Fermented jalapeño honey is a perfect way to spice up your life while boosting your immune system at the same time! Jalapeños and raw honey both have health and medicinal benefits and now is a great time to access them in this deliciously spicy natural ferment.
Fermenting Jalapeños in Honey
This is a fun new fermenting adventure! As you may know, I love simple raw honey ferments.
In my other fermented honey recipes, fermented honey garlic, fermented elderberry honey, and fermented honey cranberries, you’ll notice that the benefits of this type of ferment abound.
Making fermented jalapeño honey is no exception, with health benefits like boosting immunity, optimal gut health, and clearing out a stuffy nose.
In addition to the known benefits of raw honey, jalapeños are anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, immune boosting, and antibacterial.
The best part though? This health-beneficial and delicious recipe is incredibly simple to make, and only requires 2 ingredients!
As with all things, time is what makes this one shine with its absolute best qualities.
Related: Pickled Jalapeño Peppers, Fermented Jalapeño Hot Sauce
Fermented Jalapeño Honey Recipe
A recipe using 2 ingredients is definitely in the category of easy, and these two ingredients in particular have some lovely health benefits.
Raw honey is a good source of antioxidants, antibacterial and anti-fungal. It can also soothe a sore throat and is a phytonutrient powerhouse!
Jalapeños are also antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory, as well as rich in vitamins.
You could also easily switch up the flavor or heat of this recipe with another pepper variety, such as pepperoncini, hatch, or serrano depending on your preference.
Now for this super simple recipe!
Prepare the Jalapeño Peppers
Slice the jalapeños, removing some or all of the seeds and ribs if desired for less spice. I kept all of the seeds and ribs in mine, and boy does it have a kick to it!
Put the sliced jalapeños into a pint jar about 1/2 to 3/4 of the way full.
Add the Honey to the Jalapeños
Once you have the sliced jalapeños in the jar, pour over enough raw honey to cover them.
It is important to use raw honey for this recipe, as it will have all of the necessary bacteria and wild yeast in it for the fermentation process to happen.
The liquid from the jalapeños should be just enough combined with the honey to kick off the fermenting!
Cover and Flip the Jar
Screw the cap on the jar and flip to coat all of the jalapeños with honey.
Then loosen the lid to let the gasses escape, and place it in a dark place to ferment.
I recommend keeping the jar on a plate, as it may bubble up a bit and spill some honey out.
Turn the jar over daily to make sure that the jalapeños are always covered in honey.
Make sure to screw the lid on tightly before you turn the jar upside down, and re-loosen the lid when you return it to its upright position.
It will take a week or two to ferment.
Usually in ferments like this you will see bubbles, however I didn’t get many bubbles in this one so it’s not always the case. Once fermented, the honey will be very runny.
Using Fermented Jalapeño Honey
This ferment definitely turns out spicy! Keep your audience in mind when deciding on how much seeds and ribs to keep in your ferment.
If you like a lot of spice, by all means keep them in!
You can take this by the spoonful for its amazing health benefits, or even if you are just stuffed up and need to clear your sinuses.
Jalapeños have that magic and this honey is a perfect way to keep you breathing clear, as well as helping to fight off a seasonal cold or flu.
You could also use this fermented jalapeño honey in a spicy chicken wing recipe, drizzled on meat or roasted veggies, or in a recipe for dressings or dips.
This sweet and spicy queso dip would be a delicious choice!
It has a unique sweet and spicy taste that adds flavor and deliciousness to anything you choose to use it for!
Note on Botulism
You may be wondering about the risk of botulism, this is a question I get often with the honey ferment recipes.
Botulism really isn’t a concern in this fermented honey jalapeño recipe. To learn more about this in-depth, refer to my fermented honey garlic post.
Raw honey shouldn’t be given to babies under one year of age.
I hope you enjoy this sweet and spicy fermented treat!
