Our favourite thing about this jar of green fermented goodness, is that not only is it alive and teaming with gut loving good bugs, it makes use of all the over production of veggies from your veggie garden, before the birds and caterpillars can feast on them. This particular jar was made to utilise the abundance of tomatoes produced by Sandra's home organic vegetable garden, but it can really be made using anything at all. Slightly sour, with a bitey tang, it's the perfect accompaniment with a dollop of COYO Probiotic Natural Coconut Yoghurt to support digestive wellbeing.
INGREDIENTS AND TOOLS
4 x 1 litre or 2 x 2 litre wide mouth glass jars with screw top lids.
1kg of green tomatoes picked just before they start to ripen and before the birds get them!
15 cloves of garlic
1 -2 long red chillies finely chopped (I deseed but this is optional)
6 bay leaves
2 tsp. yellow mustard seed
1 tsp. dill seed
1 tsp. coriander seed
Brine: 1 cup of unrefined sea salt (please don’t use any commercial table salts or fortified salts)
4 litres of filtered water
300g of COYO Probiotic Natural Coconut Milk Yoghurt to serve
Large glass mason jars
Grape leaves to place on top of the jars. These are optional but they help keep the tomatoes under the brine and they also release tannins which will help keep your pickles crisp. I have lots of lovely young ones on my vine at the moment so I’m fermenting them for use in the winter when the vine is bare. Just use the same brine and method.
METHOD
1. Mix the salt and water together and let the salt dissolve.
2. Wash the green tomatoes and trim any bits you don’t want in your jar.
3. Lightly mash the garlic cloves with the back of a knife, just enough to break them.
4. Mix all the garlic and all other ingredients together.
5. Pack the green tomatoes into the jars incorporating the garlic and spices evenly between the jars as you go.
6. Pour in enough brine to cover them. (store any leftover in the fridge, it’ll keep for a week)
7. Tuck the grape leaves over the top of the tomatoes. Cover the jar loosely with lid but do not screw on, leave the lid resting on top.
8. Set the jars aside in a cool place out of direct sunlight for 3 to 6 days. The brine could spill over the top of the loosely sealed jars so good idea to place them on a tray to catch the over flow. If the level of brine falls you may need to top up with extra brine.
The brine will become cloudy as lactic acid is produced. The longer you leave to ferment the stronger the sourness so check and taste after 3 days and see what you think. I leave mine for the full 6 days and even a little longer as I really love the beautiful sour taste.
9. When the pickles are ready cover with fresh grape leaves if you have them and store in the fridge. These will keep for many months, but I find mine have been devoured in the first week and I’m back on the hunt for more green tomatoes!
10. Place 3-4 large tablespoons of COYO Probiotic Natural Coconut Milk Yoghurt in a serving bowl and top with 2-3 tablespoons of Sandra's fermented green tomato pickle on top. Perfect for curries, crackers or nacho toppings. Delicious.