I’m getting increasingly keen on making preserves. It takes me right back to my Grandad’s little kitchen and the smell of boiling vinegar. I miss him, and in a funny way, creating such boiled and jellied concoctions in my own family kitchen makes me feel closer to him and his memory.
To help us get a little more adventurous in our cooking, we’ve been working our way through Jams, a new cookbook by Gina Steer (Flame Tree, £9.99) that’s crammed with straightforward, easy to follow recipes for traditional jams, jellies, curds, chutneys and pickles.
This week, we had a go at preserving aubergines, which resulted in soft, pickled slices of aubergine, intensely flavoured with coriander, chilli, capers and five spice. A slice or two dotted through a salad adds an unusual zing.
The publishers kindly agreed to let me share the recipe with you. Let me know if you try it.
Note: I found that you really do need to follow the instructions and dry them really, really well at stages 2 and especially stage 3 or the texture will be wrong and they’ll be super strong flavoured! Also, you do need to give them those 2 weeks at least for the flavour to start to mellow.
Here’s how to make preserved aubergines. Makes about 450 g/1 lb
Ingredients
- 450 g (1 lb) aubergines
- 2–3 tbsp salt
- 300 ml (1/2 pint) water
- 300 ml (1/2 pint) white wine vinegar
- 2 tsp whole allspice
- 2 tbsp black peppercorns
- 2 tsp capers
- 50 g (2 oz) pitted olives
- 1 red chilli
- 2 tbsp freshly chopped coriander
- 300 ml (1/2 pint) olive oil
Instructions
- Trim and slice the aubergines. Layer with 1–2 tablespoons of the salt in a colander standing on a tray to catch the water extracted. Leave for 8 hours, then remove and discard the extracted water.
- Pat the aubergine slices dry with kitchen paper, place in a saucepan with the remaining salt, water, vinegar, allspice and peppercorns. Bring to the boil and reduce the heat, then simmer for 5 minutes.
- Drain the aubergines, discarding the vinegar mixture. Place the aubergines on plenty of absorbent kitchen paper. Leave until completely dry, replacing the paper as necessary.
- Thoroughly rinse the salt off the capers, then chop finely with the olives, chilli and coriander.
- Layer the aubergines with the chopped caper mixture in one or two sterilized glass jars with tight-fitting lids. Pour in sufficient oil to cover. Seal and store for at least 2 weeks before using.
Store in a cool place.
Here’s the recipe for preserved aubergines again in a printable format.
Preserved aubergines
Ingredients
- 450 g (15.87 oz) aubergines
- 2 tbsp salt
- 300 ml (10.14 floz) water
- 300 ml (10.14 floz) white wine vinegar
- 2 tsp whole allspice
- 2 tbsp black peppercorns
- 2 tsp capers
- 50 g (1.76 oz) pitted olives
- 1 red chilli
- 2 tbsp coriander freshly chopped
- 300 ml (10.14 floz) olive oil
Instructions
- Trim and slice the aubergines. Layer with 1–2 tablespoons of the salt in a colander standing on a tray to catch the water extracted. Leave for 8 hours, then remove and discard the extracted water.
- Pat the aubergine slices dry with kitchen paper, place in a saucepan with the remaining salt, water, vinegar, allspice and peppercorns. Bring to the boil and reduce the heat, then simmer for 5 minutes.
- Drain the aubergines, discarding the vinegar mixture. Place the aubergines on plenty of absorbent kitchen paper. Leave until completely dry, replacing the paper as necessary.
- Thoroughly rinse the salt off the capers, then chop finely with the olives, chilli and coriander.
- Layer the aubergines with the chopped caper mixture in one or two sterilized glass jars with tight-fitting lids. Pour in sufficient oil to cover. Seal and store for at least 2 weeks before using.
Nutrition
Have you tried preserved aubergines before?
If you enjoyed this recipe, why not take a look at my list of 10 unusual foods to try?
Disclosure: we were sent the Jams cookbook for review. No payment was received. all posts are 100% honest.
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