There’s something about that “pop” of the lid when you bring it out of the water that is so satisfying.

All in all, I think each jar has a value of at least $40, if you factor in all the dang work it took to raise up the organic tomatoes from seedlings, all the hours and hours of watering and loving and then the final hours chopping and cooking and canning. And to think, there’s about three more rounds of green tomatoes on the stocks out there.

I hope the extended family is happy when all they get for Winter Holiday Celebrations is a jar of Chow Chow, wrapped up pretty, with a home made price tag that reads $40. Haha.

Aunt Hallie’s Chow Chow

12 pounds of green tomatoes

3 pounds of onions

3 to 4 cups of brown sugar (traditionally white sugar is used.)

1 1/4 cup coarse salt

vinegar

2-3 tablespoons of pickling spice, tied in cheesecloth.

Chop and sprinkle with salt, mix it in. Let it sit, lidded, overnight.

Drain. Cover to about half full of vinegar, add brown sugar and pickling spice. Boil until clear (about 1 hr.)

My yield was 8 , 500ml bottles.

To the chow, I add 3 cups of brown sugar and stir it up. The original recipe called for white sugar, but my “Auntie Hallee” (who is 1.5 years my junior.) adapted the recipe, and I’m giving it a go. I pour vinegar in, to come half way up to wear the “chow line” is. I haven’t any cheese cloth, so I rinse out a clean “J” cloth, and tie 2 tablespoons of pickling spice into it, and plunk that on the top.

While the pot is boiling, I’m washing the new jars and lids. I put the pot that is going to boil the sealed jars on to the stove with the rack in the bottom, and put it on to just warm up. I’m referring constantly to my 1973 Homes And Gardens® Home Canning And Freezing hardcover book that I purchased some years ago from a Goodwill thrift store JUST for this day. The house is smelling YUMMY.

I put yet ANOTHER pot on to boil… This I’ll use for dipping the jars in, and the lids to sterilize. I’ve got tongs out. I’ve got the ladle out. I’ve got an extra fork out incase I get air bubbles (Because Better Homes And Gardens® said I might need one.) I’ve got my oven mitts out. I’m pretty close to pulling my hair out.

For nearly an hour, the stock put boils. I stir it every now and again. (This still doesn’t stop me from burning a bit on the bottom of the pot.) I attempt to take some pics of myself to show you just how happy and easy this little experiment is.

(I’m not sure if I’m dropping the camera or getting burned from steam, or just trying to be cute here. Any way you look at it, I’m a dork for trying to take my own picture at the stove. Don’t try this at home, kids. )

Then, it’s TIME.

I can’t grip the jars with my new oven mitts on. So, I find the old ratty oven mitts that SHOULD have been thrown away a long time ago. I realize at this point I have no funnel. Oh well, on with the show!

Sterilize a bottle with the tongs. Sterilize the ladle, because I realize I haven’t done that yet. Pick up jar with clumsy old ratty oven mitts and fill the jar to leave about half an inch at the top. Put jar on counter. Wipe the chunks off the side with the clean cloth. Sterilize lid. Try to place this on the top without touching  it with the ratty oven mitts. Sterilize ring. Place ring on lid. Tighten. Place jar in the warmed water pot with bottom rack. Realize that the pot isn’t big enough to cover this size jar. Insert swear word. Fill three more jars before deciding to remove jars from hot water in too small pot. Remove big pot full of chow chow and empty chow into yet another pot and put back to boil. Scrub big pot like mad, because there is burnt chow on the bottom. Rinse. Pour hot water from too small pot into big pot, plunking the rack in the bottom. Insert the four jars, cover with water, and let it come to a boil. Sweat, swear, and make a big mess.

What was I thinking???

I’ll tell you tomorrow.

Lori Petroff

Sweet relish made from green tomatoes and onions. When we were first introduced to it in New Glascow, Nova Scotia, we couldn’t believe we were allowed to eat this sweet good stuff right along side our meat and potatoes. Shouldn’t this be a desert?

This year, with the funny weather we’ve been having in farm and cottage country, Ontario, Canada… My organic heritage tomatoes are still mostly green. It’s September, I’m panicking… Until I remember Chow Chow. (yes, it gets capitals, every time. It’s THAT good.) The only catch is I’ve never canned anything in my life.

Now, I’ve got all the theory down, and the books and pots and jars and lids and on and on and on. Just no practical experience. I’m a lady who likes a challenge. I’m also a lady who doesn’t like wasting food, time, or effort. So, this has just got to work the first time.

The girls and I get out the old scale that is meant for food, but only ever used for weighing packages for shipping from our online store. We grab a couple of bowls, and then out to the picnic table and garden.

What does twelve pounds of green tomatoes look like, you might ask? Voila!

Green Tomatoes and Yellow Onions

Along side of 3 pounds of yellow onions. The base ingredients for this recipe.

The first step is to chop up the tomatoes. stick em in a great huge stock pot. I borrowed one from my mom, because my stock pot looked very very tiny next to all these tomatoes and onions. This was easy. The whole time I’m chopping, I’m white knuckled and demonstrating the worst knife techniques possible. You know, the kind that ends with a sore shoulder and wrist, and a housewife losing a finger tip, or at least a close call. My inner Gordon shouted every version of the “F” word that the two of us combined know.

For those of you who are curious, there was a pound of icky bits left over. (tops and leafy bits.) So, this reduced us to 11 pounds of tomatoes. Oh, and for those of you who are concerned, I only grazed my nails. Finger tips in tact this round!

Now, I thought I could outsmart the onions. I had a bowl of cold water set up on the cutting board. I would quickly cut the tops and bottoms of the onions, make a slice down the side, and plunk it in the water, the tops and bottoms into the compost next to me. I peeled the brown skin off while it was under water, and then the onion went into a bowl. I managed to peel the first layer off of twelve onions (3 lb) without a tear.

Then, the chopping started. In half, plunk them in the water. One half at a time, chop chop chop… I’m thinking I might just have this beat, when the gases permeate my eyeball membrane and I’m down for the count. (My inner comedian kept screaming “DON’T CHOP ONIONS WITH YOUR EYES CLOSED!” and I had to put the knife down in between the last 5 onions and walk away to let my vision clear and my giggles subside.

Have you ever tried to take good pictures with your eyes dripping and burning from onions? Hilarity.

Eventually, all of them ended up in the stock pot (whew!) and I spread 1 and 1/4 cups coarse salt over the mix, mixed it up a bit, and let it sit overnight.

First bit down, next bit tomorrow. (oh, it gets better and better….)

Lori Petroff