Diddy-Wa-Diddy

Curry Zucchini Pickles

I was handed three large zucchini squash.  Hmmmm.  Knew the seeds would be large and tough and inside a bit pithy.  Would have to figure out how to use the outer parts.  This meant cutting centers out and slicing thin ( 1/8" ish ) rectangle shapes.   The recipe I worked with is in Complete Book of Pickling by Jennifer MacKenzie, page 106 ( Curry Zucchini Pickles ).  My version is a bit different.

20 cups of 1/8" pieces of zucchin
1/4 cup plus a tablespoon pickling salt
2 tsp curry powder ( I blend my own ,  next time I will use 3 tsp as the flavor was milder than I prefer)
1/2 tsp cumin seed
1/2 cup sugar ( I used raw organic )
1/8 tsp cinnamon ( I used Vietnamese )
2 and 3/4 cup cider vinegar ( I used Heinz in the glass jar )
1 and 1/4 cup water ( I used filtered)
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lime juice

1.  Cut up the zucchini.   Leave the skin on.  1/8" thick pieces. Remove the seeds if using larger squash and the pithy center.
2.  In a large non-reactive bowl, ( glass or stainless ) layer zucchini and salt.  Weigh down the zucchini with a plate that covers the entire surface.  Cover with a dish towel and let stand in a cool room for at least three hours.   After that amount of time, remove the plate and check to see if the zucchini has wilted a bit and there should be some juice in the bowl.
3. In a colander , rinse, drain , rinse and drain the zucchini , working in batches.  Lay a dish towel on a cookie sheet .  Put the now drained zucchini on this towel.  Place another towel on top.  Leave this for an hour or at least for a half hour.
4.  Prepare the canner, jars, and lids.  I was able to get seven pints from this amount of zucchini.  This filled the large enamel water bath canner.
5.  In a dry skillet on low to medium heat, toast the curry powder and cumin seeds.  Stir and when you smell the spices come to life, remove from heat and transfer to a bowl or plate to cool.
6.  In a large heavy pot on the stove, combine the toasted spices, sugar, cinnamon, vinegar and water.  Bring to a boil over medium heat.  Stir to dissolve the sugar.  Boil for a minute.  Add the zucchini and lime juice.  Reduce heat and simmer for ten minutes or so til the zucchini looks translucent.  I found that this took about fifteen minutes.
Pack the zucchini in the hot jars.  Leave an inch head space.  Pour in enough hot pickling liquid to get to 1/2 inch headspace.  Remove air bubbles.  Wipe rim .  Place hot lid disc and screw band down til finger tight.
Place jars in canner and bring water to a boil.  Process for ten minutes.  Turn off heat and remove canner lid.  Let jars stand for five minutes in the water bath.  Transfer jars to towel lined surface and leave for twenty four hours.

* I added chopped medium hot chile pepper pieces in the bottom of each jar to add a bit of kick ( I hope ).  Next time I will also add garlic cloves. 

Will make full report in a few months when I open the first jar.