More Delicious Spicy Recipes
- How to Make Fire Cider
- Fermented Jalapeño Hot Sauce
- Fermented Pepperoncini Hot Sauce
- How to Make Fermented Hot Sauce
- How to Make Kimchi: Simple Fermented Recipe
If you have more hot peppers to use, I recommend this smokey hot sauce recipe in which you can use a variety of peppers, and this fermented habanero hot sauce recipe!
Fermented Jalapeño Honey
Instructions
- Slice jalapeños, removing some or all of the seeds and ribs if desired.
- Place the sliced peppers into a wide mouth pint sized mason jar until it is 1/2-3/4 full.
- Add enough honey to completely cover the jalapeños. Make sure they are coated with honey.
- Screw the cap on tightly and flip to coat all of the jalapeños with the honey. Loosen the lid on the jar to let gasses escape, then tuck it into a dark place. Flip daily.
- The honey jalapeños will ferment for about a week or two. It may or may not bubble a little. You will know it's ready when it the honey has become much runnier.
Notes
- It’s important to use raw honey for this recipe, as it has all of the bacteria and wild yeast that is necessary for fermentation.
- The small amount of juice from the jalapeños will create just enough liquid for fermentation to happen.
- It’s a good idea to put a plate underneath the jar during fermentation, as it will likely bubble up and a little bit of honey could possibly drip out.
- Honey should not be given to babies under one year of age.
When it’s done, do I remove the jalapeños or leave as-is?
Hi Jess. I don’t, but you certainly can if you prefer.
Is alcohol produced and what is the content if it does?
No. There isn’t enough moisture in the jalapenos to ferment the honey into alcohol.
I can’t wait to try this!!
I am using in Mezcal Margaritas!!
It doesn’t call for spicy sweetener, but it was a happy discovery when I ran out of honey and found some jalabenero honey hiding in my fridge that I bought at a local foodie event.
I contacted the vendor to buy more honey, but to my dismay, he doesn’t make it anymore. Sadly he wasn’t willing to share the recipe with me, either.
Honey on its own can be stored basically indefinitely. Does fermenting the honey with peppers change this at all? Or once fermented with peppers you should use the honey within a specific time?
Hi Tommy. Fermenting the honey with peppers doesn’t change this, however, you’ll want to make sure the peppers are completely covered in honey and not floating above the surface, otherwise they may mold.
If I use a weight to hold the jalapenos under the honey, can I use a fermenting gizmo instead of a lid and forego the daily turn?
Yes, that should be fine.
Can you use honey that has already began to ferment? I have some raw honey that has began to ferment and I would really like to use it and not waste it. Thanks!
That should be alright.
How do you store it ? How long does it keep
Hi Amy. You can store right on your pantry shelf. It’s shelf stable and requires no refrigeration.
Hi there!
I’ve just “found” you and I can’t wait to try fermenting! My question isn’t specific to this recipe. In general after fermenting something, what are the rules/suggestions around refrigeration? Is it unneccessary like when canning?
Thank you ahead of time.
Honey is shelf-stable without refrigeration for years, even after fermentation.
I think I may have done something wrong… I’ve never fermented anything before.
I made this and put it in a closet several weeks ago. I burped the jar once a day (just cracking the lid) for a couple weeks but stopped after I quit hearing the “hiss” sound. I opened it today to put it in a decorative jar to give away as a gift and noticed it made just a little hiss sound when I opened it. I immediately went to smell it and it must have still been off-gassing because it chemically burnt my nose. I smelled it just a little while later and that didn’t happen again so that must have been the issue with that.
There is a little bit of bubbly (kind of fine white foam) on the top, not much but it’s definitely there. And, it kind of smells like beer.
Is that how it’s supposed to smell?
Did I let it ferment too long?
Or, perhaps it was too warm where I was letting it ferment?
I’d really appreciate any help as this is supposed to be given as a gift.
I also tried fermenting peppers for hot sauce and they ended up tasting and smelling much like pickles and didn’t taste like hot sauce at all…maybe I let them ferment too long too.?.?…
I am very discouraged to say the least.
