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For a good housewife, the quality of the prepared sauces and seasonings is sometimes no less important than the main dishes. After all, with their help you can add variety to the most modest menu. And if the sauce is prepared from fresh vegetables and herbs without heat treatment, then all useful substances are preserved in it. And this is extremely important in the winter and early spring periods, when there are fewer and fewer vitamins in the blanks. Apparently, for this reason, different types of adjika are very popular. And adjika “Spark”, the recipes of which you can find in the article, is most often prepared without cooking. Although it should be stored at the same time only in the refrigerator or in the cellar. In rare cases, the storage period is limited to only a month or two.
The history of the dish and its varieties
Initially, adjika is a native Caucasian dish and is translated from the local language as “spicy salt”. There is a legend that salt was given to shepherds for animals, so that after eating it, they would eat grass more willingly and gain weight more actively. And since in ancient times salt was a precious product, so that people would not steal it, hot pepper was added to it. But this did not bother the shepherds at all, they added a lot of spicy herbs to the spicy salt and used it with pleasure for food. Thus, adjika was born, which at first was an exceptionally dry mixture of spices and salt.
But for the taste, apparently, this seasoning turned out to be somewhat spicy and resourceful housewives came up with many of its varieties using common vegetables and spices.
Most often, in adjika recipes, tomatoes and sweet peppers are used in large quantities.
Well, the most traditional, primordially component of adjika is horseradish. It is the combination of horseradish, hot peppers, tomatoes and garlic that is most characteristic of the traditional adjika “Spark”. However, this sauce has a lot of varieties and many of them allow you to cook adjika “Ogonyok” without heat treatment while maintaining all the useful properties of its components.
Recipe for adjika “Spark” with fermentation
To cook adjika “Spark” according to this recipe, you will need:
- Tomatoes – 1 kg;
- Sweet Bulgarian red pepper – 1 kg;
- Chili pepper – 0,3 kg;
- Garlic – 10 heads;
- Salt – 1 tablespoon.
All vegetables must be thoroughly washed so that no impurities remain – after all, they will not boil.
Garlic is peeled from all the husks so that white smooth cloves remain. The place where the fruit is attached is cut out from the tomato. And in peppers, all seeds with valves and tails are removed. Then all the vegetables are cut into pieces that easily pass into the meat grinder.
All components are ground through a meat grinder, salt is added to adjika and its amount is adjusted to taste. Everything is thoroughly mixed. Next, comes the most important stage in the preparation of adjika without cooking. She must ferment. To do this, it is left at room temperature for several days. At the same time, do not forget to stir it 2-3 times a day, so that gases come out easier. The container should be covered with gauze so that midges and other insects do not get inside.
Only after the end of adjika fermentation, when the gases stop coming out of it, can it be laid out in jars. Banks must be well washed and sterilized with lids.
From the indicated amount of ingredients, about 5 half-liter jars of adjika should be obtained. You need to store ready-made adjika in the refrigerator or in the cellar.
Adjika with horseradish
This version of the adjika “Spark” will appeal to all lovers of horseradish.
Prepare the following vegetables, pay attention to their quality. Since adjika is prepared without cooking, all components included in it must be clean and fresh.
- Tomatoes (already chopped and even twisted) – 1 kg or 1 liter. Usually for this you will need about 1,2-1,4 fresh tomatoes.
- Garlic, peeled – 50 grams;
- Hot pepper – 1/2 pod;
- Horseradish peeled – 100 grams;
- Salt – to taste, about 2 teaspoons.
Pass all prepared vegetables through a meat grinder, add salt and mix thoroughly.
Adjika with horseradish is ready. In this form, it can be stored in the refrigerator for no more than 1-2 months. To extend the shelf life, add 1 teaspoon of 9% vinegar or the juice of half a lemon to the mixture of vegetables.
Adjika “Ogonek”, a very tasty recipe
This adjika has a rather rich composition, thanks to which it turns out to be very tasty. In practice, it is no longer a sauce, but an independent snack. To prepare, take the following ingredients:
- Tomatoes – 2 kg;
- Sweet pepper – 1 kg;
- Hot pepper – 300 grams;
- Greens (parsley, dill, cilantro, basil, celery) – about 250 grams;
- Garlic – 200 grams;
- Horseradish root – 500 grams;
- Salt and granulated sugar – 4 tablespoons each;
- Vinegar 9% – 1 tablespoon.
As in other recipes, carefully sort vegetables and herbs, rinse and lightly dry. Then remove all unnecessary parts, and scroll the remaining vegetables and herbs through a meat grinder. At the end, add sugar, salt and vinegar. Mix well again. Arrange the resulting adjika in sterile jars and store everything in the refrigerator or in another cold and dark place.
Any of the above recipes allows you to get a tasty and healthy sauce that can recall the spicy aroma of a hot summer in the cold season and improve the taste of cooked dishes.
