Pickled pumpkin: 11 recipes for the winter

Pumpkin is a bright and very healthy vegetable that any housewife who grows it in her garden can rightfully be proud of. It keeps well under normal indoor conditions, but pickled pumpkin for the winter can turn out to be such a delicacy that it is even difficult to imagine. After all, the vegetable itself tastes quite neutral, but it has an amazing property to absorb all the tastes and aromas of its neighbors in the bank. This means that the palette of pickled pumpkin flavors, which can be created using a variety of additives and spices, is truly inexhaustible.

How to pickle pumpkin for the winter

For marinating for the winter, varieties that are usually referred to as nutmeg are best suited. Large-fruited varieties also have a firm and sweet flesh that is easy to experiment with. You just need to check the fruits for maturity, since all the most delicious varieties are late-ripening, which means that they ripen closer to mid-autumn.

The peel of dessert varieties is usually thin, it is easy to cut it off, and the pulp of ripe fruits has a rich, very beautiful orange hue.

Ripe fruits can be easily identified by the color of the stem-stem - it should be dry, dark brown in color.

To create any blank for the winter from a pumpkin, you first need to cut it. That is, cut into 2-4 pieces, remove the entire central fibrous part with seeds, and also cut off the peel. The thickness of the cut skin should not exceed 0.5 cm. The seeds should not be thrown away. If dried, they can turn out to be a wonderful and very useful treat in winter.

The remaining pumpkin pulp is cut into pieces of a convenient size and shape: cubes, strips or slices, the thickness of which should not exceed 3 cm.

In order for the pumpkin pieces to retain their attractive orange hue during the pickling process, they are blanched in salted water before being made. To do this, dilute 1 tsp in 1 liter of water. salt, heat to a boil and place pieces of vegetables in water for 2-3 minutes. Then they are immediately caught with a slotted spoon and transferred to ice water.

Pumpkin is traditionally marinated in a vinegar solution with the addition of salt, sugar and a variety of spices, depending on the recipe. The addition of vinegar at the very beginning of pickling plays a decisive role - it is the acid that prevents the pumpkin pieces from boiling and turning into porridge. They remain firm and even slightly crispy. The more vinegar is used in the recipe for the winter, the denser the pieces will remain and the more intense the taste of the workpiece will be. But table vinegar can always be replaced with more natural varieties: apple cider or wine. And also use citric acid.

The amount of sugar for pickling pumpkin depends on the recipe and on the taste of the hostess.Since the vegetable has its own sweetness, it is better to control the process by tasting the finished dish.

Finally, a little about spices. For pickling pumpkin, you can use almost the entire range of currently known spices, and each time the taste of the workpiece will differ from the previous one. Pickled pumpkin is especially respected in the Baltic countries, and in Estonia it is practically a national dish. It is even called there half-jokingly - “Estonian pineapple”. In these countries, up to 10 different spices are traditionally used at the same time to give the pickled pumpkin an exotic flavor. For example, adding cinnamon and star anise will make the pickled snack taste like a melon. And the pineapple flavor comes from the addition of allspice, cloves and ginger.

Some recipes for pickled pumpkin for the winter with a photo are presented below, but the scope for your own creativity remains unimaginable.

Pumpkin marinated for the winter without sterilization

Below is an almost classic recipe according to which pickled pumpkin for the winter can be cooked without undue hassle, but it turns out to be very tasty.

Required to prepare for soaking:

• 2 kg of peeled pumpkin;
• 1 liter of water;
• 1 tsp salt.

For the marinade:

• 1 liter of water;
• 100 ml of 9% vinegar;
• 100-200 g sugar;
• 10 carnation buds;
• 10 peas of allspice;
• a pinch of ground dry ginger and nutmeg.

Ginger can also be used fresh, grated on a fine grater.

Cooking according to this recipe, although it takes 2 days, is not at all difficult.

1. The peeled pumpkin is cut into strips or cubes. Put in a saucepan, pour over saline solution and leave for 12 hours.
   
2. The next day, the water for the marinade is heated to a boil, spices and sugar are added there.
   Attention! Those spices that are put as a whole are pre-folded in a gauze bag so that later you can easily remove them from the marinade.
3. Cook for about 5 minutes, take out the bag of spices and add vinegar.
4. Pieces of soaked pumpkin are thrown into a colander, allowing the water to drain off, and placed in the marinade.
5. Cook for about 10 minutes, then lay out on pre-sterilized jars, pour in hot marinade and roll up.

