Better Homes And Gardens Chilli Jam

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Introduction

Although I call this chilli jam, I don't mean by this that it's the sort of thing you'd spread on your toast at breakfast (though smeared inside a bacon sandwich, it could be a real help one hungover morning) but rather a chilli jelly - chelly? - that glows a fiery, flecked red and is fabulous with cold meats or a cheese plate. And just a small pot of it makes a gorgeous present.

"Jam sugar" is a sugar that has pectin added to it and is very good for setting jams and jellies which are low in natural fruit pectin. It is easily bought in most UK supermarkets but sadly is difficult to find elsewhere. If you can't get jam sugar then you can use granulated sugar and add a 1.75 ounce box of regular powdered fruit pectin to the sugar and vinegar at the beginning of step 2 (or use the amount of powdered pectin recommended on the packaging). Powdered fruit pectin can be bought from canning suppliers.

For US cup measures, use the toggle at the top of the ingredients list.

As featured in

NIGELLA CHRISTMAS

2008

As featured in

NIGELLA CHRISTMAS

2008

Ingredients

Serves: approx. 1.5 litres / 1.5 quart

Metric Cups

150 grams long fresh red chilli peppers (deseeded and cut into 4 pieces)
150 grams red peppers (cored, deseeded and cut into rough chunks)
1 kilogram jam sugar
600 millilitres cider vinegar

5 ounces long fresh red chile peppers (deseeded and cut into 4 pieces)
5 ounces red bell peppers (cored, deseeded and cut into rough chunks)
5 cups jam sugar
2½ cups apple cider vinegar

Method

You will need 6 x 250ml / 1 cup sealable jars, with vinegar-proof lids, such as Kilner jars or re-usable pickle jars.

Sterilize your jars and leave to cool.
Put the cut-up chillies into a food processor and pulse until they are finely chopped. Add the chunks of red pepper and pulse again until you have a vibrantly red-flecked processor bowl.
Dissolve the sugar in the vinegar in a wide, medium-sized pan over a low heat without stirring.
Scrape the chilli-pepper mixture out of the bowl and add to the pan. Bring the pan to the boil, then leave it at a rollicking boil for 10 minutes.
Take the pan off the heat and allow it cool. The liquid will become more syrupy, then from syrup to viscous and from viscous to jelly-like as it cools.
After about 40 minutes, or once the red flecks are more or less evenly dispersed in the jelly (as the liquid firms up, the hints of chilli and pepper start being suspended in it rather than floating on it), ladle into your jars. If you want to stir gently at this stage, it will do no harm. Then seal tightly.

You will need 6 x 250ml / 1 cup sealable jars, with vinegar-proof lids, such as Kilner jars or re-usable pickle jars.

Sterilize your jars and leave to cool.
Put the cut-up chillies into a food processor and pulse until they are finely chopped. Add the chunks of red bell pepper and pulse again until you have a vibrantly red-flecked processor bowl.
Dissolve the sugar in the vinegar in a wide, medium-sized pan over a low heat without stirring.
Scrape the chilli-pepper mixture out of the bowl and add to the pan. Bring the pan to the boil, then leave it at a rollicking boil for 10 minutes.
Take the pan off the heat and allow it cool. The liquid will become more syrupy, then from syrup to viscous and from viscous to jelly-like as it cools.
After about 40 minutes, or once the red flecks are more or less evenly dispersed in the jelly (as the liquid firms up, the hints of chilli and pepper start being suspended in it rather than floating on it), ladle into your jars. If you want to stir gently at this stage, it will do no harm. Then seal tightly.

Additional Information

You could also use liquid pectin instead, but you need to follow the specific instructions on the packaging as differing brands vary.

MAKE AHEAD:
Make the jam up to 1 month before using or giving. Store in a cool, dark place for up to 1 year. Once opened, store in the fridge and use within 1 month.

You could also use liquid pectin instead, but you need to follow the specific instructions on the packaging as differing brands vary.

MAKE AHEAD:
Make the jam up to 1 month before using or giving. Store in a cool, dark place for up to 1 year. Once opened, store in the fridge and use within 1 month.

