James Herriot had a loathing of eating fat. But fat was very popular amongst the farms of the Yorkshire Dales who often reared quick maturing Pigs with a high fat content. So when he was faced with a plate of sliced fatty bacon after an early morning calving he was in a quandary. He had to find a way out! He spotted a pot of Piccalilli, a tasty British relish, on teh farmers table and had an idea. Eating the fat alongside copious spoonfuls of the Piccalilli allowed him to finish his plate. This scene is described so graphically in one of his stories. I found a recipe for Piccalilli in the book ‘the best of James Herriot’ so here is my attempt at creating it. I also bought a jar of supermarket Piccalilli to compare it with and believe me it is nothing like this home made version. I absolutely love it. I hope you do too!

Piccalilli

Recipe by Roger

Servings

8

servings

Prep time

30

minutes

Cooking time

20

minutes

Calories

14

kcal

Ingredients

• 2,7Kg (6lb) mixed vegetables such as:

• – Green Beans (chopped into small pieces)

• – Small ‘pearl’ onions

• – Cauliflower (chopped into small pieces)

• – Peppers (cut into small pieces)

• – Courgette (chopped into small pieces)

• 450g (1 lb) salt

• 2 pints White Wine vinegar

• 170g (6 oz) sugar

• 15g (1/2 oz) Turmeric

• 30g (1 oz) Dried English Mustard

• 30g (1 oz) Ginger

• 40g (1 1/2 oz) Plain White Flour

Directions

• Cut the vegetable up into small pieces, spread on a dish and sprinkle the salt on the top. Cover and leave for 24 hours to draw out the moisture.
• Rinse and drain the vegetables for a few minutes.
• Set aside 3-4 tablespoons of the vinegar and warm the remainder.
• Stir the Turmeric, mustard and ginger into the vinegar and mix with the vegetables.
• Simmer for 15 minutes
• Blend the flour with the set aside vinegar and add to the mixture . stir and bring to the boil and then simmer for 3 minutes.
• Ladle into jars, put a wax disc on top and then seal.

Notes

• Sterilise your jars beforehand
• Leave in a cool dark place for a few weeks and up to 3 months before opening.
• Once opened keep in fridge for up to 4 weeks.
• Perfect with cold meats and/or strong cheese
• You can use any vegetables that you have handy, gherkins, radishes, green tomatoes etc.