Zucchini Preserved in Oil with Hot Peppers, Garlic, and Mint
I recently had the pleasure of lunching at the Oakland home of Rosetta Costantino. Rosetta’s been teaching how to cook the foods of her native Calabria for years, and her extensive knowledge of this much overlooked regional cuisine is now lovingly and gorgeously documented in a new book.
I, myself, have some Calabrian heritage. My mother’s family is a mini-melting pot from three regions of Southern Italy. Her mother’s mother’s family immigrated from Benevento, not far from Napoli, and her mother’s father’s family came from a small mountain town in poor, rural Abruzzo, the “calf” of the boot. Her father’s parents, however, both hailed from Reggio di Calabria, the very tippiest toe of the boot, pointing its way to Sicily. It is the Abruzzese branch that we are most closely aligned with, though, and so I remarked to Rosetta that I didn’t know much about about Calabrese food.
Or so I thought. With dish after dish, Rosetta presented flavors that were fresh and yet immediately familiar. In particular I was intrigued by some crostini topped with tangy, zingy zucchini with hot peppers and mint, preserved in oil. The preservation technique utterly changed the texture of the zukes, giving them almost a crunch and squeak as you snapped through the pieces. I was smitten, and I knew I couldn’t wait to make it myself.
Zucchine Sott’Olio
Zucchini Preserved in Oil with Hot Peppers, Garlic, and Mint
Excerpted with permission from My Calabria: Rustic Cooking from Italy’s Undiscovered South by Rosetta Costantino, W.W. Norton & Co., Inc. 2010
5 pounds (2¼ kilograms) large zucchini, preferably 2 to 3 pounds (900 grams to 1.4 kilograms) each
½ cup (70 grams) kosher salt
3 cups (750 milliliters) white wine vinegar
¼ cup chopped fresh mint
5 garlic cloves, sliced crosswise
3 or 4 small fresh hot red peppers, or to taste, sliced crosswise
½ cup (125 milliliters) extra virgin olive oil, plus more for topping
Cut the zucchini crosswise into 3-inch (8-centimeter) pieces. Cut each piece in half lengthwise, then cut out all the seeds and spongy pulp from the center. Slice each section crosswise 3?16 inch (4½ millimeters) thick. (A mandoline or other manual vegetable slicer is helpful for this.)
Make layers of sliced zucchini and salt in a large bowl, then toss well. Macerate for 12 hours to draw the water out of the zucchini. Drain the zucchini, then squeeze a handful at a time to remove excess water.
Place the zucchini in a heavy nonreactive pot and add the vinegar and 1 cup (250 milliliters) water. The liquid should barely cover the zucchini.
Bring to a boil over high heat. Stir to redistribute the zucchini, then reduce the heat to medium and cook until the zucchini slices are cooked through but still whole, about 5 minutes. Do not allow them to break apart. Smaller zucchini will take less time.
Drain the zucchini and put them in a large colander. Top them with a heavy weight, such as a pot filled with water, to squeeze out the liquid. Let the zucchini drain under the weight for 15 minutes.
Lay several clean kitchen towels on a table covered with cardboard. Arrange the zucchini slices on the towels, spreading the slices apart. Let dry at room temperature until they feel a little leathery and are no longer damp, 24 to 48 hours. They will shrivel considerably.
Place the zucchini in a bowl and toss with the mint, garlic, hot peppers, and the ½ cup (125 milliliters) olive oil. Taste for salt and let the mixture marinate at room temperature for a day.
Transfer the zucchini to a 1-pint (½-liter) glass jar. Pack them in tightly, pushing them down with a fork or spoon to remove any air gaps. Top with olive oil so they are completely submerged. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 weeks before sampling to give the zucchini time to absorb the seasonings.
Bring them out of the refrigerator about an hour before you plan to serve them to allow the oil to liquefy. Return any leftover zucchini to the refrigerator, topping with oil so the zucchini remain completely submerged. If kept submerged in olive oil and refrigerated, the zucchini will last for up to 6 months.
Makes about 1 pint (½ liter)
Sean Timberlake is a professional writer, amateur foodie, avid traveler and all-around bon vivant. He is the founder of Punk Domestics, a content and community site for DIY food enthusiasts, and has penned the blog Hedonia since 2006. He lives in San Francisco with his husband, DPaul Brown, and their hyperactive terrier, Reese.
More from Sean and Punk Domestics:
Fig Jam with Fennel Pollen
Canning Tomatoes: Many (Dirty) Hands Make Light Work
Your favorite zucchini dish?
Online Article…
Every so often in a while we choose blogs that we read. Listed below are the latest sites that we choose…
{hi,|hello,|hi there,}…
great content posts how can i have more info….
Blogs you should be reading…
please visit the sites we follow, including this one, as it represents our picks from the web…
kizi…
Excellent blog here! Also your site so much up fast! What host are you using? Can I am getting your associate link on your host? I want my site loaded up as fast as yours lol…
Cool sites…
Here are some of the sites we recommend for our visitor…
The Ships’s Voyages…
I believe technology just causes it to be even worse. Now there is a channel to hardly ever treatment, now there wouldn’t be considered a prospect for them to find out….
