Winter in the Caribbean is lush with limes, bitter oranges, mandarins, carambola (star fruit) and a host of other organic fruit and vegetables.  This recipe turns those bitter oranges into a condiment fit for avocado dishes, a compound butter for chicken and fish, salad dressings, fragrant rice dishes and more.  When the price for citrus in local markets soars, these pickled citrus are just the ticket and so easy to make with sea salt, garlic, chili, and assorted spices.  Pureed or smashed into a paste, these pickled citrus are very much like yuzu kosho (Japanese condiment made with orange citrus shaped like a hand) at pennies of the cost.

Every island in the Caribbean has bitter orange trees thanks to the Spanish conquistadors.  Unable to grow Seville oranges in the Caribbees, Curaçao in particular, the Spanish conquistadors ended up with these very bitter little oranges which are the basis of Curaçao liqueur also known as Triple-Sec.  They’re a good substitute for lemons and limes in a pinch but much better as a fermented pickle or made into liqueur.

This recipe process works well with limes, lemons or small tangerines.  If you have a lime or lemon tree in your backyard, try this pickle.  Select ripe fruit without blemishes. You’ll need 3 limes per half-pint jar plus 1 lime per jar for juice.   Scrub the skins clean and rinse well.  Dry them in the sun or with a clean dry kitchen cloth.  It is important to keep water out of this fermentation process.  To get the most juice out of your limes, pop them in the microwave for 10 seconds and roll them on your cutting board until they feel a bit softer.  Slice them on a plate to catch all the juice.

If you live in a country where winters are dark and gloomy, leave your jars on top of a refrigerator or hot water heater.  If you have lots of sunny days set the jars in a window that gets several hours of direct sun each day.   Don’t be alarmed if the lid bulges during the fermentation process.  The amount of salt and acid creates some gas but no harmful bacteria.

Salt Cure Ingredients for 4 Half-Pints of Limes:

• 16 limes
• 1 cup course sea salt or kosher salt (Morton canning salt will also work)
• 1 Tbsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (or to taste)
• 1 Tbsp yellow mustard seeds
• 2 tsp Madras Curry Powder (optional)

Method:

1. Wash 4  half-pint jars in warm sudsy water and sterilize in boiling water for 10 minutes. Drain and dry in the sun or set them on a towel in a baking pan and place in a warm oven on the lowest temperature until dry.
2. Slice off the blossom and stem end of each lime and slice each lime from top to bottom into quarters, then each quarter into 2 or three pieces.
3. Layer lime pieces into jars sprinkling salt cure liberally over each layer.  Add juice of one lime (plus collected juice from slicing) to each jar.
4. Cover jars with double thickness of plastic wrap and screw on lids finger tight so jars do not leak when shaken.
5. Shake jars to distribute salt cure and juice.  Set in direct sunlight for 3 weeks and shake jars each day.
6. Check periodically for texture and taste.  They should be soft, fragrant and pleasantly salty with lime flavor predominately.
7. Remove plastic wrap, wipe rims of jars and replace lids.  Store in refrigerator up to a year.

Variations:

1. Salt Pickled tangerines with star anise. Wonderful in mango chutney, red pepper chutney, add to aioli for yam fries, or coconut lamb curry.
2. Salt Pickled tangerine with fennel makes a delicious compound butter for beef.
3. To make a sweet pickled lemon add equal parts of sugar and salt with bay leaves and peppercorns. Delicious in quinoa.

]]> http://thisdamecooks.com/2011/12/pickled-limes/feed/ 0 http://thisdamecooks.com/2011/09/jammin-with-local-fresh-produce-in-rincon-puerto-rico/ http://thisdamecooks.com/2011/09/jammin-with-local-fresh-produce-in-rincon-puerto-rico/#comments Thu, 08 Sep 2011 22:13:13 +0000 admin http://thisdamecooks.com/?p=1705 Just look at this beautiful fruit from Rincon, Puerto Rico.  The mango in the background weighs more than a pound and the avocados to the right of the mango weigh about 8 or 9 oz. The lemons and limes give you some idea of how big that mango and avocado are.  The mango isn’t quite ripe for jam or smoothies but its green enough for 6 jars of chutney.  The avocados are buttery soft, not too far from the taste of a Haas avocado, and definitely worth every bite full.  They are perfect for eating fresh in a salad or with lime right out of the shell right now but since I have so many more avocados these are going into the freezer doused with lime juice.  They will make creamy guacamole, dips and sandwich spreads for Christmas parties.   More mangoes are coming for the jam pot and freezer.  Gonna love making island mango smoothies, crumbles and cobblers this winter.

