Pickled Onions
Pickle your own onions
Equipment
- Pickling Jars
Ingredients
- 500 ml Apple cider vinegar
- 500 g Small pickling onions or shallots
- 50 g Table salt
- 200 g Honey
- 2 tsp Peppercorns
- 2 tsp Mustard seeds
- 2 tsp Coriander seeds
- 2 Bay leaves
- 2 Red birds eye chillies split lengthways, leave out for less heat
Instructions
- Put the onions in a large bowl and carefully pour over a kettle of boiling water. Leave to cool. The skins should now peel off very easily.
- Once peeled and trimmed, layer in a bowl and sprinkle each layer with salt. Cover and leave overnight or for up to 24 hours at room temperature.
- The following day rinse the onions well and pat dry with paper kitchen towel.
- Heat the dry spices in a dry frying pan to develop the flavours. Don't let them burn.
- Meanwhile pour the vinegar and honey into a large saucepan with the peppercorns, mustard seeds, coriander seeds and bay leaves. Heat the mixture gently just enough to dissolve the honey. Then remove from the heat and set aside to allow the spices to infuse.
- Allow the mixture to cool to room temperature. A hot mixture will cook the onions and they will lose their crunch.
- Sterilise your jars thoroughly. I put mine in the oven, heat to 160℃/Fan 140℃ and then once it has reached temperature turn it off and allow the jars to cool.
- Pack the onions into the sterilised jars then use a jug to pour over the vinegar, including the mustard, peppercorns, coriander seeds and bay leaves, adding the split chillies. Leave the chillies out if you prefer them milder. Completely cover the onions leaving no air pocket, seal and allow to mature for at least a month, two is better.