We’re a little late in posting today due to being on the road this week.
She Who Must Be Obeyed and I were schedule to head to Lake Charles, Louisiana and on to NOLA on Tuesday for a bit of work and mostly play. As we headed southward on Tuesday, we watched then developing tropical storm Cindy with increasing attention. As the forecast hardened up through the day, we realized our planned fly fishing for big bayou reds was to be drowned out in the next 8-12 hours, so we headed down the Texas coast to Rockport as part of plan B.
We are huge fans of Gulf Coast seafood, with both of us having grown up with deeply rooted family connections to Texas Gulf Coast communities. Part of that connection to Gulf Coast includes a love of fresh Gulf seafood and all the southern trimmings that come along as tasty bonuses in that package.
One of my favorite summer (and really it’s great any time) accompaniments to seafood – think of a big platter of grilled, blackened, or crispy fried shrimp – is a big dish of ice-cold green tomato chow chow.
This Green Tomato Chow Chow No. 2 was inspired in part by an amazing green tomato chow chow we enjoyed recently at Ida Claire in Dallas (on their hummus plate in fact), and in part by memories of ones we’d buy at roadside stands and old time South Texas gas stations when I was a kid.
This one keeps for up to a year when canned and processed, though simply cooked, cooled, and stored in the fridge it’s good for several weeks and a recipe never lasts that long for us anyway during these hot days of summer.
This is perfect for anything sizzling off the grill this summer and would make a killer topping for artisanal 4th of July hot dogs. Hot damn.
5 cups cored green tomatoes (skin on), chopped
5 cups finely chopped, trimmed green cabbage
1.5 cups chopped sweet onions
1 cup chopped, stemmed, and seeded red bell pepper (1 big one)
1 cup chopped, stemmed, and seeded green bell pepper (1 big one)
3 tbsp coarse pickling salt1 cup granulated sugar (or 1/2 brown and 1/2 granulated)
1/4 cup fresh pickling spice mix
4 tbsp fresh ginger, finely chopped
2 tbsp mustard seeds
1-2 tbsp fresh ground red pepper flakes (optional)
2 tsp celery salt
2 tsp fresh ground turmeric1.5 cups apple cider vinegar
1.5 cups white vinegar
1.75 cups water
Prep the tomatoes, cabbage, onions, and peppers; combine in a large glass or stainless bowl. Sprinkle with the pickling salt, stir it in well, and cover. Let stand for up to 12 hours in a cool place (no warmer than 75) or in the fridge.
When you’re ready to rumble, drain the vegetables in a colander and rinse well with cold water.
Place the pickling spice mix in a spice ball / cheesecloth bag, prep the ginger, and round up the spices.
In a large enameled or stainless pot, combine the vegetables, sugar, wrapped pickling spice, ginger, mustard seeds, red pepper flakes, celery salt, turmeric, the vinegars and the water. Stir well.
Cover and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, remove the cover and boil briskly for 5 or 6 minutes, stirring often. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20-25 minutes, until thickened, stirring often. Pull the spice bag / ball.
Carefully ladle the chow chow into prepared jars (1/2 inch headspace) and process if canning (10 minutes for 1/2-pints, 15 for pints) per routine; we often just ladle straight into two quart jars, cover and drop in the fridge as these never seem to last more than a week or two anyway.
Enjoy.