Pickling pumpkin for the winter: a recipe with cinnamon

In the same way, it is easy to marinate pumpkin for the winter with the addition of ground cinnamon or cinnamon sticks.

All ingredients remain the same, but add 1 cinnamon stick to 1 kg of pumpkin pulp.

Quick pickled pumpkin recipe

According to this recipe, you can feast on a ready-made snack after a day.

You will need:

• 1 pumpkin, weighing about 2 kg.
• 1 liter of water;
• 0.5 tbsp. l. salt;
• 1 tsp citric acid;
• 0.5 cups of sugar;
• 5 leaves of lemongrass;
• 5 g of Rhodiola rosea herb (or golden root).

Manufacturing:

1. The vegetable is peeled and seeds removed, cut into thin cubes and blanched for several minutes in boiling water.
2. At the same time, a marinade is prepared: water is boiled, sugar, salt, citric acid and leaves of rhodiola and lemongrass are added.
3. Blanched pumpkin sticks are placed in sterile glass jars, poured with boiling marinade and immediately sealed with sterile lids.
4. For additional natural sterilization, the jars are turned over, wrapped with something warm on top and left in this state to cool for a day.

Pickled pumpkin with mint and garlic recipe

An appetizer according to this recipe for the winter is obtained with a very original taste and aroma, which is difficult to resist.

For 1 liter, a jar will need:

• 600 g pumpkin pulp;
• 3-4 cloves of garlic;
• 2 tbsp. l. wine vinegar;
• 2 tsp natural honey;
• 1 tsp dry mint;
• 2 tsp salt.

Preparation:

1. Cut the pumpkin pulp into cubes and blanch.
2. Chop the garlic into thin slices.
3. In a deep bowl, stir well the pumpkin, garlic and mint.
4. Tamping slightly, spread the mixture into sterile jars.
5. Add honey, vinegar and salt to each jar on top.
6. Then fill the jar with boiling water, cover with a lid and place for calcination in an oven preheated to 120 ° C for 20 minutes.
7. After the can, roll up and leave wrapped to cool.
8. The appetizer can only be tasted after two weeks.

A simple recipe for pumpkin pickled with lemon

A very flavorful pickled pumpkin with citrus fruits can be made in a similar way, but without the addition of vinegar.

You will need:

• 300 g of peeled pumpkin pulp;
• 1 large lemon;
• 1 orange;
• 500 ml of water;
• 280 g sugar;
• 1 star anise star;
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon;
• 2-3 carnation buds;

1. Pieces of pumpkin and orange are laid out in layers on the jars.
2. Pour boiling marinade made from water, sugar, grated lemon and spices.
3. Sterilized for 25 minutes and rolled up.

How to marinate pumpkin with honey in jars for the winter

In a similar way, a fragrant pickled pumpkin is made with the addition of honey instead of sugar. Ingredients are needed in the following quantities:

• 1 kg of pumpkin pulp;
• 1 liter of water;
• 150 ml of apple cider vinegar;
• 150 ml of any honey, except buckwheat;
• 2 carnation buds;
• 4 black peppercorns.

The workpiece is sterilized for about 15-20 minutes.

Pickled pumpkin for the winter: a recipe for Estonian cuisine

Estonians, for whom pickled pumpkin is a national dish, prepare it a little differently.

Prepare:

• about 1 kg of pumpkin pulp;
• 1 liter of water;
• 1 liter of vinegar 6%;
• half a pod of hot pepper - optional and to taste;
• 20 g salt;
• a few leaves of lavrushka;
• 4-5 g spices (cloves and cinnamon);
• a few peas of black pepper.

Preparation method:

1. The vegetable is cut into small slices, blanched and transferred to cold water.
2. After cooling, dispense into clean glass jars.
3. Prepare the marinade: add all the spices to the water, boil for 3 minutes, add vinegar.
4. Pumpkin pieces in jars are poured with a slightly cooled marinade and, covered with lids, are left in the room for 2-3 days.
5. After these days, the marinade is poured into a saucepan, heated to a boil and pumpkin is poured over it again.
6. After that, it remains only to tighten the cans.

