Pickled Jalapenos

[fifi]

Pickled Jalapenos

This recipe, more properly a method, was inviented by my dad about 30 years ago. He had been doing some work in Mexico and was struck by the difference in the jalapenos that were always served in the restaurants. I did some checking when I spent some time down there and this recipe confirms that he was right. Spices and the amounts are at your discretion. I do know that they seem to use a lot more than you see in the stuff we buy. The vinegar that is used is milder, too.

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For each pint jar

• c vinegar (see below)
  
• c water
  
• tsp pickling salt
  
• tsp spices ( see below)
  
• T sesame oil
  

Choose firm peppers and other ingredients (carrots, onion, garlic cloves, cauliflower, etc.) Wash thoroughly and pack into a pint jar pickling jar. Wide mouths are easier to work with. If you leave the peppers whole, slit the side so the pickling solution can fill the peppers. You might want to slice the peppers and remove the stem, seeds and membranes. This will make for a milder pickle.

Distribute the spices into each jar while packing with the peppers.

Bring the vinegar, water and salt to a boil and pour into each jar leaving 1/2 to 3/4 inch headspace. Heat sesame oil gently (less than 150 degrees) and add 2 tablespoons to each jar. Seal the jar and process in a hot water bath (barely simmering) for 10 minutes.

Let stand for a couple of weeks before using. Refrigerate after opening.

Vinegars: The classic is a homemade fruit vinegar such as pineapple that good cooks in Mexico keep going in a crock on the counter. The fruity flavor and milder acidity really makes this recipe sing. If you aren't up to making your own, look for a milder vinegar like rice wine. I have been known to cheat and add a couple of teaspoons of pineapple juice to a low acid vinegar.

Spices: pickling spice mixture, bay leaf, Mexican oregano, cumin seed, corainder seed, allspice berries, whole cloves. A lot of preparations I have seen in Mexico seem to have more than the starter teaspoon. Add more or less of different ones to your taste. (I add a lot of almost everything. And I don't skimp on the garlic.)

Keywords: Appetizer, Side, Hot and Spicy, Snack, Tex-Mex

( RG525 )