Try This Tip

Chillies and Contact Lenses

Asked and Answered

Make Ahead Chilli Jam

Tell us what you think

What 67 Others have said

Didn't have enough to do a full batch so halved it and used lemon juice instead of pectin sugar and it turned out fabulous

Posted by redbrit on 2nd November 2021
We make gallons of this stuff every year - we love it!! We make different varieties now. Chop up a big pile of mint and this is incredible with you Sunday roast lamb, or mix in a bunch of fresh corriander - this goes with everything! Especially grilled halloumi or an amazing grilled steak. We do a plain jar, a mint jar and a corriander jar each time we make a batch.

Posted by K8ibelle on 27th September 2021
This is absolutely delicious! I made a batch with some of the extra peppers from our garden, and am preparing to make a few more batches for holiday gifts! I used a combination of ripe Hungarian Hot Wax, red bell peppers, red, ripe Jalapeños and a few Thai chiles. It's the perfect combination of hot and sweet, and is lovely served at the center of a cheese and cracker plate. Thank you for the recipe. I water bath canned mine, processed for 10 minutes. I also used powdered pectin since here in the states jam sugar is almost impossible to find. One box of powdered pectin added to the sugar and vinegar before heading worked beautifully!!

Posted by my94fb on 10th September 2021
I love this recipe and now make a twist on it. I use a very cloudy organic cider vinegar (loads of natural pectin in it), the juice of a lime and I add about a cubic inch of fresh ginger chopped finely. It's sooo good. Thanks Nigella for the inspiration.

Posted by EagleLodge on 20th July 2019
I came across this recipe on the Xmas pud hunt and it sounded so yummy it gave me the inspiration to make it. It has such a lovely kick to it without being too hot, I used a mix pack of chillies which included a Scotch Bonnet, its my 1st attempt to make any type of Jam but so happy I did. I have made one pot for me and 2 more as pressies. I halved all the ingredients though because wasn't too sure how it would turn out. This recipe is definitely one for keeps.

Posted by teecey101 on 22nd December 2018
Last year, I made this with shop bought chillies and it was a hit! This year, I have made it with a mix of home grown chillies (including nagas, scotch bonnets and habaneros) and it is sensational: scorchingly hot, but so flavoursome! I make it exactly according to the recipe - the only change I make is that I pour the hot jam into warm jars, letting it cool and set in situ.

Posted by Jo_Nelder on 20th December 2018
This recipe is delicious, just as sweet and sharp as red pepper jelly but with the added kick of the chilis. It really makes it special, and is delicious paired with zingy goat's cheese. I made an extra spicy version with a scotch bonnet pepper, which was a huge hit with my coworkers. Thank you for this delightful recipe!!

Posted by LisaBeet on 20th December 2018
Absolutely delicious! Really easy recipe to follow. Used my own homegrown Apache and Thai Dragon chillies to make the jam which gave a fiery kick. Gifting these as presents over Christmas. What you waiting for - give this recipe a go, you won't regret it.

Posted by Bella69 on 13th December 2018
Posted by RobyH on 21st December 2017
I've just made this with half red bird eye chillis and half scotch bonnet!! It's rather warm but delicious

Posted by Archie29 on 12th October 2017
My Fiancé and I have just made 3 batches this evening, one batch of red and a half batch using Jalepenos with green pepper and another half batch using Scotch Bonnets and yellow pepper. We followed the recipe exactly and the results are amazing, not overly vinegary as we did boil the vinegar and sugar before adding the fruit. We have made 12 small jars in total but decided to layer some of each in a few of the jars so now we have some Hot Traffic Jam with a layer of Green, Yellow and Red in each which looks amazing. No issues with it not setting as we used a Jam thermometer. It is a fantastic recipe so many thanks Nigella and team for sharing.

Posted by Roy_and_Yen on 1st October 2017
I made this today and I'm over the moon with it! Read the comments about how it tasted too vinegary, so used 500ml instead of 600ml and the same amount of everything else. Mine didn't set after three hours and being completely cool so I boiled it again for another 10 minutes and hey presto! It's a gorgeous set jam! It's hotter than I expected, but just the right amount of hotness, I have chicken in the oven to try it with later tonight! Gifting the other two jars to family for Christmas :)

Posted by Anniew23 on 20th December 2016