Piccalilli Canning Recipe: Tested Green Tomato and Cabbage Relish
Preserve green tomatoes and cabbage in this sweet-and-tangy tested piccalilli relish. The NCHFP formula makes about 9 half-pints and includes altitude-adjusted boiling-water processing.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 6 cups chopped green tomatoes
- 1-1/2 cups chopped sweet red peppers
- 1-1/2 cups chopped green peppers
- 2-1/4 cups chopped onions
- 7-1/2 cups chopped cabbage
- 1/2 cup canning or pickling salt
- 3 tbsp whole mixed pickling spice
- 4-1/2 cups vinegar (5 percent)
- 3 cups brown sugar
Equipment
- 1 Boiling-water bath canner with rack
- 1 Large stainless or enamel preserving pot
- 1 Canning jars with two-piece lids
- 1 Headspace and bubble tool
Directions
Canning method
- Wash and chop the vegetables. Combine them with 1/2 cup canning or pickling salt, cover with hot water, and let stand for 12 hours. Drain, then press the vegetables in a clean white cloth to remove as much liquid as possible.
- Tie the mixed pickling spice loosely in a spice bag. Combine the spice bag, vinegar, and brown sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the drained vegetables and boil gently for 30 minutes, or until the mixture is reduced by one-half. Remove the spice bag.
- Fill hot, sterile half-pint or pint canning jars with the hot mixture, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles, adjust the headspace if needed, wipe the jar rims, and apply the lids.
- Process hot-packed half-pint or pint jars in a boiling-water canner for 5 minutes at 0–1,000 feet, 10 minutes at 1,001–6,000 feet, or 15 minutes above 6,000 feet.
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Recipe Notes
Official source: National Center for Home Food Preservation — Piccalilli
Safety status: Tested USDA-derived home-canning recipe. Use 5% acidity vinegar and follow the published ingredient proportions, hot-pack method, approved jar sizes, 1/2-inch headspace, and altitude-adjusted processing time exactly.
Editorial review: Canning Recipes reviewed the source, quantities, method, headspace, jar sizes, and processing schedule on September 20, 2026. Wording and organization were clarified without changing the tested formula. Yield: about 9 half-pint jars.