Lacto Fermented Hot Pepper Relish

My friend gave me a jar of spicy fermented relish last fall, and it was the first time I realized I could make such a thing. It was so tasty I ate it within a week. I don't know what was in that one, but this one turned out nicely - medium spicy and tangy. At the moment I am also making fermented salsa, collard kimchi, pickled jalapenos (pictured) and spiced beets. Soon to come: fermented carrots and more standard kraut. So many plans, and hopefully enough jars to get me through since I hear there is a shortage all over town.

These ferments are quite forgiving and experimental. The main thing is you want to use fresh, crisp veggies to keep longer and maintain their goodness. Use whatever variety you have and like, for whatever degree of spiciness. Fit them into whatever jar will most closely hold the amount you made. For a relish recipe that has more exact amounts than I use below, check out this link. You also will want to do your best to keep vegetable matter submerged under the brine. This was tricky with this tiny chopped bits of peppers - I used a piece of kohlrabi leaf with moderate success (moderate because no mold matter formed, but I don't think that was any result of the leaf, which just stuck to the lid!) You could also use a cucumber, two crossed carrot sticks, a rock, a ziplock baggie with water, etc.

For the hot pepper relish:

I chopped jalapenos and a handful of other peppers from my garden - I had one banana pepper, and a handful of medium-spicy red peppers that look like mini bell peppers. I forget what they are called. I also chopped up some garlic cloves (I did all the chopping in the food processor) and then mixed everything together in a large bowl. I spooned it into a jar, then covered it with salt brine. (Mine was my typical brine of 1 quart of water to 3 T sea salt, though I used a little smoky salt in this batch for an extra thrill.) I left the jar out on the counter for 5 days, at which time the taste was to my liking. *My pint jar expressed A LOT of liquid over the course of 5 days. Like, a large pool was on my counter on morning 2. I also was trying out a jar lid that has an air escape thing, so maybe that encouraged more liquid expression?!

For the pickled jalapenos:

I sliced jalapenos whole, and topped them off with brine. I thought about putting a garlic clove in there, but didn't do it this first time. According to some website recipes, the pickled peppers will take several weeks - so they are still sitting, biding their time. I'll taste them after 10 days or so to see how they are faring, but so far they are looking good.

jalapenos, salsa, collard kimchi, beets...