Swedish salad: A cherished tradition in pantries

Home-made preserves have played an important role in households for generations. When the season for fresh vegetables ends, and the shops are filled with tasteless imported tomatoes and watery cucumbers, jars from the pantry satisfy the craving for something healthy and tasty. In my home, we have been making a simple Swedish salad for years. Everyone loves it, so I always try to make a large supply.

Swedish salad is a tried and tested recipe for jarred salad. Everyone likes it, and it works great as a side dish for dinner. It complements fried, baked, and braised meats, but I also know fans of eating it straight from the jar as a snack. You can start testing the flavours after a week, but they will stay well-preserved in the pantry until winter, as long as homemade delicacies enthusiasts don't get to them first.

Swedish salad is mainly associated with winter when my grandma would take jars filled with deliciousness from her pantry. For dinners, Swedish salad was often served, combining cucumbers and carrots in a vinegar brine. Over the years, I started making these jars in my own home using a tried and true recipe.

The sweet and sour brine preserves cucumbers very well and ensures they remain crunchy and tasty after marinating. Ground cucumbers work best when preparing the salad. When they appear at the stalls, it’s a sign that it's time for canning.

Making homemade preserves can be time-consuming, but the process is straightforward. Even those just beginning their canning adventure can handle Swedish salad.

Ingredients:

• 4 kilograms of ground cucumbers,
• 500 grams of carrots,
• 500 grams of onions,
• 250 millilitres of vinegar,
• 500 grams of sugar,
• 250 millilitres of oil,
• 3 teaspoons of flat salt,
• 2 teaspoons of ground pepper,
• 2 small heads of garlic.

Brine:

• 875 millilitres of water,
• 500 grams of white sugar,
• 500 millilitres of 10% spirit vinegar.

Preparation method:

1. Thoroughly wash the cucumbers and cut them into thin slices.
2. Cut the onions into feathers.
3. Peel the carrots and grate them on a coarse grater.
4. Peel the garlic.
5. Mix cucumbers, onions, carrots, and garlic in a large bowl.
6. Add sugar, oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Mix all the ingredients thoroughly and set the salad aside for 2 hours for the flavours to meld.
7. Prepare the brine. Boil the water with sugar, stirring until the sugar is completely dissolved. Pour in the spirit vinegar and bring the brine back to a boil.
8. After 2 hours, transfer the salad to sterilised jars.
9. Pour the prepared brine over the salad.
10. Tightly seal the jars and pasteurise them in boiling water for 15 minutes. After removing them from the water, turn the jars upside down and let them cool completely.

Swedish salad is ready to eat after about 7 days. It goes perfectly with meat dishes or even burgers. Enjoy your meal!