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Pickled Marsh Samphire

Pickled Marsh Samphire is a traditional British recipe for a classic pickle of marsh samphire preserved in lightly-spiced vinegar with salt. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic British version of: Pickled Marsh Samphire.

prep time

20 minutes

cook time

15 minutes

Total Time:

35 minutes

Additional Time:

(+7 days maturing)

Makes:

3 jars

Rating:

Tags : Wild FoodSauce RecipesBritish Recipes

Like most recipes for 'samphire', this recipe requires marsh samphire as an ingredient. This is a fleshy salt-tolerant plant that looks a little like a small cactus. It should not be confused with rock samphire, a member of the carrot family, which is also edible. The marsh samphire season is very short (July to August, if you're lucky) and the only way to preserve this vegetable for the remainder of the year is to pickle it (it does not freeze well). As a result this recipe is vital for anyone who wants to make the most of this wild food.

Ingredients:

1.4kg marsh samphire shoots
4 tbsp pickling spice
850ml white vinegar
850ml water
350g sugar
12 garlic cloves

Method

Clean and sterilize about 3 large jars. Add 4 peeled and scored garlic cloves into each jar along with 1 tbsp pickling spice. Trim and clean the marsh samphire, removing any woody stems then soak for at least an hour in cold water to remove the worst of the salt. Drain and chop into 5cm lengths and pack into the jars.

Add all the remaining ingredients to a pan, bring to a boil and allow to simmer for 15 minutes then pour the hot solution over the vegetables (leaving 1cm headroom). Seal the jars and process in a bath of boiling water for 10 minutes. The asparagus will be pickled after about a week but the flavour matures and develops the longer it's kept. I usually don't open the first jar for at least 3 months.