With September around the corner, it is a good time to start thinking about preserving foods for the winter months and getting ahead in your preparations. The most common way of preserving these days is to freeze, which is a great way of having summer vegetables during the cold winter months. The easiest way to freeze vegetables is to prepare them by peeling, slicing,dicing or simply chopping and then blanching in boiling water for a few minutes, this helps maintain the taste, texture and flavor. Then refresh straight away in ice cold water, this will help keep the color, drain well and pat dry. You can either freeze in single layers on baking sheets then bag and store or you can simply bag and store. Make sure you label the bags and date them before putting in the freezer as this enables you to have a good stock rotation.
The following vegetables are available cheaply and in large quantities at farmers markets,
Beetroots
Cabbage
Pumpkin
Sweetcorn
Globe artichoke
Celery
Leeks
Runner Beans
Marrow
The following are going out of season in the next month or so but you may still be able to pick some up economically
Courgettes
Tomatoes
One of the best and truly English ways to preserve summer vegetables is to make Piccalilli, its fairly easy to make and is great with raised pies, boiled meats and strong cheeses.
This recipe will make about 6/8 jars
1lb small pickling onions, peeled
1lb cauliflower, small florets
1lb runner beans, trimmed and finely sliced
1lb courgette or marrow, 1/2inch dice
1lb cucumber, de seeded and 1/2inch dice
1lb pumpkin, peeled, de seeded and 1/2inch dice
1lb salt
2tsp (30g) mustard
2tsp ground ginger
2tsp curry powder
1tsp turmeric
2tsp black peppercorns
1lt malt vinegar
2tsp cornflour
Place the vegetables with the salt in a large bowl, cover and leave overnight.
Drain and rinse vegetables under cold water and dry ( I place the vegetables on clean tea towels)
Put 3/4 of the vinegar in a large non-metallic pan with the spices and the vegetables. Bring to the boil and simmer until the vegetables are just tender.
Mix the cornstarch with the remaining vinegar and add to the pan. Mix and simmer for about 5mins, the mix should thicken up.
Put into hot sterilized jars, seal with airtight lids and cool.
Leave for about 3 months in a cool, dark cupboard.
Any vegetable you can eat raw are easy to pickle
Any that usually have to be cooked like cauliflower, beetroot, carrots etc you will need to cook before hand to make tender ( I like mine to still have a slight crunch) so cook your vegetables according to your taste.
Pickling spices are also a personal preference and you can buy pickling spices from the store for a variety of pickles. However I like to add my own as the combination possibilities are endless but here is a few I pick from mustard seeds, peppercorns, bay leaves, dill seeds,fennel seeds, cloves, star anise, cinnamon sticks, juniper berries, coriander seeds, cumin seeds and chilli flakes. As well as fresh garlic, whole chillies, ginger, lemon grass and tamarind.
For the pickling liquid use 2 cups of white wine vinegar, 4tbsp sugar, 2tbsp salt and 1 cup of water. Bring the first 3 ingredients to a boil and then simmer til the sugar and salt have dissolved. Then add the water which will reduce the temperature and pour over your vegetables.
You are now ready to can the vegetables ensuring the liquid submerges the vegetables in the jar. You can store in the refrigerator for about a month but the vegetables are normally ready to eat within a couple of hours.
To store for longer you will need to omit the water from the pickling liquid and the storage jars will need to be sealed with airtight and vinegar resistant lids. Store for a few weeks before using but give the jars a shake once a week to infuse the flavors.
My favorite pickling combinations are:
Pickled Slaw- carrot, white/green cabbage, bell peppers, white onion, sugar snap peas, cucumber, celery or you can go with any combination of crunchy vegetables you have. Juilenne (thin strips) the vegetables, add mustard seeds and thin strips of fresh chillies, cover with the pickling liquid, and store in the refrigerator. Leave overnight before eating and it can be stored in the refrigerator for about a month (dare anyone to still have the first batch after the first month!!). This is great as a salad, on sandwiches and as an accompaniment to burgers, hotdogs and cold meats
Giardiniera(Italian pickle)- aubergines, courgettes, red onion, fennel, bell peppers and cherry tomatoes (you can also use carrots, celery, cauliflower, olives) they should be roughly diced/small florets. For the spice flavors use fresh garlic, chilli flakes, celery seeds, oregano, bay leaves and peppercorns. You will need to soak the prepared vegetables in a brine (water and salt) overnight and then drain well before pickling. You can also add a couple tbsp of olive oil if you wish to your pickling liquid. Put into sterilized jars with airtight lids and store for a month before eating. Will keep for about 6 months. Use as an accompaniment with any Italian dish or with grilled fish and meats.
Achar(Indian pickle)-Indian pickles are made using mustard oil instead of vinegar, for the spice mix use the following 1cup of mustard powder, 3/4cup of salt, 1tsp fenugreek powder, 1tbsp dried mango(amchar) powder, 1tbsp fennel seeds coarsely ground, 1tsp turmeric, 3/4tbsp nigella seeds and 1/4lt of mustard oil. Mix all the ingredients to form a paste and then add to about 4cups of your chosen prepared vegetables( I leave my vegetables to dry on clean tea towels overnight). I also add 2 green chillies, cut into small pieces, 8 cloves of garlic left whole and 1inch piece of ginger cut into strips. Add 1-2 tbsp of vinegar, mix well and put into a large sterilized container . Making sure you use any remaining mix to top up the jar . Cover the jar with a lid and keep aside for 3 days, once a day stir the vegetable mix with a clean spoon/ladle. On day three you will notice that the oil is floating on top of the vegetables if not than top up with more oil, check seasoning and correct if required. Decant into sterilized airtight jars and store for at least a week before using to allow the flavors to infuse. I find the longer its left the more intense the flavors. It will keep for a good 12 months in airtight jars.
You can also use this method to make singular vegetable pickles i.e green mango, lime, carrot, cauliflower etc.
I hope this inspires you to make your own combination of pickles and please let me know how they turn out. If you use the above recipes, please give me your feedback as its always great to know what you think of the recipes.
Next time I will be looking at preserving fruits for the winter months.
Happy Pickling and Preserving
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