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    Home » Recipes » Appetizers & Snacks » Cranberry Habanero Jelly

    Cranberry Habanero Jelly

    Published: Nov 16, 2015 · Last updated: Jan 7, 2018 by Marissa · As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    742 shares
    • 11
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    A closeup of cranberry jelly in a bowl.

    It's almost Thanksgiving! Cranberries are in season! And we're taking a tiny break from Greek cooking because I want to share cranberry habanero jelly with you. Hell yeah.

    For me, this jelly has nothing to do with the holiday really, but cranberries = fall and cranberries also = cranberry sauce as a Thanksgiving side, so this could be a fun alternate to the classic Thanksgiving side.

    The first time I had cranberry habanero jelly was back when I lived with a friend named Tom and he brought some home from his parents (hi Tom). His mom made it and I was in love. Whenever he visited home and came back with more jelly, it was a struggle for me to not eat it all! Seriously. The combination of spicy and sweet is ridiculously addictive. My favorite way to eat it is over crackers, especially Carr's whole wheat crackers. There's something about the light sweetness of those crackers that pair really well with this jelly.

    I'm hungry now. BRB - going to eat some crackers and jelly.

    A closeup of cranberries in a mesh strainer. Front view of cranberries in a mesh strainer. Cranberries in a saucepan topped with sugar and minced chile peppers.

    Tom hasn't been my roommate for a few years now, so I have to fend for myself when I want this tasty jelly, which I'm okay with now because it's easy to make! Before I started making this myself, I just dreamed about eating it for a while. Yes, I dream about food. Don't you?

    Last year for the holidays, I made a huge batch of this, canned it, and gifted it to friends. I will probably do the same this Christmas, but the recipe I'm sharing with you is a smaller batch, no canning necessary! It will keep up to a month in the fridge though. Whether or not it lasts that long outside of that is up to you. I won't judge you if you decide to sleeve some crackers with a bunch of jelly. Sounds like a rad Saturday night to me!

    Making jelly is as easy as throwing the ingredients into the pot over the stove and letting it cook while stirring every so often with occasional squishes using your spoon. You'll know it's done because there won't be any liquid left and the jelly will stick to the spoon. It will look like what's pictured below.

    Just be careful when working with habaneros. You should absolutely use food-safe gloves because no matter how much you wash your hands, the oils from those hot peppers can and will linger on your skin for a while. And you don't want to have hot pepper oil on your finger and touch your eye after that. I may have done that once or twice. I don't recommend it. 🙂

    A closeup of cranberry jelly in a saucepan.Cranberry jelly in a bowl.

    A closeup of cranberry jelly in a bowl.

    Cranberry Habanero Jelly

    4.50 from 6 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Snack
    Prep Time: 5 minutes
    Cook Time: 20 minutes
    Total Time: 25 minutes
    Servings: 2 cups
    Author: Marissa

    Ingredients

    • 16 ounces cranberries
    • 4 - 5 habaneros
    • 1 - 1 ½ cups sugar*
    • ¼ cup apple cider vinegar

    Instructions

    • Wearing food-safe gloves, slice the habaneros in half lengthwise and remove stem, seeds, and ribs. Mince and set aside.
    • In a medium sized pot, add all the ingredients and place on the stove over medium-high heat for 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. The berries will start to burst!
    • Reduce heat to medium and let cook another 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally and using the back end of the spoon to squish the berries (I use a slotted spoon).
    • The jelly is done when the mixture has thickened and there is no liquid that drips off the spoon.
    • Store in an airtight container in the fridge. It will keep up to one month.

    Notes

    You can use 1 or 1 ½ cups of sugar for this recipe depending on how sweet you want it. I sometimes go for 1 cup to keep the jelly slightly tart.
    Did you make this recipe?Mention @omgfoodblog and hashtag it #omgfoodblog!

    A close up of cranberry jelly in a bowl.

    Disclaimer: This post may contain Amazon affiliate links, which means I make a small commission if you make a purchase through them. By purchasing through these links, you are helping support this site! I only recommend items I personally own and love.

    Cranberry Habanero Jelly - A spicy jelly that could be used on crackers, toast, or as a tasty food topping. | omgfood.com

     

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Dorothy Dunton says

      November 18, 2015 at 8:34 pm

      Hi Marissa! I swear I left a comment about this and you replied, or maybe I'm more senile than I thought! Anyway, we love making jams, but I think I would start out with fewer peppers, just to get a feel for it! I honestly think that's what I said before. ??

