Lola Rugula

I can homemade salsa every fall with all of the tomatoes, peppers and cilantro from our garden. This year we had ghost chili peppers, so I thought “what the hell.”

I add a mix of jalapenos and ghost chili peppers, so you can adjust the heat however you like. If you want to try my Trinidad Scorpion Salsa Recipe, that one’s even hotter.

Ghost Chili Salsa Canning Recipe

• 10 cups peeled, seeded, cored, & chopped tomatoes (about 6 pounds)
• 5 cups seeded and chopped bell peppers
• 4 cups chopped onion
• 2 cups chopped jalapeno peppers
• 1 ghost chili pepper, finely chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 1/2 cups cilantro, chopped
• 3 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 1/4 cups cider vinegar

Combine all the ingredients in a large saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Ladle the hot salsa into sterilized pint jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace and wipe rims clean. Add sterilized lids and bands and process 15 minutes in a boiling-water canner, making sure the boiling water covers the jars by at least 1 inch.

Using a jar lifter, remove the jars and set them on your counter, leaving them undisturbed until completely cool.

Be sure to check that all of your jars sealed before storing.

This recipe makes about 6 pints – usually I have a little extra, which is a nice treat.

Do I really need to tell you? This salsa has some serious kick to it obviously, so of course, you can adjust it to your taste. If you don’t have ghost chili peppers or would rather skip the inferno-factor all together, feel free to leave them out.

Of course, if you’d like to substitute your favorite hot pepper for the ghost chili peppers, you can do that too.

Keep a glass of milk nearby to quench the fire and enjoy!