h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hi Shazz!
Just searched all over the net for advice on re-cycling my old jars & making pickle (I've got some nice ripe mangoes plus left-over vegetarian mincemeat: should be an interesting experiment!)
Came up with thousands of results but nothing quick, easy & practical. Just about to give up when I thought "sod it, lets see what hootoo's got"; lo & behold, here you are! What could be better than real communication about my real-life pickling?

When I was in the Middle East making illicit wine (!) we used to sterilise bottles using a dilute solution of bleach (working on the principle that it was a less costly version of baby sterilising fluid; chemically it's exactly the same); have you ever used this as an alternative to putting the jars in the oven?
I'm just slightly concerned in case they explode or don't get heated enough to kill all the bugs, plus I'm a bit clumsy & likely to burn myself on a hot jar or drop it!

Nice to meet you, do drop in on my page (it's a fun place to lurk!)
I'll let you know how the pickling went. Great entry very much!

Terri(today!)

Hi Terri

So sorry, somehow I missed this when you first posted!

Thank you for your kind words.

The only alternative I have ever used is those sterilisation tablets you can buy for cleaning water (or false teeth!).

Personally, as I have only ever pickled in England or Holland where the standard of water is considered safe I have always made do with washing them out in very hot water, drying them and popping them in the oven. They really won't explode provided they aren't sealed, filled or stuck into one of about 450%.

As vinegar is a fairly stringent acid, I assume that any nasty little bugs which may have survived that treatment will perish pretty quickly after it's addition.

As to burning yourself - if you are worried about placing them individually on the oven racking, why not line them up in a baking tray a few at a time, then remove them with the use of an oven cloth all in one go?

Do please let me know how you get on. Sadly I didn't have time to make any myself this Autumn, but will need to do so soon before my supply runs out - the only pickled onions available here are those small silverskin ones which are quite nice but nothing like the 'real' thing. I often wonder if I could saturate the market and make a bundle by introducing my ones.

On a side note, <./>ThePost</.> is always on the look-out for interesting, original recipes, so do please send any you may have over for inclusion. The Recipe Section has gone a little quiet since Christmas.

shazz

Hi Shazz, sorry I haven't got back to you sooner, heavy times in RL, hopefully a bit better now.

--I'd be interested in doing some stuff for the Post, just going through backlog at the moment, so do give me a kick up the bum & remind me!!


Terri

Excellent

Just drop me an email via the PO when you have something you want to submit.

shazz

Will do!

for the reminder, I've put it in my diary to do tomorrow (assuming no major disasters in RL!)



Terri

Howdy folk After the Christmas over indulgence, which in our family at least includes the consumption of vast quantities of pickled onions, I've decided to drive my cooking experiance to strange new worlds and make me own pickled onions Mainly this is because the supermarket ones are never really good enough well some are better than others Wahts the jurrys view on actual 'pickling vingigar' which I know I can get from teh supermarket? does it still rquire the boiling? I'm using sharlotts (charlotts?) as I can get em from over teh road from the organic shop and I'm going to experiment with a few of the jars I make by addition of chilli peppers and perhaps some other oddities Are fish n chip shops really a good source of jars? is there anywhere you can buy (in the UK), the ones with the 'funny' lids, like with the rubber seal bits ? : If it works out then I'l be doing this every year so it might be worth me investing in a few decent jars in which to do it

Hi 2legs

The pickling vinegar is fine for knocking out a quick batch but I personally still boiled it with the spices. How I wish I could buy it here in Holland

Shallots are excellent as they peel well, hold their shape and are quite small. The last batch I did here the onions were pretty big and I could hardly fit them in the jars.

Not so sure about F&C shops in London for getting jars - I was in the more rural part of the UK and they were happy to offload their jars. The ones with the funny lids are called kilner jars and you should certainly still be able to buy those from a good cookware store. Purchase a few extra seals while you're at it although they should last for years if you look after them. They are extremely good for pickled onions (and anything else you decide to pickle!)