Guavas have just come into season and their bitter sweet skins will go into the jam pot along with some ripe mango. Guava skins are 1/8 to 1/4-inch thick and tasty when stewed in a light syrup.  Guava puree and strawberries with a kiss of rosemary is my next jam creation.  More about guava in a coming up post.

Be sure to drop by again for more recipes with fresh local produce from Rincon, Puerto Rico. 

One of the advantages to this recipe is its replenishable without having to add more chilies or start from scratch again…at least a couple times…all that is needed to fill up the bottle again is more brine and time.

Any size glass bottle or jar will work depending upon how many chilies you have.  If a gallon jar is used, strain the sauce through a fine-mesh and fill smaller bottles for table use.  If you can’t find fresh pequin chilies in local markets, there are dried pequin chilies available in most Latin markets or check out chilepequin.com for seeds and all the instructions to grow your own pequins.  They also have several good salsa recipes.

Use this sauce like Tabasco.  It adds a little sparkle to just about any savory dish.

Ingredients for 1 pint bottle:

• 2/3 cup fresh pequin chilies, red and green, stems removed
• 3 sprigs of fresh oregano
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed slightly
• juice of 2 limes
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tsp sea salt
• enough white vinegar to fill bottle

Method:

1. Sterilize a pint bottle in boiling water for 10 minutes.  Drain.
2. While still hot, add chilies, oregano, garlic and lime juice to the bottle.  With a wooden spoon handle, crush the chilies slightly.
3. To make the brine:  In a small saucepan heat the water, sea salt, and vinegar to simmering.  Stir to dissolve salt.
4. Pour brine over chilies.  Cap or seal.  Let set for 7 days.  Refrigerate.

Notes:

1. For large batches, water-bath all bottles in boiling water for 15 minutes.  Water level must be 1-inch above bottle tops.  Remove from bath to draft-free area to cool.  Check that tops are sealed and store in cool, dark pantry for 1 year or longer.  Refrigerate after opening.
2. When sauce loses piquancy its time to start another batch or open another bottle.  When a bottle runs low on sauce but the chilies are still pleasantly piquant, just add more brine.

Tomato pulp with milk powder makes a wonderful facial mask that will actually help heal acne and defoliate skin.  Idea of Beauty claims vitamin C and potassium found in tomatoes help heal the skin.  We know the vitamins and minerals in tomatoes are internally good for our bodies so if you’d rather absorb  those nutrients in a pampered facial mask than eat them, so be it.  Certainly anything good to eat will not harm your skin unless you’re allergic to it.

There are dozens of varieties of tomatoes.  Beef steak tomatoes are good for salads, sandwiches, salsas, and stuffed with chicken salad, tuna salad, herbed cottage cheese, tabbouleh or couscous.

Roma tomatoes are more fleshy and make excellent Italian sauces, canned whole tomatoes, or dried tomatoes.  Even the sauce can be dehydrated for tomato paste.

Cherry tomatoes and salad tomatoes on the vine are wonderful roasted and preserved with olive oil for antipasto, meze plates, and everything in between.

There has got to be at least one new dish created everyday that uses tomatoes.  Try a few of the recipes given here.  Add your own herbs and spices, make them your own.  And while tomatoes are at their peak, preserve some for winter.

Homemade V-8 Juice:

• 2 lb tomatoes, washed, cored, and chopped
• 1 stalk of celery, washed and chopped with leaves
• 1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
• 1 small red beet, peeled and chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 medium red bell pepper, washed, seeded and chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
•  2 tsp of Old Bay Spice
• 1 Tbsp horseradish

Method:

1. In a stainless steel pan, cook vegetables about 20 minutes or until they are tender.
2. Puree in a food processor.
3. Add sea salt and sugar to taste.  Chill.
4. Follow the method for Canned Tomato Juice for larger quantities.

