This chow chow-style pickle gets its bright color and mildly spicy taste from a curry-flavored blend of seasonings. It is delicious served alongside East Indian food, but also great paired with simply cooked grains, meats, or poultry. Try adding it to couscous for a flavorful side dish that is ready in just 5 minutes.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Brining time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour, 35 minutes
Yield: 4 - 5 half pint jars
Ingredients:
2 pounds cauliflower florets broken up into bite-sized pieces
- 1 cup chopped red bell pepper
- 1 large onion, peeled and chopped
- 5 tablespoons kosher or other non-iodized salt
- 6 1/4 cups water, divided
- 2 1/4 cups cider vinegar, divided
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard powder
- 1 teaspoon whole mustard seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne powder
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon turmeric
Preparation:
Place the cauliflower, red bell pepper and onion in a large bowl. In a separate container dissolve the salt in 5 cups of the water. Pour the salt water over the vegetables. Let the vegetables soak in the salt brine for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
Drain the brined vegetables in a colander and rinse them under cool water.
Put the vegetables in a large pot together with the vinegar, honey, mustard, mustard seeds, ginger and cayenne. Add 1 cup of water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer until the vegetables are just barely tender (the cauliflower should still be fairly firm).
Combine the cornstarch and turmeric in a small bowl. Add the remaining 1/4 cup of vinegar and 1/4 cup of water. Stir to dissolve the cornstarch.
Stir the cornstarch mixture in with the other ingredients. Raise the heat to high and boil rapidly for 2 minutes.
Using a slotted spoon, transfer the vegetables to clean pint-sized canning jars (it is not necessary to sterilize the jars for this recipe). Leave 1/2-inch head space in each jar. Ladle the liquid over the vegetables, covering them completely but still leaving that 1/2-inch of head space.
Screw on lids and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 months. For longer storage at room temperature, use canning lids and process in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes. Once processed in a boiling water bath, the unopened jars will keep for 1 year (they are still safe to eat after that, but the quality declines).
Whether you are making this recipe as a refrigerator pickle or sealing the jars with a boiling water bath, wait at least a week for the flavors to develop before eating the curried cauliflower pickles.
