First foray into canning

2011 marked our first foray into the world of canning. The scare of "botulism" has kept us away all this while. After reading up a lot on the topic we figured it was the right thing to do considering we grow our own Tomatoes and would much rather place our trust on home canned stuff (the right way) instead of the pricey, store bought, sodium laden, BPA laden canned tomatoes.

I picked up a pressure canner because I knew that my prime target was Tomatoes and because of their low acidity, it wont be safe to put them through a simple boiling water canner. I also made sure I got all the tools, and they were well worth the investment and make the entire process much more easier to manage.

We made sure we stuck to all the rules and requirements, boiling sanitizing and careful handling. (Reminded me of the days I helped my mom make Jams and Juices, growing up in India)

This was one of our first batches

So we were very motivated to skin the Tomatoes (as it was suggested in the books)

My favorite are the yellow Brandywines which were extremely sweet.

It was a lot of work, and yes it was the middle of the night by the time they got into the canner.

We had pretty good success rates with the seals, but we forgot to add vinegar in the water (hence the water stains on some of the Quart bottles). But hey it is just cosmetic.

The bigger Quart bottles contain either whole or pureed Tomatoes. (I have about 21 of them stocked up now). Hopefully they will last me all winter.

The smaller half pints have Tomato pickle (seasoned with sesame oil and Indian spices). The green colored ones are Tomatillo Salsa (Seasoned with homegrown green chili peppers).

Whole stuffed Eggplants(Aubergines or Brinjals)

This one is from my 2010 archives. I was so busy making these exotic eggplant dishes that I did not take the time to post.

Only when there is an abundance of something, and I am sort of tired of making the same dish do I think about the ones that I don't make often.

The whole stuffed Eggplant being one that I presumed was tedious. But thanks to our abundant harvest, I made it 8-10 times in a span of just 1 month.

These are Eggplants from Renees Garden. The plant has been extremely prolific, fairly disease resistant and produces very tasty Eggplants.

I slit the Eggplants making sure not to slit them all the way through. I stuffed them with my "Sambar Powder"(This is a pantry staple, and I will post a separate recipe on how I make mine). There are usually different variations of the powder that is stuffed into the eggplants and I am hoping to make all the different variants shortly considering the abundant harvest we are having.

The key thing in using this "Sambar powder" is to ensure that you mix the required amount of salt into the mixture. I also make a thick paste of tamarind (about 1 tbsp of store bought tamarind paste or a thickly squeezed extract tamarind that is the size of a golf ball. This is for about 12 eggplants)

Once I have dry stuffed my eggplants, I drizzle my thick tamarind extract onto each one and microwave them for about 8 minutes. They come out looking like these in the picture below.

I then transfer them onto a hot cast iron pan well glazed with oil and roast them on a slow fire for about 15 minutes, taking care to turn them carefully without breaking them.

Taro

The Tamil language is not short of interesting adjectives when it comes to describing food.

"Vazha-Vazha (Slippery) Kozha-Kozha (Mushy)" is how most people would describe the Taro (Seppankizhangu in Tamil, and Arvi in Hindi). Though the vegetable itself has this inherent quality, it is compounded in most cases by people not giving it the much needed attention when cooking.

Here is how you can make a "Gara-Gara (Crispy)" Taro dish without literally deep frying it in oil.

I steam cook my Taro (about 2 lbs) in a pressure cooker on high for about 5-6 minutes. The key is to cook them until they are just about done but not cooked all the way through. You will have to figure out the exact timing based on how efficient your pressure cooker is. I know folks whose pressure cookers have worn out with gaskets that let half the steam out and extend the cooking time.

I skin them and sliced them into smaller pieces. You can see that they are not mushy but cooked enough that it is easy to take the skin off with your hand.

On the side, mix the salt, Red cayenne Pepper, Turmeric (optional, but it is anti-carcinogenic so why not) and either Corn Flour or Chickpea Flour. Add all these to taste.

Once you have these mixed together you can sprinkle this onto the cooked Taro and coat it nicely. Once it is coated, spray it with some Olive Oil spray and microwave it for about 5 minutes.

Once it is out of the microwave, put it onto a nice Cast Iron Pan with about 3-4 Tbsp of Olive Oil and let it roast on the stove top on a low flame for 15-25 minutes

This post has been lurking in my drafts for more than a year, and now with some renewed enthusiasm to update my blog.....you should see more recipes from my old drafts.

PS- I have not tried to grow these in my garden. It might go on the list for next year and hopefully I can find some resources to point me in the right direction on how to grow these.