Halopenos

What are Halopenos?

Halopenos are sweet shredded jalapeños made by a small producer in Horsham, West Sussex - somewhere between a relish, a pickle and a hot sauce, packed with crunch and a gentle, building heat. They're not your average jarred jalapeño slice: the peppers are shredded rather than cut into rings, which means more surface area for flavour and a genuinely different texture, closer to a fine slaw than a pickle.

The Halopenos story

Halopenos began in 2022 as a kitchen experiment - a batch of homemade sweet jalapeño relish shared with friends and family that quickly outgrew the kitchen table. Founders Dan and Henok took their early jars to market stalls and food festivals across the country, refining the recipe stall by stall, festival by festival, in all weathers. What started as a side project now runs from a dedicated production kitchen with its own small distribution warehouse, and the range has grown from one flavour into shredded jalapeños, drizzle sauces, hot honeys and a Halopeno-studded cheddar. Along the way, the jalapeños have picked up a string of Great Taste Awards, the industry benchmark for speciality food.

The flavours we stock

The Original One is jalapeños (60%), invert sugar, apple cider vinegar, garlic and spices, shredded and slow-cooked into a relish that's sweet first, with the heat arriving after. It's the flavour Halopenos built its name on, and the easiest way into the range if you haven't tried them before.

The Mexican Lime One is a zesty twist on the original, with lime running through the sweet jalapeño base for a brighter, more citrus-forward flavour. It's a three-gold-star winner at the Great Taste Awards, out of nearly 14,000 entries judged that year.

The Mango & Lime One brings mango into the mix alongside the lime, for a sweeter, more tropical jar with a milder heat (around 4 out of 10) that makes it an easy entry point if you're new to the range. It won a Great Taste Award in 2023, and is especially good stirred through a homemade curry or tucked into a halloumi wrap.

How to use Halopenos

A spoonful goes a long way. Halopenos are designed to be scattered, stirred or piled on rather than cooked with, so treat them as a finishing touch: on nachos and burritos, folded through mac 'n' cheese, piled onto burgers and pizza, stirred into rice, or spooned onto a cheese sandwich or a plate of chicken wings. They also add crunch and sweetness-with-heat to a cheeseboard alongside a mature cheddar or a soft goat's cheese.

Dietary information

All three Halopenos flavours are gluten free, vegetarian and vegan friendly. Each contains celery seeds, and is made in a kitchen that also handles peanuts, mustard, wheat and soya. Once opened, keep jars in the fridge and use within eight weeks.