suspect it would. The texture might be a touch different, but other than that, should work.
Love the jam and it’s flavor. We put through hot water bath to keep it preserved and can use throughout the year. When it cooled (all jars sealed 😊) the chopped peppers weren’t suspended in the solid but layered at the top of the jam. What did I do wrong?
Hi Shannon, it sounds like the jam was thinned from the hot water bath and the solids floated to the top. I suspect you could fix next time by inverting the jars several times while it is cooling, to re-distribute the solids.
I couldn’t be more pleased with the results of this recipe. It is so pretty and the consistency is perfect. I am a novice canner and this was out of my wheelhouse. Thank you for this recipe that even I could make like a professional.
I do have a question, could I substitute pineapple for the peaches?
So happy to hear, Vicki! And yes, although I haven’t tried it, I suspect pineapple would work similarly in this recipe. If you try it, let me know how it works out :)
Very delicious! This was my first time making a jam and it turned out well. Followed the recipe but my only change was using the small snacking peppers in red, orange, and yellow. I just purchased pectin (Ball) that was in a larger size and weighed out 57g. Canned in half pint jars and processed in a water bath for 10 minutes.
So glad to hear, Leslie :) Thanks so much!
I tried the recipe for the first time and I absolutely love it!
I am making it again for Christmas gifts. Thank you!
So glad to hear, Karen :) Thanks so much!
Can you use less sugar . Would that mess with the set?
Hi Crystal, I don’t recommend reducing the sugar as it will affect both the set and the shelf life of the jam. Jams have a lot of sugar, but it is necessary. Just remember it’s a condiment, so you are only using a small amount at a time :)