Since we are now in the midst of Autumn, I had a sudden impulse to make some pickled vegetables to fill our pantry. This recipe appears on http://www.rezeptwelt.de/node/200. I adapted it slightly because I wanted to use up a lot of vegetables that were lying idle in the kitchen. The recipe calls for courgettes and red peppers but I used carrots, peppers and cucumbers in the second batch. The reviews for the recipe were all positive, but I haven’t tried the veg yet because I want them to mature a little first.
Ingredients:
800g courgettes, cut into bite sized pieces
400g red peppers, cut into bite sized pieces
200g onions, cut into rings
350g herb vinegar
240g water
240g apple juice
200g sugar
1/2 tsp salt (I added 1 tsp)
1 tsp curry
(I also added 1 tsp HOT Hungarian paprika for an extra kick and a few garlic cloves to the TMX with the vinegar, etc. Since I wanted a bit more spice, I also added 1 tbsp pickling spices).
1. Lay the chopped courgettes and red peppers in the varoma and lay the onion slices on top. Close the varoma. (Yes, it seems like a lot of vegetables;) The second time around I brought the vinegar mixture in the bowl to a boil first before setting the timer for cooking the vegetables. I think this technique was more successful. I also placed a teapot on top of the varoma to close it more tightly at the beginning).
2. Add the remaining ingredients to the TMX bowl. (Tip: I placed the spices and garlic in the basket, because the juniper berries in the pickling spice mix got jammed under the TMX blades causing the machine to make rather nasty grating sounds).
3. Cook 25m/varoma/speed 1. After 13 minutes, mix the veg in the varoma around so that everything is steamed. Watch out because the steam is HOT.
4. Fill the veg into clean twist-off glasses and cover with the vinegar. Close the jars and place upside down on table for 5 minutes to create a vacuum.
With the second batch, I didn’t have enough vinegar to cover the veg so I just cooked up half the recipe for the vinegar mix and then poured it over the vegetables. I ended up with 5 large glasses of pickled vegetables.
This is a good recipe because you can use any veg you like and vary the spices. Plus it’s a good gift for a hamper. The colours of the vegetables are radiant.
