If you thought my canning days were through, well, maybe you need to start canning to get a taste of my own medicine.
Yes, by the time you’re reading this, I will have successfully seen my way through all fourteen days of the fourteen-day pickles. Yet, what I’ve been lacking in cucumbers and tomatoes has been made up in crookneck squash.
Squash is an interesting summer vegetable in that you can’t just have it raw—you’ve got to cook it somehow. We’ve roasted them, stewed them to freeze for casseroles, or just made them into casserole straightaway. Have you ever had John’s squash casserole? Well, you’re missing out if you haven’t.
While I do enjoy having a good piece of roasted squash on a plate of grilled chicken or plated with some fish from the skillet, there’s got to be a better way!
Last week, I got turned on to the idea of squash pickles—which you make just like any other bread and butter pickles, just with coins of squash. As I write this, I’m heating up my “sirup” for the fourteen-day pickles. This sweet smell of vinegar and sugar with some spices has been filling up our kitchen for a week now. I have to say, I’m getting used to it.
Yet, the idea of just making another batch of pickles like any other just didn’t spark the same interest for me. So, I turned to a trusted source for traditional canning: MeMaw’s Southern Cookin’ by Carolyn Nelson.
There’s a dedicated canning section in this book, with those sections separated by Jams/Preserves, Pickles and Relishes. Among the pickled peaches and watermelon rind preserves is where I ran across a recipe for Squash Relish that peaked my interests. Nelson, herself, came across the recipe while shopping for pickle ingredients from a fellow canner in Wal-Mart—Jeanette McDaniel. I say all this to give credit where credit is due.
If you know what a sensation my father-in-law’s pear relish is, I knew I had to try this recipe. My grandfather used to make pear relish, not quite the same, but delicious at any rate. Not to mention, we already had everything on hand.
However, my one mistake was trying to do this on a press day. Now, for a number of you I know you know what canning is like. For a few, they may understand the hassle of printing a newspaper. So, I resorted to a standby method when I don’t have time to properly can things: just tossing the cans in the fridge.
Our friend Loretta prefers this due to her ongoing crusade against botulism. However, if you’ve been canning things with any kind of regularity, you needn’t worry about such things. Besides, all these folks getting botox should have a tolerance built-up against botulism, seeing as that’s what botox is.
But I digress, let us get on with the pickles…or relish, rather:
Squash Relish
- 14 cups yellow squash, chopped
- 5 medium onions, chopped
- 2 Tablespoons salt
- 6 cups sugar
- 2 3/4 cups white vinegar
- 2 pods hot pepper, chopped
- 1 medium jar diced pimientos (undrained)
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
Mix together chopped squash, onions, and salt. Place in a large colander and let drain for 30 minutes. Mix all ingredients together in a large enamel or stainless steel pot. Bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes. Put in hot jars and seal.
Yield: 8 pints.
Even if I’m putting my pickles (or relish) in the fridge, I keep my jars hot with some boiling water. Call it piety, but some things should still be adhered to. Besides, I’ve had too many pieces of glass shatter on me in the kitchen to take my chances.
Of course, I switched things up. I didn’t use my whole dry mustard seeds. Instead, I used an equal amount of Heinz Yellow Mustard—a usual condiment done unusually well, or something like that.
I also omitted the 2 Tablespoons of yellow food coloring, because you really don’t need it. Between the squash, turmeric, and yellow mustard, my relish ended up plenty yellow. Not to mention, if you use jalapeños and pimientos, this turns out to be quite a colorful relish.
Now you may be wondering, how hot is it? To be honest with you, not very.
We put some of this on a burger once (or twice) this week, and it struck me as shockingly sweet. For there to be no sugar in this recipe, between the squash and Vidalia onions, there’s plenty of sweetness to go around the whole jar.
You know, I always heard how hot onions can make pickles or relish, but I’m here to tell you I just don’t believe in that. Maybe my tastebuds are built differently, but I’ve had spicier bites of pickled cucumbers than an onion.
When I was canning with my family, we were dedicated to Jezebel Sauce or what you may know as Piccalilli or Chow-Chow. For those uninitiated folks, it’s basically cabbage/tomato relish.
However, Chow-Chow can end up spicier than this squash relish. I have to imagine it’s because there’s less naturally-occurring sugars in the vegetables on offer in Chow-Chow versus squash relish, but I’m not a scientist.
Maybe by next week I’ll have an ice cream recipe for y’all to go with my ongoing ice cream maker saga, but that’s for another column.
Going through all these pickling recipes always reminds me that I’ve only scratched the surface of pickling possibilities. Maybe cinnamon pickles or pear pickles will make their way into my canner before harvest time is past us.
In the meantime, can someone come over and scare my tomatoes into fruiting? They just keep growing, but do you see me silly with tomatoes yet?
Nevertheless, I already have big plans to make myself a variation of my favorite meal: black-eyed peas, collard greens, and cornbread.
However, this one has the peas and greens stewed together with cornmeal biscuits steamed on top. If that sounds too high-falutin’, maybe it is, but it’s intriguing enough to attempt even once.
Besides, I can’t think of anything better than a hot plate of peas and greens dressed with a sweet relish and drizzled with hot sauce. My mouth is watering now, as we speak.
