MORE PICKLES AND RELISHES

New Zealand Listener, Volume 2, Issue 43, 19 April 1940, Page 44

MORE PICKLES AND RELISHES

recipes for pickles and chutneys sent in to me than for jams and jellies; and I am sure that the requests for these are more numerous than those for cakes! Another very big demand, always, is that for biscuits. They are quickly made and most useful, and handy to keep in tins. I must give you a "Biscuit Page" soon. In the meantime, here are some more Relishes. popular this form of preserving is! I think I have more good

Pickled Apples First of al: I must give you this original and delightful pickle. The lady who sent it is a very expert cook indeed, and she says in her letter, "I have always used small apples about 134 to 2 inches in diameter. Leave the stalks on the apples, and when cooked, place all in an earthenware jar and tie down. The jar need not be kept airtight. These are ready for immediate use, but improve if kept a little while. Serve with their stalks on-they look quite unique, and are lovely with cold meat." Use seven pounds of apples; 3lb. of sugar; one quart of vinegar. Put in a muslin bag one ounce of allspice; one ounce of cloves; and one ounce of whole ginger Lroken. Make a syrup of the sugar, vinegar and spices, and when boiling, drop in the apples, and allow them to boil until fairly soft, without breaking the skin. Beetroot Chutney This is a good old Yorkshire recipe. It takes three pounds of beetroot; one and a-half pounds of apples; two onions; one pint of vinegar; half a teaspoonful of ginger; about one teaspoonful of salt; the juice of a lemon, and three-quarters of a pound of sugar. Boil up the beetroot till it is tender, and when it is cold, cut it into little cubes. Cut the onions and apples up small, and boil them for twenty minutes with the vinegar, sugar, spices, etc. Add the beetroot. and boil for another quarter of an hour. Plum and Apple Chutney From Yorkshire also, comes this one: You need about 4Ib. of plums, and 4Ib. of peeled apples; one pound of red tomatoes; 2Ib. seedless raisins; 1lb. onions; 3lb. Demerara sugar; four ounces of preserved ginger; 3 ounces of salt, or a little less; half an ounce of garlic; half an ounce of chillies; four dessertspoons of mixed spice; and two pints of vinegar. Wash and stone the plums, and wash and slice the tomatoes. Put them in a pan with the vinegar. Cook these till tender; then add the apples, which have been cored and cut into quarters; the onions, which have. been peeled and chopped; the raisins, garlic, ginger, chillies, all’ chopped small; and the sugar, salt and spice. Cook very slowly, stirring constantly; for about two hours. Add more vinegar if required. Then put into jars and cover.

Pickled Eggs This is a very old English recipe, although I don’t think it has been used very much in New Zealand. Pickled eggs are very nice indeed with cold meat, or with cheese. They are ready for use about a fortnight after putting down. The recipe calls for eight hard-boiled eggs; one pint of vinegar; and about quarter of an ounce each of black peppercorns, allspice, and whole ginger. Remove the eggshells and put the eggs in wide-necked jars. Boil the peppercorns, spice and ginger in the vinegar for about ten minutes, and pour it while boiling hot, over the eggs. When cold, cover closely and store in a cool, dry place. The ginger may be omitted, according to taste. Cucumber Relish Here is a good New Zealand recipe: Only the apples are cooked. To two medium sized cucumbers, allow one pound of onions and one pound of apples; also about a pint of vineger or sufficient to mix the whole to a right consistency; half a pound of sugar; about a teaspoon of cayenne pepper, and 114% ounces of salt. Peel, core and slice the apples, and boil them in the vinegar until they are soft, and then leave to cool. Mince the cucumber and onions, and strain off the juice. Mix all well together when cold. Keep in airtight jars. Pickled Fish This is very handy to know. " Bill of Mohaka," who sent the recipe, says that he has been able to keep fish preserved by this method for twelve months: Clean the fish, and place in a casserole with one teaspoon of cloves; half a teaspoon of peppercorns, half d teaspoon of mixed spice and a little salt. Cover the fish with vinegar and cook in a slow oven for one and a-half hours. Take out of the oven, and keep the lid on the casserole until the fish is cold. Then remove carefully, put the fish into airtight preserving jars, and cover with the spiced vinegar in which the fish has been cooked. Screw down the lids tightly. Another method is to sterilise the fish in the jars straight away. Scale and clean the fish, cut it into fillets, and pack into mason jars-not too tightly. Cover with vinegar, a spoonful of salt and a little pepper. Screw down the top lightly, and stand in boiling water for 2 or 3 hours on the stove. Lift out and fill to the top with boiling vinegar and

screw down until airtight. Oysters may be done the same way, only sterilise for one hour, If using crayfish, cook it first, and take the flesh out of the shell; put it in jars and cover with vinegar, and sterilise one hour. Preserving Trout This is a very useful recipe. The trout preserved like this, tastes very like salmon. Skin and fillet the trout; cut into suitably sized pieces and sprinkle with salt and a little sugar. Pack it into jars with a generous lump of butter to each jar. No moisture is needed; the butter makes a covering for the fish when cooked. Stand the jars in a vessel ci water and sterilise as for fruit. Screw lids on tightly as soon as cooked, and leave to cool in the vessel. Next day, sterilise again without loosening the lids,

and again cool in the vessel. Tighten the lids as much as possible. Always use new rubbers, Plum Sauce This is a tried and trusted recipe from Tikozangi, near Waitara, in Taranaki. Six pounds of plums; 3lb. sugar; 6 teaspoons of salt; 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper; 3 pints of vinegar; 1 ounce of. cloves; 1 tablespoon of ground ginger;. also some peppercorns and chillies. Boil all together for about three hours, then strain and bottle. Indian Chutney From New Plymouth comes this excellent way to make a delicious chutney from apples, peaches, plums, pears, gooseberries, and tomatoes. Don’t have them all very ripe-just a good mixture. Have four pounds of these mixed fruit and chop them into small pieces. Chop up also 2Ib. of onions; 2 ounces of garlic, and 1lb. of candied peel. Add 2lb. of brown sugar; 2lb. of raisins; Ylb. of salt; 42lb.. ground ginger; 2 tablespoons of curry powder; 2 teaspoons of cayenne; and 2 teaspoons of cloves. Boil all these up in 2 quarts of vinegar for about an hour and a-quarter. Stir constantly to prevent burning. Some people prefer less candied peel; and some omit it altogether.