Zucchini relish

[dc2024]

I found many recipes for making zucchini relish. Some call for canning using a hot water bath and some do not. Can some one tell me why? If putting a boiled mixture into hot steralized jars, a hot water bath isn't necessary is it? Thank you for your help

[furychef]

The ones that are canned are to preserve them for future use, where as the uncooked ones are to be eaten before they spoil.

[CM]

There are two methods of canning pickled foods and relishes.

One method sterilizes the jars and lids in advance - this is best for relishes that will be kept in the refrigerator. Some people still use this method because they prefer the freshness of not having the pickles/relishes overcooked. If you use Ball can/freeze jars, you can also store some of these in the freezer. Many recipes that have been handed down over generations use this method, and in the past, pickles and relishes were stored on the shelf with no further processing. Some people who learned canning from their mothers in the 60-70s or before then still use their same recipes and have great success. Pickles and relishes were usually put up this way in the past.

Because newer generations of home canners don't always have the same experience or knowledge about canning and preserving, recent USDA guidelines recommend that relishes be processed in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes (some call for 15). This is a safety margin in case a sterile technique isn't adequately followed and/or if some questionable fruit/vegetables were added, or the food/environment wasn't scrupulously clean. It also covers possibilities where the vinegar is not up to a full 5 grain strength. The 10 minutes of boiling water bath processing doesn't affect the texture of many vegetables too much, so in most cases it's not too detrimental to the finished product. Since zucchini is a low acid vegetable, it would be a good idea to process in a boiling water bath anyway, even if only for long term storage in the refrigerator.

Hope this helps,