When a companion at the dinner table asks you to pass them the chow chow, they are certainly not referring to the fluffy canine companion waiting patiently for scraps to hit the floor. Your friend is asking for the container filled with the delicious yellow-green relish. The Southern specialty known as chow chow is a type of relish created with a mix of vegetables that have been salted, cooked with spices, and then pickled.
This tangy yet sweet condiment can be served with everything from beans to pork chops. While the flavors of the chow chow are one of its greatest pulls, the crunchy texture is also a key part of the eating experience. To achieve the perfect crunch, use salt to remove excess moisture from the vegetables.
Pickling salt is the best choice for this step because of its purity; other salts with additives create a cloudier brine that can make it harder to tell if the chow chow has gone bad since cloudiness is a symptom of spoilage. The salt should be applied in the early stages of preparation and thoroughly rested to make the quest for crunchiness a success. For the crunchiest chow chow relish, it's about salt and science Vegetables with high water content, such as cucumber, cabbage, tomatoes, and bell peppers, benefit the most from salting and then resting.
Salted vegetables can sit for 30 minutes to 12 hours before they are cooked and pickled, but many chow chow connoisseurs advise letting the salted vegetables rest at room temperature for at least 6 hours. As .