Courgette Pickle
I have not made chutney or pickle from courgette before but this year we had such a splendid display of plants and a glut of fruits that I had to give it a go. I used courgettes that had overgrown.
This pickle is intended to be used a bit like a lime pickle with curries and thus my use of spices. I was pleasantly surprised by the result, particularly as the courgettes retained a certain crunchiness. Perhaps this was the result of the salting for twenty-four hours. I am not sure how long this will keep and so I will update once I know.
Ingredients
- 1.5kg diced courgettes
- 2 medium onions diced
- 100ml olive oil
- 250ml any light coloured vinegar
- 1 tbsp ground turmeric
- 1 tbsp ground coriander
- 1 tbsp cumin seed
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 3 tbsp mild chilli powder
- 4 tbsp yellow mustard seeds
- 4 gloves garlic chopped or 1 tbsp granules
- 1.5 tbsp salt
- salt for salting the courgettes
Method
Top and tail the courgettes and then dice.Place in a large colander in a bowl and salt (3-4 tbsps) and leave covered for 24 hours.
Once the courgettes have rested for 24 hours drain off any liquid, rinse them and drain again. The drier they are, the better the pickle texture.
Fry the onions in the olive oil until they are soft and transluscent, adding the chopped garlic (if using fresh) after about two minutes.
Add the mustard seeds and when they start to pop add the remaining spices all together. Stir occasionally to avoid sticking and burning
Tip in the diced courgettes and stir well to mix everything up.
Add the vinegar and mix well and bring to the boil
When the mix has started to boil, leave on a low heat for about an hour or so, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking
Spoon into heated sterilised jars and seal. This pickle is ready for eating straight away.
Observations
Vary the spice mixture to suit your own taste. I have made the mix fairly salty as I am relying on salt and vinegar to preserve. I also wanted to simulate the saltiness of lime pickle.
You should wash clean and sterilise the jars before filling and heat them to prevent cracking. I heat mine in the warming oven of the aga as that heats and sterilises perfectly.
Not entirely sure how long the pickle will keep so it may be best to keep in fridge and give it a shelf life of two months. I made up six jars and will monitor the aging of it and provide an update in the future.
Source: The Book of Dwarf here.
