need help with recipe for Zucchini salsa

17 years ago

I found reference to this recipe on another forum and it sounds great, how ever I don't think it sounds safe. So I was wondering if any one had a similar safe recipe that could be boil bathed. This recipe calls for no boil bath and corn starch in it. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Zucchini Salsa

10 cups zucchini, peeled and shredded

4 onions, chopped

2 green bell peppers, chopped

2 red bell peppers, chopped

1/4 cup pickling salt

1 tablespoon pickling salt

2 tablespoon dry mustard

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon cumin

2 cups white vinegar

1 cup brown sugar (less sugar would be good)

2 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon black pepper

5 cups chopped ripe tomatoes

2 tablespoon cornstarch

2 cans tomato paste

In a large bowl combine;

Zucchini, onions, green pepper, red pepper and the

salt Mix together cover and let stand over night.

Next day rinse, drain well and put into a large pot then

add mustard, garlic, cumin, vinegar, brown sugar, pepper

flakes, cornstarch, nutmeg, pepper, tomatoes and tomato

paste.

Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes.

Water bath jars if they have not sealed properly.

Note: If you want it "HOT" just add a dozen finely chopped jalapenos

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Comments (7)

annie1992
17 years ago
OK, I'm going to go out on a limb here. Since Linda Lou's zucchini relish has 12 cups of zucchini, along with 4 cups of onion and some sweet peppers, and uses 2 1/4 cups of vinegar, I think this would be all right re acidity although frankly I might bump the vinegar up to 3 cups to be sure. I'd sub jalapenos for some of the sweet pepper and leave the cornstarch out entirely, then waterbath 10 minutes for pints.

My disclaimer? It's not a tested recipe, I'm not qualified to speak for the USDA and I can't make any guarantees about the acidity level or the safety, but with approximately the same amount of low acid vegetables and the same amount of vinegar I think a valid comparison could be made if you cared to try it.

I might make a small batch and see how it was before I made a bunch, though.

Annie
readinglady
17 years ago
I think Annie's on the right track. I'm not "official" either, but the vinegar isn't diluted and the tomato paste is also high-acidity. Definitely get rid of the cornstarch and don't add any peppers beyond what's in the recipe. But you can swap one kind of pepper for another as long as the total amount remains the same.

