Essentially, a mix of pickled veggies, this chow chow is a bit zippier than the one I grew up with in New England, which certainly had no jalapeño in it.
Not any green tomatoes, either, come to think of it, but they work and, while I made this batch at the beginning of the season and green tomatoes are mebbe a bit scarce just now, they will be back come the fall, so you may as well save this recipe and keep it in the back of your mind for your garden harvests before the frost comes.
Note: I usually try to provide real measurements, but believe I must have been a bit overwhelmed that day and just listed the numbers. Sorry; but next week, I’ll be posting a red cabbage chow chow with cup measurements, so check that out. This recipe yielded four half-pints.
INGREDIENTS
Veggies:
•4 green tomatoes, cored and quartered*
•1 sweet onion, diced
•1 green pepper
•1 red pepper
•1 jalapeño
Pickling Liquid:
•1 cup white vinegar
•1/2 cup water
•3/4 cup sugar
•1 tbsp pickling salt
•1/2 tsp celery seed
•1/2 tsp mustard seed
•1/2 tsp black peppercorns
•1/8 tsp ground allspice
•1 cinnamon stick
•Dash ground green peppercorns
*I didn’t bother seeding my tomatoes, just quartered them and cut out the stem end.
Pop the quartered tomatoes into the bowl of your food processor and pulse until well chopped. Transfer to a non-reactive pot.
Dice the onion and add to the pot with the green tomatoes, then roughly chop the peppers, add them to the food processor, and pulse until well chopped. Add to the pot.
Add the pickling liquid ingredients to the pot, stirring to combine.
Heat to a boil over high heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
Transfer to sterilized canning jars, add lids and secure the bands “fingertip tight” – just using your fingertips to tighten the bands.
Process in a boiling water bath for fifteen minutes, then remove to a rack and allow to rest; you should hear the lids “pop” which means the jars are sealed. Even if you don’t hear the pop, you can easily check the seal by pressing down on the center of the lid. If it the lid doesn’t make a clicking noise, your jars are sealed. Store in a cool, dark place until opened, then in the fridge afterwards.
Might sound weird, but do try this over baked or mashed potatoes.
Dee-licious!