Personally, I would dump it. I can't prove that it isn't safe, but it hasn't been verified for food safety and it's heavy in low-acid vegetables.

The other option is to use the jars that remain in cooked recipes like chili where it's going to be boiled 10 minutes or more. This is a way to salvage what's been processed rather than eating the product out of the jar.

Carol

I agree. It might be safe but there is no way to know for sure and the risk just isn't worth it. And since salsas are eaten without cooking first the risk doubles.

Carol's suggestion of cooking it is a good one and a safe compromise.

Dave

Well, yes and no. You can still get botulism through your skin as you open the jars. A contaminated dishcloth, etc. I personally feel that trying to save a little food is not worth the risk.
There is a great tested, safe recipe for green tomato salsa from USDA. I make it and it is really good.

Boiling lids is not recommended. A slight simmer is OK, and boiling heat can break down the rubber sealing compound. Jars only need to be clean if doing hot packs. I run mine through a hot water rinse cycle in my dishwasher before filling them.

Thanks, I dumped it all, now I have 4 more jars to use for something else.

I wasn't too bummed about it, I didn't like it at all.

For future reference you might want to keep in mind that particular website has a number of unsafe canning recipes posted on it and a reputation for just that - advocating unsafe practices. None of the recipes posted there are vetted so use them with great care.

Dave

How safe is this one?

Green Tomato Relish
12 lg green tomatoes
3 red bell peppers, halved & seeded
12 lg onions
1 tbsp salt
3 green bell peppers, halved & seeded
3 tbsp celery seed
5 cup white sugar
2 cup cider vinegar
3 tbsp mustard seed

1. Sterilize jars and lids (12 pint jars, or 6 quart jars).
2. In a grinder or food processor, coarsely grind tomatoes, red bell peppers, green bell peppers, and onions. (You may need to do this in batches.)
3. Line a large colander with cheesecloth, place in sink or in a large bowl, and pour in tomato mixture to drain for 1 hour.
4. In a large, stockpot, combine tomato mixture, celery seed, mustard seed, salt, sugar, and vinegar. Bring to a boil and simmer over low heat 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
5. Pack into jars, 1/4" headspace, remove bubbles, water bath process for 30 min.

Marginal,. may be fine for pressure canning.

If I increase the vinegar would that help?

No it isn't. It calls for at least 12 cups of chopped low acid vegetables and only 2 cups of vinegar.

Why not just stick with approved and tested recipes? There is an approved recipe for Green Tomato Relish on NCHFP and in the BBB. If you compare these two recipes you can clearly see the difference.

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: Green Tomato Relish

Hard to say, as there is a lot of low acid veggies in that. You could add a half teaspoon of citric acid and that will bring up the acidity a little without affecting the pronounced vinegar taste. It should not be too dense and can also include dried peppers and onions instead of fresh. Dried soak up the acids in the mixture. If you can find a true canning recipe that calls for the same amounts, it might be fine.

If I use the Piccalili recipe on the NCHFP website, can I leave out the cabbage? Can I replace it with more of the other vegetables?

Sorry I thought you were looking for a Green Tomato Relish.

Yes, in theory you can leave out one low acid ingredient and/or replace it with more of the other low acid ingredients as long as the total amount of low acid ingredients remains the same

But in this case the cabbage is the main ingredient - 7 1/2 cups. Replacing that much of a recipe is risky since not all low acid vegetables have the same pH. Not to mention that it wouldn't be Piccalilli any longer so why use that recipe?

If you can tell us exactly what it is you are trying to make perhaps we can point you in the right direction. If it is a Green Tomato Relish you want, why not just use the Green Tomato Relish recipe?

Dave

Every recipe i see for green tomato relish has cabbage in it.

The BBB calls it both, & has cabbage.

Would the NCHFP Pickled Green Tomato Relish be ok without the cornstarch & mustard, but adding celery seed & mustard seed?

Is the salt for taste? so that can be adjusted? As long as I don't touch the vinegar:water ratio, correct.

And can the vinegar be cider as long as it's 5% acidity?

Sorry for all the questions.

Would the NCHFP Pickled Green Tomato Relish be ok without the cornstarch & mustard, but adding celery seed & mustard seed?

Sure. The cornstarch is just a thickener so you can leave it out with no problems and the mustard is just for taste so leave it out too. The seed additives can be to taste but go easy as they will get stronger with storage.

The salt is just used for the pre-brine soak. It is then drained and rinsed so it doesn't remain in the recipe.

And yes, you can always sub cider vinegar for white as long as it is 5% and you keep the amounts the same.

Dave

Ok, thanks, then I think I've got my recipe.

My moms picillili had no cabbage, only plenty of pickling spices, onions, green tomatoes, cider vinegar and white vinegar and some white and brown sugar. She made them for years and my dad would sit and eat a whole quart jar in one sitting.

I would like to recommend you take the free online course at the NCHFP. It would be really beneficial for you.
Then, you will understand more what is and is not considered safe in food preservation.
You need to find recipes that are safety tested and stick with them other than to change out dried herbs and spices. The type of vinegar is fine, too, as long as they are all at least 5 % acidity.
I really have found that websites such as the one given and also RecipeZaar contain so much unsafe information.
Please, stick with the Ball Blue Book or the NCHFP, books that are known to be safe. People that write other recipes online and in books have no food preservation safety training. It isn't that they are not well meaning,just they have no idea what is or is not safe.
Check the bottom of the link and you can find how to sign up for the free lessons.

Here is a link that might be useful: Free canning lessons online.

Thank you Linda, I took the test last week, 2 90's and the rest 100's.

Got my certificate in my email a couple days ago.

It does help with safety aspect, it really doesn't help with substitutions.

Those recipes I used last year, before I started to really "Can".

This year, I've gotten the BBB, Ball Home Preserving, Putting Food By, Preserving for dummies, freeze pickle something (forgot the name), printed all the pdf's from the NCHFP site.

This year I also got a food processor & pressure canner + all the tools + tons of jars.

Last year was a last minute, what do we do with all these green tomatoes.

This year, I've learned alot. Plus I'm reading all the threads on this site.

I thank you all for your help & suggestions.

New editions? Putting Food By has no new edition, is terribly outdated, and generally not considered safe any longer when it comes to low acid recipes. Stick with latest editions to keep up on the changes. ;)

Dave