Found some online - try here: http://www.waresofknutsford.co.uk/
(waresofknutsford dot co dot uk and click on the 'preserving' picture )
shazz

Had a look earlier today on the Grocery online shopping site I use and they do the pickling vinigar; sarsons (as all their vinigar seemed to be), guess that should be pretty* good stuf fto use and not wildly expensive; I'm going to try only doing a small batch the first time and at some point I'd like to try pickled red cabbage and maybe eggs too so I think I may well invest in some of those reusable jars; the only fish and Chip shops near me, I very much doubt weahter I'd be able to get any jars off em So, even with the sarsons pickling vinigar, it'd be worth making up a bag of spices to go in? and it'd still need boilign? How long do you think they should or could be left in the jars? I want to make some and get em relaly* strong by Christmas coming, or would that be too long from now? (doesn't matter if it is, I can still make some now for consumption before Christmas )

Ooooh Shazz sighting!!!

This is really romantic, this is how we first met, next thing you know i am writing for & we have established phone link ups between darkest France & deepest Holland; it's amazing what a shared love of pickled onions can do!

Down, 2 legs, down, i can imagine you fantasising about all sorts of possibilities; get back in the kitchen right now!

zdt

Oooo pickled carrots?! pickled gherkins! gherkins! pickled tomatos pickled turnips pickled courgette pickled quailles eggs pickled garlic pickled chillis pickled leek pickled walnuts pickled spring onions pickled me!

Hi Terri

The love of pickled onions is a wonderful thing indeed.

2legs. Sarsons Pickling vinegar is great stuff. If you don't want to go to the bother of boiling it up with spices it will still make mighty fine onions used straight from the bottle - try adding some cider or tarragon speciality vinegar in the mix to give an extra kick.

I have kept pickled onions for 5 years and they still tasted great. Keep them in a cupboard out of the light, though, so the vinegar doesn't evaporate!

shazz

Yeh, I thought I remember a friend of mine when I was a lot younger who's mother would ocasionally produce jars of pickled onions from teh back of a cupboard, and whipe off the cobwebs to reveal labels showing a date nearly ten years previously! : they always tasted good... naa great! ahh cider vinigar I've seen that on sale too on the grocery online website and some other 'fancy vinigars' I'll have to experiment I think wonder what size of jar I should get; that site seems to have a range of differnt sizes If you make it to any other London meets any time I'll bring a jar once I'v emade em

Nah, that's just an excuse. You have to watch it 'cos sometimes the little buggers craftily lift the lids off & creep out in the middle of the night; if you have never woken up next day to find a pickled onion nestled in crevices you weren't aware you had, you haven't lived.

zdt*keeper of mutant ninja pickles*

your serious arn't you!

I'd buy the bigger jars... it depends on your cupboard sizes really. I'd also recommend buying the largest size of sarsons malt - much cheaper that way and any spare goes great on chips.

See if you can get raspberry vinegar. You get a really great sweet 'n sour effect with it and the onions look pretty too. Look under variations in the entry for all the specialist vinegars I have used.

Mutant ninja onions are famed throughout the land 2legs... so be careful once you have them in your home

shazz

Yes. She squeaks the truth, we are only trying to protect you. Actually, beware even more of those in raspberry vinegar; they may appear sweet & innocent but you've heard of blowing raspberries...sleep in pyjamas is my advice.

Incidentally; in French slang "oignion" = onion but also a**eho*e so be very very careful when shopping for your little shalotts round here.

zdt

Sorry for lurking. What is it with pickling today? 2legs is all pickled up as well!

Ah, that'll teach me to read the backlog when making random lurking postings...

they only seemed to do sone size of the sarsons pickling vinigar, not sure if I saw rassberry vinigar, I'll have to have a look round; they definatley had cider vinigar and some others I forget the bigger jars? probably easier too using bigger jars I guess I'll have to propposition the folk over in the farm shop this week, see what they can do me on their organic sharlotts onions, and see if they've any sources of jars for me, or for that matter for suitable vinigars hmm.... if I can make totally orgnaic ones, then I might be able to sell em to him over the road too hang on... I've never* made pickled onions before, and I'm already thinking about setting up a mass producing set up in my kitchen and exporting them to the shop over the road

A new career beckons; i can see the signs now:

"Roll up; roll up, the World Famous 2 Legs Pickled Onions; round & firm & juicy, just you bite into this one & watch the juices squirt. Free jumbo size gherkin with every 2nd jar;"

Yes; let's make pickles the sexiest thing on earth.

zdt