Green Plum Pickle

Following on from my last post, I have become an ardent fan of unripe green plums.  I used the kilo of plums that did not fit in the chutney pan to make some highly experimental green plum pickle.  Since pickle does not keep very well, I tried some for my lunch today. I am converted.Recipe below – warning no guarantee of preserving quality of these. My supply is in the fridge just in case.

Green Plum Pickle (experimental) – makes about 5 jars

• approx 1 kilo unripe plums
• a handful of garden courgettes
• 2 onions
• salt
• 300ml vinegar
• 100g sugar
• spices – eg black peppercorns, mustard seeds
• 2 cloves of garlic

1. Wash and stone the plums and cut into thin strips
2. Wash the courgettes and cut into thin strips
3. Slice the onions
4. Layer all the vegetables in a large bowl with a good sprinkling of salt on each layer – leave for several hours
5. Rinse the vegetables well in cold water and leave to drain in a colander
6. Meanwhile, boil the vinegar with the spices, sugar and garlic and leave to cool slightly
7. Pack the vegetables into sterilised jars, leaving about 1cm space at the top
8. Pour over the vinegar mixture until all vegetables are submerged
9. Cover and store in the fridge

Enjoy

Pickle can be eaten more or less straight away.  Chutney has to mature, so I haven’t tried this year’s green plum chutney yet.  Off to pick some more plums though before they go and ripen.