Green Tomato Pickles

By patticakes

Ingredients

• 4 quarts sliced green tomatoes, loosely packed
• 1 quart sliced onion, loosely packed
• 1 cup pickling salt, divided
• 2 pounds light brown sugar
• 6 cups vinegar (5% acidity)
• 2 small red chile peppers
• 1/3 cup mustard seeds
• 1/4 cup celery seeds
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon whole allspice
• 2 teaspoons whole cloves

Details

Servings 4
Adapted from southernfood.about.com

Preparation

Step 1

Place sliced tomatoes and sliced onion in separate bowls; sprinkle 3/4 cup salt over
tomatoes and 1/4 cup salt over onion; stir both mixtures. Cover both bowls and
let stand at room temperature for 4 to 6 hours.
Place tomatoes in a cheesecloth bag, and squeeze gently to remove excess
juice. Repeat this procedure for onion. Discard the salt liquid.
Combine tomatoes, onion, sugar, vinegar, chile peppers, mustard seeds,
celery seeds, and pepper in a large kettle. Tie allspice and cloves
in a small cheesecloth bag; add to tomato onion mixture. Bring mixture to a boil.
Reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, over low heat 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
Pack tomato mixture and liquid into hot sterilized 1-quart jars (with 1 piece of the chile pepper in each jar - cut if necessary), leaving 1/2-inch
headspace; wipe jar rims. Cover at once with metal lids, and screw on
ring bands. Process in a boiling water bath 10 minutes.
Store in a cool dark place. Store opened pickles in refrigerator.
Makes 4 1-pint jars or 2 1-quart jars.