Every pickling season I try to find some new recipe to test and try out. Usually, I look in my old cookbooks or on our local recipe sharing online community and usually find a nice recipe that I like, and completely change it.

The same thing happened this year. I found a recipe for “Provansal vegetables” in one of my old cookbooks and the original recipe was:

• 2 spring onion bundles
• 4 peppers
• 4 zucchinis
• 2 eggplants
• 4 tomatoes
• 6 garlic cloves
• 1dl (3.3 oz) of oil
• pepper powder and salt

• Wash vegetables, peel, and slice them. On oil fry the vegetables, mix them together add spices and fill the hot jars. Pasteurize for 45 minutes.

I have fried all the veggies. I had to fry them separately since I don’t have a pan or a frying pot big enough for all the veggies, so it took me hours to do everything. 

After frying, I’ve mixed all the vegetables and added more spices. Powdered garlic, pepper, salt, red pepper, and celery. 

While I was frying the vegetables I’ve heated the oven with washed jars to 100°C (212°F). After they have been sterilized for 30 minutes I’ve filled the jars with mixed vegetables.

When it comes to sterilizing the jars, I only do it when I fill the jars with a mixture that doesn’t contain vinegar (ajvar, relishes, jams). When the jars are filled with vinegar pickling liquid, there’s no need to sterilize them. The pasteurization is more than enough.

I got 9 middle-sized jars of fried veggies, which I’ll be using as a side dish with meat(I’ll heat them before eating). This way I’ll have summer veggies ready for winter without overcrowding my freezer.