You ever had Texas Chow Chow?
No, not the chow chow dog...... the chow chow relish!
Chow Chow is a pickled vegetable relish traditionally made from Green Tomatoes, Cabbage, Onion, Bell Pepper, and Vinegar. It's a southern thing I guess but it is SO good! I used to put it on everything when I lived in Texas and it goes especially good with Pinto Beans and Cornbread!
It doesn't take a lot of cooking time and can be used in a variety of ways so I thought I'd include my recipe for y'all to try today. Let me know what you think. And if you're not into spicy - leave out the Jalapeños but honestly I can hardly tell they're even there.
Texas Chow Chow
This is a super easy recipe to make, but note I don't can mine (simply because I have zero experience canning anything). I put mine in a quart jar in the fridge and it's usually used up quickly.
To make Texas Chow Chow, heat up the vinegar, water, brown sugar, and all the spices in a non-reactive pan. Bring that to a simmer and start prepping you veggies.
For the veggies I used 2 large heirloom Green Tomatoes, a white onion, 1 red Bell Pepper, about ½ a head of Napa Cabbage (they're never very big), a decent sized carrot, and a couple of Jalapeños.
Non if you're lazy like me - use a food processor to chop up your vegetables. Otherwise try to chop or shred everything to roughly the same size. Think of the texture of pickle relish, only I like mine a little more chunkier than that.
For some extra heat you could also add another jalapeño, or sprinkle in some Red Pepper Flakes.
Now simply add your chopped veggie to the pan and simmer until everything's softened. About 20 minutes.
That's it! Let it cool and try not to eat the whole pan before you get it into a jar.
It's a great way to add flavor and additional veggies to your Baked Potatoes and goes amazingly well with Beans. You could also use it as a relish on Veggie Burgers, my Beer Brats, Potato Salads, or even my Mock Tuna Salad.
It reminds me of the Franks Red Hot Commercial with the little old lady....."I put that s$^% on everything!"
Stay cool, and enjoy!
Texas Chow Chow
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 1 quart 1x
- Category: Condiment
- Cuisine: American
Description
Texas Chow Chow is a southern style relish that compliments a variety of foods. Easy to make and with minimal cooking time, you'll be sure to want this
Ingredients
- 1 Onion
- 2 Large Green Tomatoes
- ½ Head Napa Cabbage
- 1 Red Bell Pepper
- 1 Large Carrot
- 2 Jalapeños
- ½ Cup Apple Cider Vinegar
- ¼ Cup Water
- ¼ Cup Brown Sugar
- 1 tsp Sea Salt
- 1 tsp Mustard Seed
- ½ tsp Dry Mustard Powder
- ¼ tsp Celery Seed
- ¼ tsp Turmeric
Instructions
- Place the liquids and all the spices in a non-reactive pan and bring to a simmer.
- Chop all the vegetables to a uniform size and add to pot.
- Deseed and mince Jalapeños and add to pot as well.
- A food processor makes shredding the vegetables a lot easier - leave some chunks for texture.
- Simmer for 20 minutes or until vegetables are softened.
- Remove from heat and allow to cool.
- Store in the fridge.
Notes
Chow Chow is a great condiment to add to Pinto Beans.
Can also be used as a topper for Vegan Beer Brats, Baked Potatoes, Potato Salad, Mock Tuna Salad, whatever you can think of!
Carolyn
Can this be put into canning jars?
Chuck Underwood
I haven't tried!
Dimples
Awesome recipe. My 8yr old help me chop in a food processor. I recommend the food processor. For a Sweet taste I add a Lil more brown sugar! Yummy added to anything.