Here are a few ways to preserve them:

1. Frozen Tomatoes:  Wash and core, place in freezer bags whole and freeze.  They thaw out in a flash and are excellent in bolognese sauce and stews or soups.
2. Canned Tomato Juice:  Wash, core, quarter and cook (without added water) over medium heat in a stainless steel pan just until tender and juicy.  Run through a food mill or press through a fine mesh sieve (chinoise) to remove skins and seeds.  Add salt to taste and 1/2 tsp of citric acid to sterilized jars.  Pour tomato juice into hot jars up to 1/2 inch from the rims, seal and process in a pressure cooker for 35 minutes.  (see video below)
3. Canned Whole or Diced Tomatoes:  Wash and core tomatoes, slice an X into bottom of each tomato, dip into boiling water for 2 minutes then remove the skins.  Pack whole tomatoes or diced tomatoes into sterilized jars with salt to taste and 1/2 tsp citric acid.  Pour hot tomato juice into jar up to 1/2 inch from rim of jar, seal, and process in pressure cooker for 35 minutes.
4. Dried Tomatoes:  Use Roma or cherry tomatoes.  Wash and slice in half.  Place on trays in an electric dehydrator and dry per manufacturer’s instructions.  Or, place on racks over cookie sheets and dry in a 250° F. oven, turning ocassionally, until tomatoes are leathery.  Place dried tomatoes in sterile jars and store in a cool, dark pantry.  Or, add basil leaves, garlic, salt, and pour in hot olive oil up to 1/2 inch from the rims.  Seal immediately and place in a cool, dark  pantry for 1 week before using.  Refrigerate, after opening, up to 6 weeks.
5. Tomato Paste:  Use Roma or beef stake tomatoes.  Dry the tomatoes in a dehydrator until they are crisp (see video below), grind to a powder in a food processor or coffee mill and reconstitute with just enough water to make a paste.  To make a sauce, add a bit more water to the paste along with herbs, spices (salt, pepper, sugar, cinnamon, cloves etc.), onions, garlic, or mushrooms.
6. Tomato Caper Tapenade:  3/4 cup of dried tomatoes in oil, 1/4 cup drained capers, 2 cloves garlic, 1 tsp lemon zest, 1 Tbsp lemon juice, 1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves.  Process all ingredients until smooth.  Spoon into an 8 oz hot-sterilized- jar, top with 1/4 cup hot olive oil, seal immediately.  Refrigerate, after opening, up to 6 weeks.

Dehydrating tomatoes video

Canning tomatoes video

A chutney with its sweet and sour components really rounds out a meat or fish dish.  This recipe, Jamaican in origin, which I’ve used for years, utilizes unripened mangoes to perfection, especially those little native mangoes that tend to have stringy flesh.  I sold a lot of this condiment under the brand name of Island Gourmet while living in Nuku’alofa, Tonga.  When you have a mango tree right outside your back door heavily laden with fruit every year you can find plenty of ways to use the bounty and even make a buck or two.   Even if you don’t have your own mango tree you’ll love this preserve enough to hunt for green mangoes at your supermarket, Asian or Latin markets.  Its a great accompaniment to grilled fish steaks, fish fritters, pork roast, baked ham, lamb kebabs, or West Indies Meat Patties.  Make a batch for gourmet hostess gifts and share the recipe.

You’ll need very firm green (unripe) mangoes for this condiment so they don’t break down in the cooking process and retain some texture and sour fruity flavor.  Chilies are a must and the hotter the better to balance out the sweetness.  Bell peppers, onions and garlic lend more texture and flavor.   Green papaya, peaches, pears or apples can be used in place of mango.   Yellow or green tomatoes can be substituted for ripe tomatoes.  Add some tamarind or lime juice to mellow out the vinegar flavor.  Get creative and make it your own!

Ingredients:

• 6 cups green mango diced into 1/2-inch cubes
• 2 cups fine chopped onion
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 6 Scotch Bonnet chilies, seeded and chopped (or habaneros)
• 4 bell peppers (2 red, 2 green), seeded and chopped
• 2 cups tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh ginger, chopped
• 1 cup golden raisins (sultanas) (optional)
• 1 Tbsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp allspice
• 2 cups white vinegar
• 2-1/2 cups granulated sugar

Method:

1. Place all ingredients except sugar in a stainless steel or porcelain stock pot over medium high heat.
2. Bring to a boil.  Lower heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
3. Add sugar, uncover and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until liquid reduces.  Stir more frequently towards the end of the 45 minutes until very thick.   Take care not to burn bottom.
4. Sterilize 4 pint jars and lids.  Fill to within 1/2 inch of rim, cap, and process in boiling water bath for 15 minutes.
5. Store in cool, dark pantry.  Refrigerate once opened.