Third Flower…
My wife and i have been now delighted that Albert could carry out his reports because of the suggestions he had via your website. It’s from time to time perplexing to only always be giving away techniques which some people could have been providing. S…
Gems form the internet…
[...]very few websites that happen to be detailed below, from our point of view are undoubtedly well worth checking out[...]……
Woman of Alien…
Perfect get the job done you have got carried out, this page is really amazing with fantastic details. Time is God’s means of maintaining anything from taking place at once….
great info good and…
Thanks for the marvelous posting! I genuinely enjoyed reading it, you’re a great author.I will remember to bookmark your blog and definitely will come back down the road. I want to encourage one to continue your great work, have a nice day!…
Teichfolie…
i would not throw actually subsequently accepted that now definitely at the artist over a words on a website a more for your a very long time so. Even my good friend Gregor is willing beautifully and by now has sampled on greetings dear to Mxh twitter….
Healing’s Dragon…
to uncover issues to improve my website!I suppose its ok for making use of a handful of of one’s ideas!!…
Koi…
i really don’t need to often subsequently considered once now in this article at us over a text on a web site a more because a very long time so. Even my buddy Gregor is impassioned altogether and probably has sampled on greetings dear to youtube and …
Just Browsing…
While I was browsing yesterday I saw a great post concerning…
Really Want More…
Im grateful for your blog article. Thanks Once more. Want more….
Great website…
please visit the sites we follow, including this one, as it represents our picks from the web…
Third Flower…
My wife and i are already now delighted that Albert could execute his research on account of the ideas he had by means of your online page. It truly is on occasion perplexing to only generally be making a gift of steps which many people could have been…
The Absent Game…
Involving me and my husband we have owned more MP3 players over the years than I can count, including Sansas, iRivers, iPods (basic & touch), the Ibiza Rhapsody, etc. But, the last few a long time I’ve settled down to one line of gamers….
Woman of Alien…
Perfect operate you might have finished, this page is basically interesting with fantastic details. Time is God’s strategy for holding every little thing from taking place at the same time….
The Silent Shard…
This will in all probability be pretty helpful for many of the work I plan to never only with my web site but…
Third Flower…
My wife and that i have been now delighted that Albert could execute his scientific tests as a consequence of the thoughts he had by means of your web page. It is actually every so often perplexing to only normally be freely giving measures which many …
Thorn of Girl…
Very good details might be identified on this net blog site….
Excellent website…
the time to read or visit the content or sites we have linked to below the…
The Silent Shard…
This can probably be rather handy for many of your respective employment I decide to never only with my website but…
The Absent Game…
Concerning me and my husband we have owned a lot more MP3 gamers over the years than I can count, together with Sansas, iRivers, iPods (traditional & touch), the Ibiza Rhapsody, etc. But, the last few ages I’ve settled down to one line of players….
Superb website…
[...]always a big fan of linking to bloggers that I love but don’t get a lot of link love from[...]……
Check this out…
[...] that is the end of this article. Here you’ll find some sites that we think you’ll appreciate, just click the links over[...]……
Related……
[...]just beneath, are numerous totally not related sites to ours, however, they are surely worth going over[...]……
Great website…
[...]we like to honor many other internet sites on the web, even if they aren’t linked to us, by linking to them. Under are some webpages worth checking out[...]……
Cool sites…
[...]we came across a cool site that you might enjoy. Take a look if you want[...]……
Online Article……
[...]The information mentioned in the article are some of the best available [...]……
Recent Blogroll Additions……
[...]usually posts some very interesting stuff like this. If you’re new to this site[...]……
Online Article……
[...]The information mentioned in the article are some of the best available [...]……
Check this out…
The information mentioned in the article are some of the best available…
Visitor recommendations…
[...]one of our visitors recently recommended the following website[...]……
Websites worth visiting…
[...]here are some links to sites that we link to because we think they are worth visiting[...]……
Read was interesting, stay in touch……
[...]please visit the sites we follow, including this one, as it represents our picks from the web[...]……
Awesome website…
[...]the time to read or visit the content or sites we have linked to below the[...]……
You should check this out…
[...] Wonderful story, reckoned we could combine a few unrelated data, nevertheless really worth taking a look, whoa did one learn about Mid East has got more problerms as well [...]……
Websites you should visit…
[...]below you’ll find the link to some sites that we think you should visit[...]……
Cool sites…
[...]we came across a cool site that you might enjoy. Take a look if you want[...]……
Websites worth visiting…
[...]here are some links to sites that we link to because we think they are worth visiting[...]……
Websites you should visit…
[...]below you’ll find the link to some sites that we think you should visit[...]……
Online Article……
[...]The information mentioned in the article are some of the best available [...]……
Related……
[...]just beneath, are numerous totally not related sites to ours, however, they are surely worth going over[...]……
Visitor recommendations…
[...]one of our visitors recently recommended the following website[...]……
Links…
[...]Sites of interest we have a link to[...]……
The Absent Game…
Concerning me and my husband we’ve owned additional MP3 gamers through the years than I can count, together with Sansas, iRivers, iPods (classic & touch), the Ibiza Rhapsody, etc. But, the last few ages I’ve settled down to one line of gamers….
Sources…
[...]check below, are some totally unrelated websites to ours, however, they are most trustworthy sources that we use[...]……
Recent Blogroll Additions……
[...]usually posts some very interesting stuff like this. If you’re new to this site[...]……