I had never made pickled onions like this before, and I was really happy with the outcome of this batch! The jalapenos give the onions a slight spicy/chilli hit that adds to the flavour and overall the pickle mix is well balanced. Pickled onions are great on their own as a snack but can also
Last October (2018) we were lucky enough to take a short family holiday to the USA and it was a pickled cucumber experience I had whilst in America that inspired me to write this post. Now, this article isn't going to be a history lesson on pickled cucumbers in America nor is it a "how-to"
Quick pickling methods like this taste great, are healthy to eat, and simple to make. I tend to make quick pickles using sliced up cucumbers or other vegetables when I don’t have enough to ferment all in one hit. Sometimes there aren’t enough small cucumbers to make a jar or crock but a few sliced
This simple recipe adds a colourful twist to basic pickled chicken eggs by using the berries from Malabar spinach (climbing spinach) as a natural purple colouring. I briefly mentioned this method in a YouTube video I made (see attached) showing how to grow Malabar and some uses for this amazing vegetable.
I've literally only had my Pickle Pipes for 3 days and they're working for me already by helping me lacto ferment some organic, heirloom, homegrown rainbow carrots. How these silicone fermentation airlocks perform over the next several weeks will determine whether I decide to purchase more Pickle Pipes or not. Fermenting rainbow carrots (image above)
This is just a short article on how to quickly preserve excess jalapenos (and other chillies) through pickling. So if chillies through winter are difficult to grow where you are, then pickling them to save for the cooler times of the year is the way to go. Pickled Jalapeno Chillies in Jars Step 1
The famous pickle Cucumbers are the most famous of all pickles, so famous that if I asked, “would you like a pickle?” You would probably assume I was offering a pickled cucumber when in fact a pickle can mean many different foods – which have been pickled (like peppers). As I explained in our
Nasturtiums are an easy delight in any type of garden. They suit a variety of climates, and are easy to grow. They make a lovely ground cover, sprawl out quickly, and look attractive. But there’s much more to nasturtiums than simply filling up space, and they’re definitely more than a basic ornamental. Read on to
A seasonal salad with a sensational taste! This is a great Thai-style basic green mango salad that you can eat as a side, a starter or a main. It’s versatile, so you can add any meat, seafood or tofu that you like, and turn it into a main meal. In fact, green mango salad is
Flavoured salts are a great way to give an extra boost to recipes or finished dishes without adding extra calories or fat. Even better, making your own is super-easy: all it takes is some salt, fresh herbs from your garden, & a little time. The result is a fragrant blend that is far better than
Lemons are one of the most versatile fruits on earth, so it’s no wonder a lemon tree is high on every gardeners must-have list. But once you get that wonderful lemon tree fruiting, you may well find yourself blessed with more lemons than you know what to do with! Luckily, lemons have an enormous array
It makes a lot of sense to preserve radishes so you can enjoy them at any time. Despite being quick and easy to grow, radishes don’t grow year-round in most climates. On top of that, oftentimes you’ll only want to use a little at a time. So it really does make sense to preserve them
Perilla is a herb from the mint family which is often called by its Japanese name, shiso. A staple in many Asian cuisines, perilla leaves have a unique flavour which is hard to put into words. They’re a bit minty, a bit aniseed, and a bit unlike anything else! The seeds are wonderful too: they
No matter where you live, as a gardener you always have some sort of constraints. Whether it’s climate, space, time, energy or just plain personal preference, we can’t do everything. There are literally hundreds of different herbs you can try growing, but realistically we all have to make choices about what to grow and what
Chokos (aka chayote) are amongst the most prolific, versatile and healthful vegetables you can grow. Rarely available commercially, chokos are a traditional staple in many warm temperate and subtropical home gardens. The fruits’ crisp texture and mild flavour lends itself to roasting whole or adding to soups and stews, where it will take on the
Beets, beetroot, whatever you want to call them, when you have too many…. well, you have too many. Yet with the price of food these days, none of us wants to be wasting anything home-grown, especially a seasonal crop like beetroot. Our self-sufficiency journey isn’t just about growing the food; we need to know how
Purslane is one of those unusual little herbs that lots of us have yet don’t ever notice. Considered a weed in many western countries like Australia, but an edible in the Mediterranean and Middle East, you might say it walks the line between vegetable and weed. What Exactly is Purslane? Purslane is a succulent edible
Keeping a flock of chickens in your backyard is a great step towards self-sufficiency. A supply of fresh, organically-produced, free-range eggs is a big plus…but what if you get too many at once? Sure, you can boil, poach, fry, and scramble- but what else can you do to make the most of your eggs? Here’s
Meet celtuce- one of the most versatile, tasty, useful, yet least-known vegetables. Celtuce (lactuca sativa var. asparagina) is a form of lettuce which is effectively dual-purpose; the leaves can be eaten as lettuce, and the thick stem as a type of celery. This unusual edible will grow in a variety of climates, suffers minimal pest
Self Sufficient Me is a blog about self-sustainment by growing our own produce (plant/animal), and self-fulfilment by looking after our health (physical/mental) through exercise and slowing life down a little.
