Pickled Bell Peppers for Winter

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   Gather your ingredients. Use fresh bell peppers, choosing ripe, unblemished ones if you can; peppers of different colors make the relish look more striking. Use 9% vinegar and vegetable oil. For seasoning: allspice, bay leaves, salt (non-iodized), and sugar. You can add other spices if you like — coriander, cloves, black peppercorns. Have sterilized glass jars ready.

2. Step 2:

   

   It's best to use thick-walled peppers for this recipe — the finished relish comes out tastier and juicier. Wash the peppers under cold running water and dry them, then cut off the stems and remove the seeds. Cut the peppers into large, roughly shaped pieces. The weight given is for the already-cut peppers. If you have fewer, just use what you've got.

3. Step 3:

   

   For the marinade, pour water into your pot, add the table vinegar and odorless vegetable oil, then add the sugar, salt, bay leaves, and allspice. Set the pot over the heat and bring it to a boil, stirring.

4. Step 4:

   

   Add the chopped peppers to the boiling marinade. They may not all fit at once, so you can do this in two batches.

5. Step 5:

   

   Bring the marinade and peppers back to a boil over medium heat and cook for 3–4 minutes. The time can vary noticeably depending on how soft you want the peppers — after about 4 minutes of gentle boiling they'll keep their crunch and be just slightly soft, while longer cooking will soften them and make them lose their shape. Cook the remaining peppers in the same marinade.

6. Step 6:

   

   Pack the pepper pieces into the pre-sterilized jars, pressing them down. Top off with marinade (brought back to a boil first) if needed — the peppers should be completely covered. Seal the jars right away, turn them upside down, and cover with a blanket. Once cool, move the jars to a dark, cool place for storage.

7. Step 7:

   

   You can dig into the pickled peppers as soon as they've cooled — no need to wait for long storage. It's a cold appetizer, but it can also stand on its own as a snack with slices of fresh bread.