Marinated Red Pimento Peppers (Gogosari in Otet)

Making marinated red pimento peppers has been a tradition in my family for as long as I can remember.  As I was browsing through my parents old canning books a few weeks ago, I found out that peppers are best preserved in vinegar diluted to 3% acidity. So for 1l 9% vinegar you have to add 2l water. To offset the tartness of the vinegar add ½ kg sugar (for 3l of liquid). This is the secret recipe to get the perfect marinated peppers – flavorful with a crisp-tender texture. You also have to add 10g pickling salt for every liter of liquid, 2-3 bay leaves, some celery leaves, 20 peppercorns and 300 g horseradish. When it comes to canning, the fresher the vegetables the better the flavour so try buying the peppers from your local farmers’ market. Now let’s get to work!

Time: 140 min, Prep: 80 min.  Cook: 60 min.
Servings: makes about 8 1L jars                      

Ingredients:

• 7-8 kg ruffled pimento peppers
• 1l vinegar, 9% acidity
• 2 l water
• ½ kg sugar
• 30 g pickling salt
• 2-3 bay leaves
• 20 peppercorns
• Some celery leaves
• 300 g horseradish

Directions:

Wash peppers, cut into quarters, remove the seeds and ribs (the white part inside the pepper).

Wash the jars in soapy water and rinse them thoroughly. Allow them to drip-dry for 15-20 minutes and then place them in a pan (or right on the rack) in the oven set to 225F (100C) to sterilize the jars. Leave the jars there until you are ready to fill them. Make sure the lids are clean and dry as well before using them.

For the marinade, mix the water, vinegar, sugar, pickling salt, bay leaves, pepper and celery leaves. Make sure you use pickling salt not table salt. The table salt will make your brine look dark and cloudy due to the iodine in the salt. Pickling salt is made without iodine.

Bring the marinade to a boil in a large pot.

Then you’ll have to blanch the peppers in batches, if necessary. Add peppers to the boiling water making sure they are covered in liquid. Cover the pot and blanch for 1-2 minutes. The blanch time starts when the water comes to a rolling boil after adding the peppers.

Carefully remove the jars from the oven and place them in a pan. Arrange the peppers in the hot jars without pressing them. Once they start cooling down they will loosen up. So when you’re done blanching your second batch you’ll probably have more room to add more peppers to the first jars.   Continue this process until you’re done blanching all the peppers and filling the jars. Add some horseradish slices on top if you want.

Pour the hot marinade over the peppers and gently shake the jars to loosen any air bubbles.  Seal jars and store them in a cool and dark place.