Spicy pickled pumpkin recipe with hot pepper

In this recipe, pumpkin is pickled for the winter with a more familiar composition of ingredients, and the result is a spicy snack of universal use.

Prepare:

• 350 g pumpkin pulp;
• 1 head of onion;
• 4 cloves of garlic;
• 1 pod of hot pepper;
• 400 ml of water;
• 100 ml vinegar 9%;
• 50 g sugar;
• 20 g salt;
• 10 black peppercorns;
• 70 ml of vegetable oil;
• 4 pieces of bay leaves and cloves.

Preparation:

1. Cut onions in half rings, pumpkin into cubes, garlic into slices.
2. Seeds are removed from hot peppers, cut into strips.
3. The jars are sterilized and a mixture of chopped vegetables is placed in them.
4. The marinade is prepared in a standard way: spices and herbs are added to boiling water, boiled for 6-7 minutes, vinegar and vegetable oil are added.
5. Vegetables are poured with boiling marinade, rolled up and cooled under a blanket.

Pumpkin marinated for the winter with apples and spices

The preparation of pumpkin for the winter in apple juice turns out to be vitamin and aromatic.

Would need:

• about 1 kg of pumpkin pulp;
• 1 liter of apple juice, preferably freshly squeezed;
• 200 g sugar;
• 40 ml of apple cider vinegar;
• a few pinches of ground ginger and cardamom.

It's very easy and quick to prepare:

1. The vegetable is cut in any convenient way.
2. Sugar, vinegar and spices are added to apple juice, boiled and poured over pumpkin cubes.
   
3. Cool to room temperature and boil again over the fire for about 20 minutes.
4. The pumpkin is transferred to prepared jars, poured with boiling marinade syrup and rolled up.

How to pickle pumpkin with horseradish and mustard for the winter

Would need:

• 1250 g of peeled pumpkin;
• 500 ml of wine vinegar;
• 60 g salt;
• 100 g sugar;
• 2 onions;
• 3 tbsp. l. grated horseradish;
• 15 g mustard seeds;
• 2 inflorescences of dill.

Preparation:

1. Sprinkle the diced pumpkin with salt and leave for 12 hours.
2. In a boiling marinade made from water, vinegar and sugar, blanch the vegetable cubes in small portions and transfer to a colander to drain off excess liquid.
3. The cooled cubes are placed in jars along with onion rings, pieces of horseradish, mustard seeds and dill and poured with hot marinade.
4. Leave for impregnation for another day.
5. Then the marinade is drained, boiled and pumpkin is poured over it again.
6. Banks are immediately sealed for the winter.

Sweet Pickled Pumpkin Recipe

The sweet-sour and aromatic taste of this preparation for the winter will surely attract all those with a sweet tooth.

For 1 kg of peeled pumpkin, prepare:

• 500 ml of water;
• 1 tbsp. l. vinegar essence;
• 250 g sugar;
• 4 carnations;
• 3 peas of black pepper and allspice;
• a piece of fresh ginger, 2 cm long;
• 2 pinches of nutmeg;
• cinnamon and anise - optional.

From this amount of ingredients, you can get about 1300 ml of the finished marinated product.

Preparation:

1. Cut the pumpkin pulp into small cubes.
2. In warm boiled water, dilute vinegar essence and sugar.
3. Pour vegetable cubes with the resulting marinade and leave them to soak, at least overnight.
4. In the morning, put all the spices in a bag of gauze and send them to soak to the pumpkin.
5. Then the pan is put on heating, brought to a boil, boiled for 6-7 minutes over low heat under a lid and set aside for at least half an hour.
6. The pumpkin pieces should be translucent but firm.
7. The spice bag is removed from the workpiece, and the pumpkin is laid out in sterile jars.
8. The marinade is again heated to a boil and poured into jars of pumpkin up to the very neck.
9. Seal with sterile lids and set to cool.

Rules for storing pickled pumpkin

The pumpkin is stored under sealed lids in a cool place without light for about 7-8 months.

Conclusion

Pickled pumpkin for the winter is a preparation that is very diverse in taste and composition of ingredients. But it is very tasty in sweet, salty and spicy forms.

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