Chow Chow (Picalilli Relish) Recipe

The origins of chow chow are rather obtuse. Some say the Brits brought this relish back from India, based on the sweet chutneys that accompanied the cuisine. Others say it's just a version of gherkin pickling that arose out of the need to keep vegetables in an edible state during the brutally cold and wet winters. Britons even call it by another name: picalilli relish.

Whatever the case may be, chow chow eventually found its way to North America, where it gained popularity in the South, and based on an ungodly amount of green tomatoes. I researched recipes from Britain all the way west to Canada and down through Louisiana, and this is my personal, international version of chow chow (or picalilli, however you want to call it).

The American Saveur's Chow Chow Recipe

1/4 large head of cabbage (not napa or savoy)
1 lbs of green tomatoes
1 yellow bell pepper
2 small yellow onions
1/4 cauliflower head

4 cups of apple cider vinegar
3 cups of white sugar

1 tbsp ground turmeric
3 heaping tbsp of dry yellow mustard powder (Colemans is best)
4 heaping tbsp of AP flour
1 tsp of cornstarch
3/4 cup water

Finely chop all vegetables and mix together. Set aside.

Pour vinegar and sugar into large, non-reactive pot on medium heat until sugar is melted and vinegar is warm. Pour chopped vegetables into pot and turn up heat on high until vegetables boil. Turn down heat to low, and simmer for 45 minutes.

Mix dried spices, flour, cornstarch and water together to form a paste. At the 45 minute mark, pour the spice mixture and stir until it is well-combined. Turn up heat to med-high and stir for 10 minutes until mixture thickens. Turn off heat, set aside.

Using some sterilized jars, scoop batches of chow chow into each container and sterilize in hot water bath. Set aside, and refrigerate when containers are cool to the touch.

Makes enough relish for 3-5 large pickle jars or 6-7 jam/preserve jars. Serve as condiment to sausages, hot dogs, burgers, sandwiches, cheese plates or breakfast items.

Beef Cheeks Stew

This is a simple dish, made in the style of a "daube," a traditional French stew. Instead of herbes de provence, I used only thyme, building flavor by adding a light sweet/sour element at the end.












1/2 kg of beef cheeks, cut into large chunks
2 slices of bacon, cut into short strips
1 tbsp olive oil
1 parsnip, cut into large bite-sized chunks
1 carrot, cut into large bite-sized chunks
1 onion, cut into large chunks
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
4-5 sprigs of fresh thyme
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 cup of dry red wine
1 cup of beef or vegetable stock

8-10 brown mushrooms, cleaned and cut into halves
1 shallot, sliced thinly
2 tbsp of rice wine vinegar or sherry vinegar
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp butter

Using a medium pot set on medium heat, saute the garlic, onion and bacon until onions are cooked down. Toss in carrots and parsnips and saute for another 5 minutes. Set vegetables aside in a bowl. Using the oil in the pot, put beef cheeks, thyme and tomato paste in pot and brown on medium high heat. Add the wine and make sure the browned bits are scraped off into the wine as it lends flavor to the stew. Put the vegetables back into pot and add stock. Turn heat down to the lowest setting and simmer for 2 hours.

In small saute pan, melt butter until sizzling and then add the shallot. Fry until golden brown and add sugar and half of the vinegar. Add mushrooms and the other half of the vinegar and saute until mushrooms are half cooked. Pour contents of the saute pan into the pot with beef. Cook together for another 30-45 minutes.

The cheeks will be tender and you'll have an amazing sauce for which you can eat with good crusty french bread, mashed potatoes, rice or pasta.

Kumara (New Zealand Sweet Potato)

I've been fascinated with kumara ever since my first trip here to New Zealand. Its sweet, delicate flavor is not as rich as the American variety, but is just as hearty and packs lots of flavor as a roast or mash.

On the Kaipara Kumara website, they talk a little bit about the history of the kumara and how Maori first cultivated and used the root vegetable:

"The kumara has a long history of cultivation in New Zealand. Brought here by the early Maori settlers over one thousand years ago from Pacific Islands, they were widely grown especially in the semi-tropical regions of the North Island.

The Maori managed kumara growing with great horticultural skill, making use of the ideal growing climate and controlling kumara caterpillar with the use of tamed black-backed seagulls. Kumara caterpillar could devastate a crop almost overnight, hatching in their thousands. Pre-European Maori grew several different varieties of 'bush' kumara, but compared to the varieties we eat today they were very small in size, being no bigger than a finger.

The kumara we eat today has evolved from a larger American variety. It was imported in the early 1850's, and quickly adopted for its superior size and taste."

That said, our American sweet potato is only distantly related to the potato. The softer, orange variety is often called a yam in parts of North America, a practice intended to differentiate it from the firmer, white variety. The sweet potato is botanically very distinct from the other vegetable called a yam, which is native to Africa and Asia. To prevent confusion, the United States Department of Agriculture requires that sweet potatoes labeled as "yams" also be labeled as "sweet potatoes."

"