It sounds to me like everything is going fine! Bubbles are normal, as is a slight alcoholic smell. Fermentation is not for everyone!
i made a small batch and it came out great. started using it within less than a week but i live in a tropical climate, it’s very hot, everything ferments quickly. now i have to try more of your fermented honey recipes! thanks!
Wonderful. So glad you liked this recipe!!
Thank you for this recipe! I do have a question though-last year, I tried this and took the jalapeños out. Not long after that I noticed the honey looked kinda cloudy on the bottom. Worried it had gone bad, I threw it out. Is this part of a normal process? I started another one today, determined to get this right.
Also, can I use a fermenting lid? And if I can, do I still flip the jar-would that stop up the lid?
Thank you for your help!
Hi Judy. Hmm, I’m not really sure about what was up with your honey as I haven’t encountered any cloudiness. Are you sure the honey wasn’t beginning to crystallize? Fermentation airlocks let built up gases out without letting air in, which isn’t recommended for this recipe because the natural acetic acid bacteria in the air is needed for microbes to thrive and ultimately, ferment your honey.
Thank you for your help! I’ve had my current jar going for about 3 weeks and it’s looking perfect so far, still bubbling when I turn it over. Can’t wait to try it soon!!
These are awesome! Thank you for sharing. I was afraid to ferment before I tried your cranberries fermented in honey. Now I love fermenting even with a few learning bumps I’ve had. But these, my husband uses on everything. Thank you so much!
You are so welcome, Cheri. I’m so glad you’re getting comfortable fermenting!
Thank you so much for the information! I just did a bunch of different peppers and am so excited! Like others my honey became runny within a couple of days. I just picked the peppers from the garden so based on your other answers that seems to normal. My question is that since the honey became runny quickly when is it safe to stop burping the jars and rotating them? There is still a hiss when I twist the top daily. Thanks again!
Hi Kim. I would wait until there isn’t any more activity in the jar, usually about a month, but could be sooner in your case.
Thanks for sharing! Can you use roasted jalapeños in this?
Definitely!
Can I use frozen jalapenos in this recipe? Thanks!
Hi Debbie. I haven’t ever tried it, but my first thought is that they wouldn’t ferment well, but you could try it.
Thank you for the recipe. My family and I absolutely love the honey fermented cranberries. This was our second year in a row making them. And it is my first year making the jalapeño honey. Have you ever reused the fermented liquid to ferment a new batch of cranberries after fermentation of the original batch is complete? And if so, would you know about how many batches we could get out of that liquid?
Hi Natalie, I wouldn’t reuse they honey liquid since you risk contamination. I always finish an entire batch before starting a new one.
I made this last night, by morning it was runny, but I kept rotating the jar and then just shaking because it was so runny. Is something wrong, will it continue to get more liquidy?
Hi Cindy. No, I don’t think anything is wrong with your fermented honey. It’s likely your jalapeno peppers were extra fresh and juicy, that’s all! Enjoy!
I substitute honey instead of sugar in my bread recipe, and also a lot of black pepper. I think this jalapeño honey will work well!
Thank you!
You’re welcome, Joel!
Hi and thank you for the recipe, I just put it together and now the waiting period, once all done will I store in the fridge or in the pantry? The lid of course would not be popped down . Let me know? Thank you.
Fady
Hi Fad. You can store your fermented jalapeno honey safely in the pantry once your jalapenos are strained from it.
Do you strain out the plant material or store it with the jalapenos in it? Also what is the shelf life?
Thank you
It’s up to you. You can either strain the jalapenos out of your honey or keep them in. I personally like keeping them in and using the jalapenos in my cooking. The fermented jalapeno honey can last a year or longer when stored in a cool dark pantry.
Can you use a 32 ounce mason jar and double the receipe?
Of course!
After fermenting, should the jalenpenos be strained out or do you leave them in the honey?
It’s up to you. I personally leave them in and use them in my cooking.