Southern Chow Chow

Course Appetizer, Condiment, Side Dish

Cuisine American, Southern

Keyword easy-chow-chow-recipe, southern-chow-chow

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 25

Marinate time 8

Total Time 8 45

Servings pints

Calories 758kcal

Ingredients

10 cups chopped green cabbage
2 large green tomatoes seeded and diced
1 jumbo Vidalia onion diced
1 large green bell pepper seeded and diced
1 large red bell pepper seeded and diced
1 1/2 Tbsp pickling salt
1 Tbsp mustard seeds
2 tsp celery seed
1 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 cups white distilled vinegar
3 cups granulated sugar
1 Tbsp prepared mustard
2 tsp red pepper flakes adjust to taste
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 cloves garlic minced

Instructions

In a large non-reactive mixing bowl, mix together the cabbage, tomato, onion, bell peppers and salt. Mix well, then cover and chill for 8 hours or overnight. Drain liquid.
In a large non reactive pot toast the mustard and celery seeds over medium-high heat about 1 minute or until fragrant, moving pot constantly. Add both vinegars, sugar, mustard, red pepper flakes, allspice, turmeric and ginger. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
Add the drained cabbage mixture and minced garlic to the pot. Mix well. Increase the heat and bring to a boil for 5 minutes then lower the heat to medium-low and simmer for 20-25 minutes or until slightly thickened, to allow flavors to fully bloom and the juice to reduce. (Cabbage should still have a slight crunch.)
Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature in the pot, uncovered. Pack in sterilized jars. May store chilled for up to one month.
Can this Chow Chow Recipe be Canned? This recipe as written is designed to be kept in the refrigerator. That said, you can lengthen the shelf life of this recipe using proper canning technique.
Start with sterilized pint size jars, ladling hot chow chow cooked per the recipe into the hot jars leaving 1/2-inch headspace. (Tip: Use a canning funnel for less mess.)
Wipe the rims with a clean cloth or paper towel and place the lids and rings on top, twisting to seal, but don't over tighten.
Process pint size jars in a boiling water bath canner cooking for 15-20 minutes.
Use tongs to carefully remove jars from water, then let jars stand at room temperature until completely cooled.
Special Note: The best way to divide this chow chow into jars is, to use a slotted spoon to evenly pack the cabbage mixture into the prepared jars. Then, fill the jars evenly with the cooking liquid left in the pot.

Notes

Green Tomatoes - If you're unable to find green tomatoes, tomatillos will work in a pinch. Remove the seeds and dice just as you would the green tomatoes.

Onion - You can use yellow onion or white onion in place of vidalia onion.; Yellow onions have a more intense flavor.

Measure the Cabbage After Chopping - Please note, it's best to measure the amount of cabbage used in this recipe after chopping.

Peppers - Typically mild bell peppers are used in chow chow. That said, you can use jalapeno or poblano peppers in place of the green bell pepper. Should you choose to do so, you may like to omit or adjust the amount of red pepper flakes, as well.

What is Pickling Salt? If you aren't familiar with pickling salt, it's inexpensive and can be found with the other salt products on the spice aisle. Pickling salt is finely ground pure salt that doesn't contain any caking ingredients and dissolves easily in the brine. Using it, prevents the juice from becoming cloudy and cabbage from becoming dark in color. Table salt could be used, but I don't recommend it as it has ingredients that could change the color of the relish.

What's a Non-Reactive Bowl? When a non-reactive bowl or pot is referenced, this signifies that you can use a large glass (glass bowl only for overnight chilling) or a large stainless steel or a copper pot for cooking. Please note, use a glass bowl only for overnight chilling.

Nutrition