Crispy homemade cucumbers, fragrant sauerkraut and, finally, spicy green tomatoes – all this not only causes appetite, but also serves as a source of vitamins and a good cheerful mood in the gloomy winter season.
In ancient times, all these pickles were prepared for the winter in wooden tubs or barrels made of oak, linden or aspen. Of course, the taste of such barrel pickles was indescribable, each tree species transferred its aroma to the preparations and ensured their high-quality and long-term storage. But not only the material of the dishes in which salting takes place affects the quality of the finished pickles. In the old days, many secrets were known that gave the blanks their extraordinary taste and allowed them to be stored until the very end of spring. How to cook real barrel green tomatoes in an ordinary bucket will be discussed in this article.
Preparatory stage
First of all, you need to start preparing the tomatoes themselves for pickling. If you buy tomatoes on the market, then everything is simple here – select the amount of whitish-green tomatoes that are approximately the same in size according to the recipe, and that’s it.
Especially if, due to impending frosts, you are forced to collect every single fruit from the bushes so that frosts do not overtake them. In this case, you usually have a complete mess on the table. There are very hard green tomatoes, and a lot of whitish ones that are starting to turn pink, there are also brown ones, perhaps even a couple of red ones will come across.
It is undesirable to ferment brown and completely green tomatoes at the same time in the same container. It is advisable to give completely green ones a few days to lie down in the company of several red tomatoes – in this case they will turn a little brown or turn pink, and after that they can only be used.
The fact is that in unripe tomatoes there is quite a lot of poisonous substance – solanine. But when the tomatoes begin to turn white or brown, the amount of solanine decreases, and in the process of salting, the solanine completely disappears.
So, select the tomatoes that have already begun to lighten, wash them well and dry them.
If you prefer soft tomatoes, then first dip them for 2-3 minutes in boiling water.
One of the main secrets to getting delicious barrel green tomatoes is to use as many herbs as possible in the recipe. Therefore, do not be stingy, and in addition to the standard set of salting spices, try to find and use more exotic herbs such as tarragon, savory, basil and others to your liking.
For example, you can use the following set of spices:
- Garlic – 4 heads;
- Grass and inflorescences of dill – 200 grams;
- Leaves of oak, blackcurrant and cherry – several dozen pieces each;
- Bay leaf – 5-6 pieces;
- Horseradish leaves and root – about 50-100 grams;
- Parsley and celery – one bunch each;
- Grass and sprigs of basil, savory, tarragon – to taste;
- Coriander seeds – a tablespoon;
- Black and allspice peas – to taste.
It is advisable to cut the garlic into quarters after dividing into slices, and cut the horseradish root into small pieces-cubes. All other greens can be used according to the recipe as a whole.
Brine making
When using a standard enameled bucket for sourdough tomatoes, approximately 10 liters of water will be required. Another secret to creating an extraordinary taste of barrel tomatoes is the use of mustard in salting.
Thus, bring the water to a boil, add oak, cherry and currant leaves, 650-700 grams of rock salt, as well as 100 grams of sugar and mustard powder. After 10 minutes, all the leaves are removed and placed at the bottom of the bucket. And the brine itself is cooled to a temperature of approximately + 18 ° С + 20 ° С.
Salting process
Before putting in a bucket, not only tomatoes, but also all herbs should be washed well under running water and dried on a towel. After preparing the brine, boiled leaves from the trees will already be at the bottom of the bucket. To them you can add a leaf of horseradish and dill inflorescences. Next, green tomatoes are placed in a bucket. According to the recipe, they must be laid very tightly, since it is in this case that salting will occur in an optimal way. Otherwise, the tomatoes risk being salted.
Pour tomatoes through each layer and shift with various spices. The topmost layer on top of the tomatoes is laid all the remaining herbs.
After everything is laid, cold strained brine is poured into a bucket of tomatoes. The last secret to storing tomatoes for a long time so that they do not become moldy is that a piece of natural cloth sprinkled with a layer of mustard is lined on top of the tomatoes. And already a lid or a plate with a load is placed on it. It is this fabric with mustard that will be able to prevent the possible appearance of mold on tomatoes during storage.
After a week or two, tomatoes cooked according to this recipe can be tried. Although it is better to wait a few more weeks until they acquire a rich taste and aroma.
If your family respects tomatoes and real pickles, then a dish prepared according to this recipe should definitely impress you and your loved ones.
