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Related: Culture Forums, Support ForumsAny vegetable canners out there?
This year, I am taking my first dive into canning.
So far, I've had some pretty good results...peppers...cucumbers.
I am using the standard recipe that I pulled of the internet.
White vinegar....store bought pickling spices....a little sugar.
I slit the peppers, then blister them slightly in a skillet.
My questions are...
What is the best vinegar to use? Mine taste overly vinegary.
I would like to add a little variety (flavors) to my mix. Any suggestions?
Are pickled green tomatoes any good?
Any cool tricks would be appreciated.
fizzgig
(24,146 posts)i might cross-post this to the cooking and baking group, too.
clarice
(5,504 posts)NV Whino
(20,886 posts)Or Apple cider vinegar.
MuseRider
(34,115 posts)I found Apple Cider Vinegar was wonderful in tomatoes. MUCH better than vinegar or lemon juice.
Have fun. I LOVE canning. I usually can enough to get through the winter with some veggies, freeze others.
clarice
(5,504 posts)Do you can the green ones?
If so, do you slice them in quarters?
Do you try to scrape out the pulp and seeds?
MuseRider
(34,115 posts)If you can whole tomatoes I skin them and just leave them whole with the seeds. You can also do them in quarters or however you want them this way but if I am going to cut them I usually seed them before I can them so I don't have to worry about doing it later.
If I cook them down to be used in other things I skin them then I quarter them and take out the seeds and the jelly around them. They make mills for that but I find they are hard to use. No matter how you do it it take some time but is well worth it.
I have a good friend who lives with us during legislative season. He is an amazing cook. He makes the best vegan sauce I have ever tasted. Last year I canned up 16 quarts of tomato sauce and he uses my organic sauce as his base. It is a match made in heaven because I then get a ton of lovely, vegan spaghetti sauce.
clarice
(5,504 posts)clarice
(5,504 posts)Rice vinegar is light and has a sweetness. Apple cider tends toward sweetness but is more intense. I seldom use regular vinegar for anything but cleaning.
clarice
(5,504 posts)NYC_SKP
(68,644 posts)Some alum, fresh dill and garlic, some cider vinegar, mostly salt.
I would research this, but also balance what your taste buds tell you.
I prefer a salt brine to a vinegar brine for pickled goods.
I wonder if a non-sodium salt would work as well, ie potassium chloride.
I have high BP, need to avoid sodium but not salty flavors.
Health first, taste a close second!
clarice
(5,504 posts)NYC_SKP
(68,644 posts)Cooking is largely a matter of chemistry and physics.
Alum has properties that adjust the chemistry of the brine, just as baking soda does in baked recipes and all the rest.
I learned a lot by just researching an answer to your question.
Thanks for that!