The Italian-beef condiment of Chicago: diced celery, carrot, pepper, onion and olives brined overnight, then dressed with serrano, garlic, oregano, chile flakes, vinegar and oil, and kept cold throughout.
Untested: not yet made in this kitchen. It is here for the Peppers and Hot Sauce pages and is adapted from the source named in the Notes.
Ingredients
- 1 stalk celery, diced
- 1 carrot, diced
- ½ red bell pepper, seeded and diced
- ½ onion, diced
- ½ cup green olives, pitted (with pimento if wished), diced
- 2 cups water
- ¼ cup salt
- 2 serrano chiles, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ cup white vinegar
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Directions
- On the first day, dice all the vegetables and put everything except the chiles into a lidded bowl. Mix the 2 cups water with the ¼ cup salt, pour the brine over the vegetables, cover and refrigerate overnight.
- On the second day, drain the vegetables, rinse them well and put them in a clean quart jar. Add the serranos, garlic, oregano, red pepper flakes, vinegar and oil, mix well and season with salt and pepper.
- Cover the jar and refrigerate it at once; do not leave it on the counter. Let it marinate in the refrigerator for 2 days before serving, and use it within 4 days of adding the garlic and oil (see Notes).
Notes
Source Adapted from Sarah, “Chicago Style Hot Giardiniera Relish,” Curious Cuisiniere (2018), a blog recipe cited by Wikipedia’s giardiniera article. It makes about 2 cups (1 pint). It is the only Chicago-style recipe with quantities that could be reached; none was found from Serious Eats, the Chicago Tribune or Bon Appétit.
What this version changes, and why The source says to “cover the mixture and let marinate on the counter for up to 2 days” before refrigerating it. That leaves raw minced garlic and fresh vegetables in oil at room temperature for two days, with half a cup of vinegar as the only acid and no measured pH: the exact conditions in which garlic in oil has caused botulism. This version keeps it refrigerated from the moment the oil goes in. The quantities are the source’s; only the counter step is changed.
No tested canning process No tested canning process exists for giardiniera in oil; the National Center for Home Food Preservation has no giardiniera at all. Its only tested pepper product with oil, Marinated Peppers, carries 1 cup bottled lemon juice and 2 cups 5% vinegar for every cup of oil, far more acid than this recipe. Do not can this, and do not keep it at room temperature.
How long it keeps The CDC’s advice for homemade oils made with garlic or herbs is to refrigerate them and throw them away after 4 days, and UGA Extension gives the same 4 days for non-acidified infused oils. No source reached gives a longer safe time for this recipe, so it is made to be eaten within those 4 days: refrigerated 2 days to marinate, as the source advises for flavour, then used within the next 2. The commercial method (pickle the vegetables two weeks, drain, then cover with oil) is a different, longer process that the Tribune describes without quantities.
The dish The Peppers and Hot Sauce section (/hot-sauce/) covers giardiniera’s journey from Sicily to Chicago, the Italian beef, and the garlic-in-oil rule.
The photo The photograph shows an Italian beef sandwich topped with giardiniera, not this exact recipe.