Fourth of July Zucchini Pickles

Delicious with your burgers and barbecue.
Course Condiment
Cuisine American
Keyword pickles, zucchini
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 20 minutes
Resting Time 5 hours
Total Time 6 hours
Servings 8 pint jars

Equipment

  • Large bowl
  • Large, nonreactive stockpot
  • Medium, nonreactive stockpot
  • Hot water bath canner and utensils

Ingredients

  • 8 to 10 cups fresh zucchini, partially peeled, cut into bite-sized chunks
  • 6 medium sweet onions, peeled and sliced thin
  • 3 mixed sweet peppers, sliced thin For example, red, green and/or orange bell, banana peppers
  • 5 medium cloves of fresh garlic, diced
  • 1/3 cup table salt

Brine

  • 4 to 5 cups sugar, to taste
  • 3 cups white vinegar
  • 1.5 tsp turmeric
  • 1.5 tsp celery seed
  • 2 tsp mustard seed

Instructions

  • Wash and prepare vegetables. Place in a large glass bowl. Add salt and gently mix. Cover contents of bowl with ice and set bowl aside for three hours at room temperature.
  • Drain liquid from vegetables and remove any unmelted ice. Transfer to a large nonreactive stockpot. Set aside, while preparing brine.
  • For brine. Combine sugar, vinegar, turmeric, celery seed, and mustard seed in a medium, nonreactive saucepan. Bring to boil. Pour hot brine over reserved vegetables. Cover stockpot and let set for two hours.
  • Prepare sterilized glass jars, lids, and rings and set aside. Fill a large hot bath canner with enough water to adequately cover the pint jars. Bring water to boil.
  • Place stockpot filled with vegetables and brine on stovetop and bring mixture to boil. Carefully transfer vegetables and brine to warm pint jars. Stir to remove air bubbles. Carefully wipe off rims and add lids and rims. Finger-tighenten rims.
  • Using canning tongs carefully add jars to canner allowing room between jars. Cover with canner lid and process in boiling water for ten minutes. Water should exceed height of jars by at least an inch.
  • After ten minutes, turn off the burner. Very carefully use canning tongs to remove hot jars to towel-covered, protected countertop or another flat surface. Jars will be hot and fragile. Keep away from edges, children, and pets. Jars will need to cool for 24 hours before removing rings.
  • After 24 hours, remove rings and check that each jar has sealed properly. Place any unsealed jars in refrigerator. Open jars should be refrigerated.
  • Serve chilled. Enjoy!

Notes

Prep time: 1 hour
Resting time: 5 hours
Cooling time: 24 hours