As is normal for autumn, it is time for pickling chillies.
This last year in spring I planted 6 jalapeños seedlings, and have reaped a bumper harvest. I also still had a jalapeño bush that is now three years old and still going strong, but I am leaving all of the pods on it to ripen to red so I can make some more hot chilli chutney.
I also had a handful of red onions that were too small to do much with, so I decided to take them out of storage and make my usual pickled onions with them.
Here is the result.
I think they look great, and they will be ready in about a month. I am not sure what I am going to do with them all, but they do keep for up to a year. The chillies are great in cooking and on pizzas, and anything else you would use raw chilli in. The flavour remains intact however the Scoville rating is reduced because of the pickling vinegar preparation. It took me about two hours from picking to bottling, mainly because you have to wait until the pickling vinegar is at room temperature until you add it to the peppers and onions.
I am looking forward to trying them out in a months time.
Hi Gavin,
Your jars of pickled goods look great!
I recently purchased a secondhand Fowlers Vacola preserving outfit and am keen to try my hand at pickling, too.
Where do you get the jars with the rubber ring and the clip seal? Do they have to be purchased as special pickling jars or can you use any jars that have the same seal?
Thanks,
BJ
@ BJ,
I found the spring jars at a local op shop. What a bargain! The seals were in good shape and so were the jars. I have seen them at discount variety stores like the Reject Shop, but they are a bit smaller.
Also a word of advice. It would probably be best not to use the fowlers jars for pickling as the vinegar reacts with the metallic lids and gives it a funny taste. I use these spring type of jars or ordinary pasta sauce jars that have a plastic coating in the lid.
The fowlers jars are best for preserving fruit and some high acid vegetables.
Gav
they are so pretty….almost like a decoration