CANNING: Spicy Habanero Carrot Butter
- Pairing & Serving Ideas
- Habanero Carrot Butter Ingredients
- Kitchen Equipment Needed
- How to Make Spicy Habanero Carrot Butter
- Pantry & Storage Tips
- Spicy Habanero-Carrot Butter
This habanero carrot butter is a very spicy spread, with the flavor of a Caribbean-style hot sauce. It’s basically a very thick, spreadable hot sauce concentrate, and a little bit goes a long way!
It’s an unusual canning recipe, as vegetable purees are usually a no-go for home processing, especially in a water-bath. However, this is a high-acid pickled recipe, and comes from a tested and reputable source (The All New Ball Book of Canning and Preserving, 2016).
This is a “butter” in the same way that apple butter is, and does not contain dairy. It’s vegan, and safe to can at home! The fruity intense heat of habanero peppers accents the sweetness of the carrots and vinegar-lime tang of the pickling brine to make a sauce that is a flavor bomb in a jar!
Pairing & Serving Ideas
This habanero carrot butter is a potent flavor booster that you can use to season jerked roasted meats, fish, or seafood. Spice up a taco bar, add to mayo or sour cream for a milder dip or sandwich spread, or add to queso for a bright color and bold flavor boost!
Serve this fiery hot sauce spread on homemade tortillas (or good-quality store-bought ones) to make memorable fish or seafood tacos, spicy steak or chicken fajitas, or hot quesadillas.
Add it to bitter orange or fresh lime juice to season homemade fish or shrimp ceviche, or thin with lime or vinegar and use it anywhere else you’d use a Caribbean-style hot sauce.
Or, make a habanero-carrot seasoned *actual* butter, mixing a small spoonful of this with melted or softened whipped salted butter, and use this spicy spread on grilled corn, baked potatoes, or to season other grilled or roasted veggies or meat. Toss your spicy “butter-butter” with fried, grilled, or smoked wings and a squeeze of lime juice for habanero hot wings!
Habanero Carrot Butter Ingredients
carrots:
You’ll need two pounds of fresh orange carrots. Wash the carrots well, then peel them, trim the tops and bottoms, and rinse them again. Chop the carrots into relatively even slices that are about 1″ thick or less. Slice the thinner ends of the carrots in longer pieces, and large thick carrots into thinner pieces so that they will cook evenly.
onion:
You can use Spanish yellow onion, or red or white onions if you prefer. Trim the root and stem end, peel the onion, then slice them in half through the root end. Cut horizontally towards the root end into 1/4″-1/2″ slices, then again across the first cuts to cut the onions into small dice.
Measure out 3/4 of a cup of finely diced onion, and set aside any extra onion for another recipe. Do not increase the quantity of onions (without scaling up all the other ingredients proportionally, like for a double batch).
vinegar:
The recipe specifies white wine vinegar, but you could substitute apple cider vinegar or even plain distilled vinegar, as long as they have 5% acidity.
water:
The water dilutes the pickling brine and thins the mixture to a spreadable consistency for safe processing. Don’t reduce this, and don’t add more without adding an equivalent volume of vinegar if you need to thin the puree. Keep the ratio of vinegar to water 50:50, and do not use less than a cup of each for the listed quantities of vegetables and seasonings.
lime juice:
This recipe specifies that fresh lime juice can be used, but you can safely substitute bottled juice. The inverse is not always true with canning recipes, since bottled juice has a measured acidity and fresh juice can vary, but you can use either one here.
seasonings:
Whole fresh garlic cloves, fresh green cilantro, fiery hot habanero chiles, salt, and optionally, ground cumin and coriander. The ground spices are not in the original published recipe, but you can add small amounts of either or both if you like.
I used frozen smoked chocolate-brown habaneros instead of fresh orange ones, because that’s what I had available, but also to add additional complexity to the flavor of my carrot-butter. You can use fresh or grilled ones, as you prefer. Either way, remove the stem and seeds, and either handle the peppers with latex gloves, or very thoroughly wash your hands with detergent dish soap immediately after handling the hot peppers.
You can reduce the number of habaneros for a less-intense spicy kick, but don’t use more since this is a tested canning recipe and playing with proportions of low-acid ingredients can be dangerous. It’s safe to reduce the density by using less peppers, but not to increase it by adding more low-acid ingredients.
Kitchen Equipment Needed
one gallon saucepan:
You’ll need a pot large enough to hold all of the recipe ingredients (except for the cilantro). The carrots and onions are simmered together in the pickling brine until the carrots are soft.
food processor or immersion blender:
After simmering, the ingredients are all pureed into a soft paste. This is easiest with a food processor, but you can also use an immersion blender or a regular blender, working in batches if necessary.
half-pint or smaller canning jars and new lids:
Can this recipe only in small half-pint jelly jars or smaller 4 oz jars with new canning lids. Do not can pints or quarts of this recipe, since it is a dense paste and the tested processing times in the original recipe from Ball are only provided for smaller jars.
You can also portion and freeze this recipe if you prefer, in any freezer safe airtight container.
large canning pot:
Because this recipe is canned in small jars, you don’t need a giant canning pot for the water bath. You can use any pot with a lid that will hold all of your jars, plus enough boiling water to cover by an inch or two and room at the top for a vigorous boil.
It’s best to use a pot with a false bottom or a jar rack to keep your jars from scorching or breaking on the bottom. You can use a silicone trivet if you don’t have a jar rack.
How to Make Spicy Habanero Carrot Butter
prep ingredients:
- Measure out the vinegar, lime, horseradish, sugar, garlic, peppers, and spices into a medium, non-reactive (stainless steel or enameled) pot.
