PICKLED VEGETABLES BENEFITS RECIPES

Steps:

• This works great as a stand-alone recipe, but also as a component in Jamie’s Picnic Love from Together – see the full collection of menus here. GET AHEAD It’s nice to make this a few days ahead. Get a large pan of boiling salted water on the go. Prep your veg, trimming as appropriate, then chop into bite-sized pieces that’ll be a pleasure to eat, and boil for 4 minutes exactly. Meanwhile, put the bay leaves, mustard seeds and peppercorns into a large bowl with 1 tablespoon of sea salt. Roughly slice and add the chillies, then cover with the vinegar. Add 500ml of hot liquor from the pan, then use a slotted spoon to add the veg to the bowl. Add the honey, stir well, topping up with more hot liquor to cover the veg, if needed, then sit a plate on top to keep the veg submerged. Leave to cool, then store in the fridge overnight. The next day, divide the veg and liquor between airtight jars – I usually go for 2 x 1-litre jars, but you can absolutely use a few smaller jars, if you prefer. Seal them up, and store in the fridge until ready for your picnic, where they’ll keep really well for 2 to 3 weeks. Perfect paired with good cheese and crackers, mixed into salads, added to sandwiches, or just enjoyed on their own.

Steps:

• Pour the water into a large non-metallic bowl with the salt and stir until the salt has dissolved.

  Prepare the vegetables. Break the cauliflower into small florets. Top and tail the beans and cut to the same height as the jar. Peel the carrots and pickling onions or shallots. De-seed the red pepper, cut out any inner pith and cut into thickish slices. You only need to cut the beans to the same height of the jar if you want to arrange them as in the photograph, otherwise just cut them in half.

  Put the vegetables into the salt water and cover with a tea-towel. Leave overnight.

  The next day drain and rinse the vegetables in fresh cold water and dry them on some sheets of paper towel.

  Pack or arrange them into a sterilised preserving jar.

  Pour over the vinegar and pickling spices, making sure the vegetables are covered. Close the lid, keep somewhere warm like a kitchen shelf for two days before putting the jar in the fridge for another 5 days before eating.

  They will keep for about 12 weeks in the fridge.

  *All information included in this recipe has been provided by Aspall.