Any supermarket sells pickles. You can choose vegetables for every taste. But what to do if you have homemade cucumbers, zucchini, tomatoes and other vegetables at your dacha. How not to prepare assorted rolls - cucumbers and tomatoes, sauced zucchini, sweet peppers? You can always choose a recipe to suit your taste, rather than the one offered in the store. Surprise close relatives and friends for the holiday.
Features of preserving assorted cucumbers, tomatoes and zucchini for the winter
Assorted vegetables are prepared in different ways. Include various vegetables, choose marinade spices to taste.
Assorted pickles contain vinegar or its substitutes: citric acid, sour fruits. Canning occurs in two ways. In the first option, the marinade is poured three times, the jars are sealed, and covered with a blanket. In the second option, pouring the marinade is carried out once and set to sterilize.
Salted vegetables are prepared in jars and barrels. As a result of fermentation, natural acid appears. Containers with pickled vegetables are not clogged. Cover with nylon lids and place pressure on the barrels.
Ingredients for a 3-liter jar
Approximate amount of main ingredients:
- cucumbers – 300 grams;
- tomatoes – 1.5 kilograms;
- zucchini – 2 pieces;
- paprika – 2 pieces;
- carrots - 1 piece.
Spicy spices:
- black peppercorns – 6 pieces;
- allspice – 6 pieces;
- garlic – 6 cloves;
- dill - 1 umbrella;
- bay leaf – 2 pieces.
Those who love a bright aroma add 4 cloves and 2 celery branches.
For the sweet and sour marinade:
- water – 1.5 liters;
- salt – 2 tablespoons;
- sugar – 4 tablespoons;
- vinegar - 6 tablespoons.
The proportions for the brine can be changed depending on your preferences. You can take 8 tablespoons of sugar. Then the marinade will turn out sweet. In the classic version, an equal amount of salt and sugar is used.
Table vinegar can be replaced with apple or grape vinegar.
How to choose vegetables
The main condition that the main ingredients must meet is fruits from the garden that are not damaged.
Zucchini is chosen at milk age, without seeds, with soft skin and dense pulp. In appearance, the stalk should not be sluggish, the second tip should be elastic.Tomatoes should be of medium ripeness. Overripe fruits will turn into mush.
Cucumbers must have:
- black spikes;
- to be even;
- with hard skin so that you can press it with your fingernail. When preserved they will crisp up;
- not overripe;
- with green skin;
- not bitter.
It is advisable to use dessert varieties. The bitterness in the pickles remains.
Preparing containers
When canning, special attention is paid to containers. The containers are taken whole, the neck is without chips. Banks are sterilized using various methods. The containers are first washed with soda.
Fallow
In the store you can buy auxiliary lids with holes designed to fit the neck of the jars. Take water into a saucepan, bring to a boil, put in jars, sterilize half-liter containers for 5 minutes, 10 minutes for liter containers, 15 minutes for three-liter containers. If the jars have a narrow neck, put them on the spout of the kettle.
Microwave
Water is poured into each container “on your finger” and placed in the oven for 5 minutes. Three-liter jars are placed lying down.
In the oven
Dry jars are placed upside down. Oven temperature is room temperature. Heat the oven to 150 degrees. After 15 minutes they pull it out.
Steamer
The containers are installed in the same way as in the oven. Turn on the “Cooking” option for 15 minutes.
Cooking process
Vegetables are washed under running water and dried. The main ingredients are placed whole, large ones are cut into slices. Spices are placed on the bottom, vegetables are placed on top in a chaotic manner or in layers.
Pickles are poured several times without sterilization. The first two times - boiling water. Let it sit for 20 minutes between pours. For the third time, add salt and sugar. Vinegar is poured into jars. The containers are rolled up with metal lids, turned upside down, and covered with a blanket.
In the recipe with sterilization, the marinade is boiled with salt, sugar, vinegar, and poured once. Cover the jars with lids and set them to sterilize. To do this, cover the bottom of the pan with material and install the jars. The water must be heated. Sterilize a 3-liter jar for 25 minutes. The cylinders are pulled out and sealed. No additional cover is required.
Terms and rules for storing canned food
The final stage of canning is secure storage. Pickled vegetables can be stored in a cool place for 6 months without sterilization. Sterilized vegetables are kept at a temperature no higher than 20 degrees for 1 year.
Salted vegetables are kept in the basement under a nylon lid for 3-6 months.
