A perfect jar of old-fashioned favourite Piccalilli

I always feel very nostalgic about Piccalilli, but I never remember eating much of it as a child, so wasn’t sure why. I have memories of my mother with her huge mixing bowl full of neatly hand-chopped vegetables. She stripped leaves from cauliflowers and peeled carrots, handing us the scraps to bring out to the hens. Then she would make a paste of spices and the whole house would smell of vinegar as the turmeric got to work colouring the vegetable mixture luminous yellow.

It was only after I asked her recently for her Piccalilli recipe that she recalled how much of it she made when we were little. She was supplying a few local shops, butchers and delis with it. As she spoke I remembered sitting in the car watching jars of gooseberry jam dance in a small cardboard box as we bounced along country roads into town to deliver it. How she managed to do all of this with eight children is beyond me. I felt so proud of her and am amazed that life is somehow coming full circle as I try to chop cauliflower with turmeric-stained hands while my own little ones pull at my apron.

This Piccalilli recipe is fantastic for making something deliciously bright and sunny with all of those root vegetables. There is a huge amount of freshly ground spices in this recipe but it really is worth the effort. It seems to take long to make but really the hands-on time is minimal, and you only need to wait a few weeks before tasting it. I usually label it and tuck it into the back of the cupboard until I can’t resist trying one jar. It’s gorgeous served on the side with curries or shepherd’s pie and as part of a traditional ploughman’s platter. It’s a lovely gift to give at Christmas, as leftover turkey is transformed when sandwiched between bread with this magical preserve.

I’ve started to add a large spoonful of piccalilli to my usual salad bowl along with various leafy greens. It brings a strong punchy flavour; the cider vinegar is not too harsh or acidic, with just enough fruit sweetness in the background. This is the perfect recipe for using up those winter vegetables before we get some bright young crops. It’s an ideal recipe for courgette growers especially.

Piccalilli

Makes 6 jars

800g cauliflower

350g carrots

350g courgettes

1 small red onion

Sea salt

3 tbsp fennel seeds

3 tbsp coriander seeds

3 tbsp cumin seeds

5 tbsp cornflour

2 tbsp ground turmeric

3 tbsp mustard powder

1 litre cider vinegar

300g sugar

Method

Chop all of the vegetables into bite-size pieces. I like to keep mine a little chunky. Place in a large mixing bowl and scatter the sea salt over. Give it a gentle mix to ensure the salt is dispersed, then cover and leave at room temperature for 24 hours.

The next day drain the vegetables, rinse well and drain again. Leave at the sink to drain while you prepare the paste. Grind the fennel, coriander and cumin together finely. Use a pestle and mortar or spice grinder. Mix the spices with the cornflour, turmeric and mustard. Add some vinegar and mix till it forms a smooth paste.

Heat the remaining vinegar and sugar until the sugar dissolves. Once boiling add the spice paste and simmer for four minutes so the cornflour thickens the sauce. Pour this fantastically yellow mixture over the vegetables and combine gently. Ladle the piccalilli into jars and place the lids on tightly while still warm. Label and leave to mature for a few weeks before tasting. This always tastes good to me right away though.