Carol
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Common sense isn't telling people to an anything what want to. Its easy to know if something is acidic, maybe not without a pH meter, but taste can also tell you if its sour or highly acidic. Many people follow recipes recipes to the exact letter and 'assume' its safe or will have a good flavor and texture. They quickly realize that recipes are not exact science when it comes to the ingredients used. Preaching about home canning safety and using 'scare tactics' only make many people afraid to can anything even though there are many recipes out there that are safe and can even accept suntitutes for some of the ingredients. Maybe not everyone who does come canning for years knows that eggs, dairy, pasta, and oils are all considered unsafe, but for a recipe that is based on acidic based fruit like apples, its sure to be safe enough if the low acid components are added in dehyradted state, and soal up acid and all te rest of the liqids. Making a salsa with apples, apple cider vinegar, a few onions, and a few hot peppers will most definatly be something that can be made safe enough to home can. I'm not taking about a half cup of apples, and 6 cups of hot peppers and onions. Obviosuly thats way too much low acid. Adding cider vinegar like a cup to two cups, with 2-3 cups of apples, and a half cup of onions, an a quarter cup of hot peppers will suffice as bsic recipe. Were not making a hot pepper and onion salsa here, but an apple based one. The main reason most all my home canning has been safe for many years is not because I follow recipes, but know, by their nature what things can be added to increase acidity, and go structly by taste BEFORE its canned. Common sense tells us that we know there are toxins out there that need to be avoided, and improper home canning can encourage some safety issues. A good example of following a pickle recipe that calls for vinegar, salt and water and spices. I do NOT add water, so anything I pickle will be much safer when it comes to an actaul acid level, as far as I am concerned. Adding water to dilute things only adds more unsafe factors to an otherwise safe recipe or a procedure. Tinkering with other ingredients amounts also factors in, but for a salsa, I wouldn't even think of using a lot of hot peppers, as it can spoil many recipes if you can't eat a lot of hot stuff. I made a large batch of sugar free orange sauce, not for canning, added just a tablespoon of jarred garlic and chili paste and it was way too hot for me. I had to dilute the sauce with more orange and its grated peel to dilute the heat. I bet if I wanted to safely can it, I could. It was cooked, and the thickener used was Clear Jel. Because it was sugaress and used Splenda, I also added citric acid to increase the acidity. If I were to test its pH it would probably be down below 4. Obviously, home canning that would require more than 'common sense', and would require me to do a bit more research about what can go into it, to keep it safe. I don't tell people to can everything, and don't intend to hold hands to guide them through every facet and detail. If that were the case, I would tell them to forget about attempting to home can anyuthing as they simply lack common sense. ANY recipe, no matter how safe, can still be dangerous if the ingredients were incorrectly added in amounts that can change the overall results. You said that what we do in our kitchens is our own business, and you can rest assured that I don't have things like pickled eggs. I do make pickled pepperoncini peppers without any added heat only because I use full strength vinegar and a process that will force the all vinegar brine into each pepper's insides, by means of a strong vacuum. Common sense tells me the process I use is quite safe, and is the exact same way they are pickled commercially, but there, they use 20% vinegar and water it down to the 5%. No heat used in commercial pickled peppers either.
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Does that mean you only need 1/2 C instead of 1C in Annie's if used in place of vinegar? No it doesn't. Please do not read into it any more than what is said. The recipe calls for 1 cup of vinegar. You have a choice of the acids you can use instead of all or part of the vinegar only because we know that brand name bottled lemon or lime juice is stronger than vinegar so it can be safely substituted. NCHFP says "bottled lemon juice can be substituted for vinegar because it is more acidic but vinegar cannot be substituted for bottled lemon juice." Which you use - vinegar or lemon or lime or a mixture of all three is up to you. It is a matter of different taste. So that does NOT, in any way, mean that you can cut the total amount called for in the recipe. Many discount brand bottled juices, be they apple, grape. orange, lemon, or whatever contain varying degrees of the actual juice so label reading is a must. There was a recent news story 3 or 4 months back about one of the common store/generic brands that actually contained no, none, zero juice of the of fruit on its label - just sugars and water, some rind and food colorings. Buyer beware. ;) Dave
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Linda_Lou
17 years ago
That is some strange recipe, a combination of the zucchini relish, then add some tomato, cumin, crushed red pepper, and a few other things thrown in.... sounds really sweet.
I would add some more vinegar or bottled lemon juice. You need more because I am not sure how many cups 4 onions chopped will be. The zucchini relish goes by cups. Plus, the relish has one red and one green bell pepper, not two each. Then, you are adding tomatoes. Remember, for each quart of canned tomatoes, you need 2 T. bottled lemon juice or 4 T. vinegar that is 5 % acidity. (Bottled lemon juice is twice as acidic as vinegar, but tastes less acidic in recipes.)
Sooooo, I don't know exactly how much to tell you to add to be safe. Personally, I would pressure can it. But, I like to always pressure can salsa. Processing for only 10 min. won't be long enough.
The origianal relish recipe is processed for 15 min.
annie1992
17 years ago
That IS an odd recipe for salsa, isn't it Linda Lou? A salsa without hot peppers other than that small amount of crushed stuff just doesn't seem right.

So you do think the vinegar should be bumped up? I was afraid so. I wondered about the time, but the recipe I found for your zucchini relish said 10 minutes for pints. It wasn't here, though, it was at another website. Girlfriend, you are EVERYWHERE! LOL

Annie
veggiecanner
Original Author
17 years ago
It is amazing the old canning recipes on the web and how many still only recomend open kettle canning.
I think I'll move on to a different recipe. Thanks for the help. i really don't want to do the work if it is not going to be worth eating.
Linda_Lou
17 years ago
Annie, it did say 10 min. ? I have to confess, that I often do a search and copy and paste the recipes from places I remember having them posted... I don't have time to do all this retyping, especially during canning season.
You are right, one site does say 10 min. ! Will have to check my own recipe... you all know how crazy I get this time of year. Well, worse than ususal, anyway, LOL !
OK, my own recipe DOES say 10 min. The 15 min. I found again, on another site, posted by someone else. Sooo, I guess the canning craziness has hit me already. Send the guys in the white aprons for me !

That is really a weird recipe to me. I would open a jar of zucchini relish and then a jar of salsa, mix them, and taste to see if I like it. It seems SO sweet. Sort of reminds me of that red hamburger relish you buy in the store, not salsa.
Yes, Veggiecanner, it is truly amazing what you will still find people doing when it comes to food preservation and food safety in general.
And then, people say they have "the flu" when often it is forms of food poisoning due to their unsafe storage of homecooked foods, leaving foods unrefrigerated.
I have heard some really strange things, I tell you.

Try Annie's salsa if you haven't. I like it really well. Everyone else does, too. Then, if you don't like it, send it to me ! Ha ha.
The salsa recipes do say 15 min. on the food safety sites.
bristlingacres
16 years ago
I just made this salsa! I hadn't read this thread before making it though. I did omit the cornstarch. It actually tasted good! Odd and certainly different from any other salsa I've had. I processed it in a water bath for 15 minutes.
Astrid

need help with recipe for Zucchini salsa

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annie1992

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need help with recipe for Zucchini salsa

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annie1992

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