- Peel the onion, cut into small to medium dice, and measure out 3/4 of a cup into the pot with the vinegar and seasonings.
- Wash, peel, and rinse two pounds of carrots. Cut into 1/2″ to 1″ slices.
cook carrots and seasonings:
- Stir and bring the pot up to a simmer.
- Cook the hot sauce mixture until the carrots are fork-tender.
- While the carrots are cooking, wash the cilantro. Pat it dry, and roughly chop the herb.
prep canning jars and water-bath:
- Wash your canning jars with hot, soapy water, and rinse well.
- Fill your canning pot with enough water to cover the jars by at least 1″-2″.
- Place the jars in the pot to keep them warm, and bring the pot up to a simmer while the carrots are cooking.
puree mixture:
- Remove the pot from the heat, and puree the pickled carrot mixture along with the fresh cilantro.
- Use a food processor, blender, or immersion blender, working in batches if necessary.
- Process the carrot butter until it is a uniform paste.
simmer again:
- Transfer the habanero carrot butter back to the pot and bring it back up to a gentle simmer.
- Stir, taste (careful, it’s spicy!), and adjust the seasoning if necessary.
pack into jars:
- Pack the hot carrot butter into half pint or 4 oz canning jars.
- Leave 1/4″ headspace at the top of the jars. Remove any air-bubbles with a butter-knife, chopstick, or debubbling tool.
- Wipe the rims of the jars, and cover them with new canning lids.
- Screw down the rings finger-tip tight.
can the jars:
- Using jar tongs, place the jars into the hot water-bath in your canning pot.
- Cover the pot and bring the water-bath up to a rolling boil.
- Once the pot is boiling, start the processing timer.
- Can the carrot butter for 10 minutes at a hard boil (adjusting for altitude above 1000 ft).
- After the 10 minutes are up, turn off the heat, and set another time for 5 minutes, leaving the pot covered.
- Remove the jars from the canner, and set on a folded towel or wire rack to cool.
- Leave the jars undisturbed overnight (or until completely cooled).
Pantry & Storage Tips
- After jars have cooled completely (12-24 hours) remove the bands and check for seals. Make sure that the button on the lid is depressed and the jars have a good vacuum seal.
- Refrigerate any jars that did not seal and use promptly, or reheat and reprocess with new lids within 24 hours.
- Gently wash jars or wipe with a damp cloth, label, and store in a cool, dark pantry. For best quality, enjoy home-canned goods within 12-18 months.
Spicy Habanero-Carrot Butter
Equipment
- jar lifter or non-slip tongs or jar rack with handles
Ingredients
- 2 lbs carrots peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup white wine vinegar (5% acidity) can substitute apple cider vinegar or distilled white vinegar (5% acidity)
- ¾ cup onion finely chopped
- ½ cup fresh lime juice can substitute bottled lime juice
- 4 cloves garlic peeled
- 3 large habanero peppers stems & seeds removed (use less peppers for milder puree. do not use more).
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground cumin (optional, not in Ball recipe)
- ½ tsp ground coriander (optional, not in Ball recipe)
- ⅓ cup fresh cilantro leaves washed & chopped
Instructions
prep ingredients:
- Measure out the vinegar, lime, horseradish, sugar, garlic, peppers, and spices into a medium, non-reactive (stainless steel or enameled) pot.
- Peel the onion, cut into small to medium dice, and measure out 3/4 of a cup into the pot with the vinegar and seasonings.
- Wash, peel, and rinse two pounds of carrots. Cut into 1/2″ to 1″ slices.
cook carrots and seasonings:
- Stir and bring the pot up to a simmer.
- Cook the hot sauce mixture until the carrots are fork-tender.
- While the carrots are cooking, wash the cilantro. Pat it dry, and roughly chop the herb.
prep canning jars and water-bath:
- Wash your canning jars with hot, soapy water, and rinse well.
- Fill your canning pot with enough water to cover the jars by at least 1″-2″.
- Place the jars in the pot to keep them warm, and bring the pot up to a simmer while the carrots are cooking.
puree mixture:
- Remove the pot from the heat, and puree the pickled carrot mixture along with the fresh cilantro.
- Use a food processor, blender, or immersion blender, working in batches if necessary.
- Process the carrot butter until it is a uniform paste.
simmer again:
- Transfer the habanero carrot butter back to the pot and bring it back up to a gentle simmer.
- Stir, taste (careful, it’s spicy!), and adjust the seasoning if necessary.
pack into jars:
- Pack the hot carrot butter into half pint or 4 oz canning jars.
- Leave 1/4" headspace at the top of the jars. Remove any air-bubbles with a butter-knife, chopstick, or debubbling tool.
- Wipe the rims of the jars, and cover them with new canning lids.
- Screw down the rings finger-tip tight.
can the jars:
- Using jar tongs, place the jars into the hot water-bath in your canning pot.
- Cover the pot and bring the water-bath up to a rolling boil.
- Once the pot is boiling, start the processing timer.
- Process the jars for 10 minutes (adjust for altitudes above 1000 ft). Turn off heat and let jars rest in the canner for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack or towel-lined countertop to cool.
- Remove the jars from the canner, and set on a folded towel or wire rack to cool.
- Leave the jars undisturbed overnight (or until completely cooled, at least 6-8 hours).
- Check the lids for seals, remove bands, and wash the jars if they are sticky. Any jars that didn't seal can be reprocessed with new lids within 24 hours of processing, or put in the fridge or freezer to be used first.
Notes
- 0-1,000 ft – use recipe time
- 1,001-3,000 ft – increase 5 minutes
- 3,001-6,000 ft – increase 10 minutes
- 6,001-8,000 ft – increase 15 minutes
- 8,001-10,000 ft – increase 20 minutes