Recipe: Piccalilli, or Green Tomato Relish

Piccalilli
or Green Tomato Relish

Makes 6 pints

Many of us in the Lowcountry grow our own tomatoes or live near tomato farms. Choose rock-hard, unblemished, very round fruits with no sign of red for this delicious relish, a favorite local embellishment for rice dishes, roast meats, and vegetables.

For the vegetables:
5 pounds green tomatoes, cored and ground or finely minced
1 pound (2 green and 1 red) bell peppers, ground or finely minced
1 pound (about 3 average) onions, ground or finely minced
1 or 2 fresh hot peppers, such as jalapeño (optional)
1/2 cup pure salt

For the pickling solution:
4-1/2 cups white vinegar
1-1/2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons (1/8 cup) mustard seeds
1 tablespoon celery seeds

Grind and mix all the vegetables together and sprinkle with the salt. Allow to sit for 3 or 4 hours, then drain well in a colander, squeezing all the excess moisture out of the mixture.

Simmer the pickling ingredients for 15 minutes, add the vegetable mixture, bring to a boil, and add to sterilized jars. Seal. Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Buy the Book!

Hoppin' John's
Lowcountry Cooking
Recipes & Ruminations from
Charleston and the Carolina Coastal Plain
By John Martin Taylor
Houghton Mifflin Company, April 2000
Paperback, $18.00
ISBN: 0-618-04845-6
Recipe reprinted by permission.