      Reply
      • Marissa @ OMG FOOD says

        November 18, 2015 at 10:27 pm

        Hi Dorothy! I promise you're not going crazy. You did leave a comment and I replied! I ran into an issue with a plug-in today and had to restore a backup of my blog from yesterday because of it, which unfortunately deleted any comments that came in (that was out of my control). I'm glad you came by again though! I think starting out with fewer peppers is totally fine; I tend to like things with some heat at times, but getting your own feel for it sounds like a good plan.

        Reply
    2. Kristina says

      November 22, 2015 at 9:45 pm

      aaaaaah - the pepper hands in the eyes!! I know that horrific feeling all too well. habaneros in cranberry sauce? this sounds amazing!

      Reply
      • Marissa @ OMG FOOD says

        November 23, 2015 at 11:22 am

        I knowwwwww, it's the worst feeling! But the cranberry/habanero combo is worth it to me. 😀 Thanks, Kristina!

        Reply
    3. Lisa says

      November 23, 2015 at 10:10 am

      I'm not usually excited by cranberry sauce but you've got me with this one! I just might add it to my thanksgiving table this year! I'm smoking the turkey and I'm developing a cranberry BBQ sauce to accompany it but I think your Cranberry Habanero Jelly would also be delicious with smoked turkey, don't you think? Thanks for the great recipe!

      Reply
      • Marissa @ OMG FOOD says

        November 23, 2015 at 11:24 am

        Whaaaaat, that all sounds delicious! Mind if I come crash your party? I looooove smoked meats. Let me know how the recipe comes out if you make it. <3 Thanks, Lisa!

        Reply
    4. Jenn says

      November 23, 2015 at 12:06 pm

      I love this! I definitely enjoy savory applications with cranberries!

      Reply
      • Marissa @ OMG FOOD says

        November 23, 2015 at 3:28 pm

        Thanks, Jenn!

        Reply
    5. Kathy Hester says

      November 23, 2015 at 3:31 pm

      I love the idea of a spicy cranberry relish. It will go great with my tday meal!

      Reply
      • Marissa @ OMG FOOD says

        November 23, 2015 at 5:16 pm

        Thanks, Kathy! Let me know how you like it if you make it. <3

        Reply
    6. Sam says

      December 23, 2015 at 12:49 pm

      Made this for thanksgiving and it was delish! Thanks for the recipie! Think I'll be okay to triple it?

      Reply
      • Marissa @ OMG FOOD says

        December 23, 2015 at 3:43 pm

        Awesome! So glad you liked it. I think tripling it should be fine. I made a huge batch last year to gift to friends and basically did just that. Let me know how it goes if you do it!

        Reply
    7. Joe B says

      March 04, 2018 at 6:33 pm

      Hello there
      Can I can this recipe in a water bath method ?

      Reply
      • Marissa @ OMGfood says

        April 04, 2018 at 8:42 pm

        Hi Joe! I've never tried it in a water bath myself, but I did a quick google search and found a couple of recipes both on Anova and ChefSteps' sites, so I imagine it's possible! Here's one example from Anova: https://recipes.anovaculinary.com/recipe/sous-vide-strawberry-rhubarb-jam

        I hope that helps!

        Reply
    8. Monika says

      October 10, 2019 at 9:38 pm

      5 stars
      I’ve made this three times in the last year and it’s easy and tasty. Problem is we have to wait for September to roll around and get our hands on fresh habanero chillies... such a long wait between batches

      Reply
    9. Dave says

      May 13, 2020 at 6:01 pm

      What is the minced green ingredient shown in the photo (mint)?

      Reply
      • Marissa @ OMGfood says

        December 13, 2020 at 3:29 pm

        Hi Dave! I just noticed I never answered your question - apologies for the delay! The green shown was actually habaneros from my container garden. Some of them never fully ripened by the time fall came, but they still held a decent amount of heat.

        Reply
    10. Demonica says

      October 22, 2020 at 9:01 pm

      5 stars
      Made it 3x already! There’s just never enough of it. Wish habaneros were in season longer

      Reply
      • Marissa @ OMGfood says

        October 25, 2020 at 7:30 pm

        So glad you enjoy the recipe! I also wish habaneros were in season longer - they're so, so good!

        Reply
    11. Yvonne says

      November 21, 2021 at 11:03 am

      Is it possible to can these for future use?

      Reply
      • Marissa @ OMGfood says

        January 04, 2022 at 10:01 am

        Hi Yvonne! Apologies for the late reply; I'm on maternity leave and a bit slow to respond! Canning is absolutely possible. I used to link to another site with proper canning instructions but it's no longer available it seems. Sadly, I don't have my own source to link to. If you know safe and proper methods for canning, please feel free to do so! I've done this many times in the past to gift to friends and it worked out great.

        Reply

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