Love all of your video's! I am here in Australia, growing most of my own food and using my bees for mead. I also make wine and spirits. My final challenge is to learn to make cheese. Your video's are full of information, love every single one!

@EnglishCountryLife

4 ай бұрын

Thanks so much Sharon! I wish we could make spirits here

@sharonbrown525

4 ай бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife don't tell anyone and you can! We really are a nation of convicts..........

@EnglishCountryLife

4 ай бұрын

@@sharonbrown525 😁

Also, a genius point you made about competing flavors on the palate with the strong flavor of both the onion and malt vinegar

@EnglishCountryLife

2 ай бұрын

Thank you

Thanks for putting this video up. I've been shocked recently at prices in the shops for a big jar of pickled onions, it's been between £8.99 and £10.99 so I've planted my own shallots in an effort to produce my own. I've liked and subscribed so looking forwards to finding other things from you that I can also produce myself.

@EnglishCountryLife

2 ай бұрын

Yours will taste much better too - wait & see!

Brilliant 👏 🙌💞🥰😘

@EnglishCountryLife

5 күн бұрын

Thank you

Hi Hugh, I made 24 jars with two sacks of onions. Followed your recipe and I tried them for the first time yesterday. Absolutely awesome, a really nice tang to it, with a good crunch to the onion, with a bit of heat as well. My wife enjoyed them and I took 4 jars to my father who is currently shielding and he loves them as well. Will be my go to recipe now each year. Thanks so much for sharing.

@EnglishCountryLife

3 жыл бұрын

I'm really delighted and thanks for telling us how you got on! I must admit that I am sufficiently happy with the recipe that I have stopped trying to improve it 😉

Sound's good

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

Thank you

As always, brilliant, looking forward to giving it a go!

@EnglishCountryLife

2 жыл бұрын

It's worthwhile trying the spiced vinegar blend , it makes all the difference 🙂

I like your take on this. I tend to flavour the vinegar and put it back into its canister and then when I am ready to do the pickled shallots I have a nicely flavoured and spiced vinegar. I use a little bit of muslin to put the spices in and then tie it up with a bit of string and then hang it off my wooden spoon. I dry my own chillies and pop one into each jar as well together with bay leaves and black peppercorns. I have to buy my shallots or pickling onions but the other thing I always do when preparing for pickled onions is do extra of either and then pop them in the freezer as is. It helps caramelise roast potatoes if you put a couple in the roasting pan and gives a bit more flavour to meat juices which I utilise when making gravy. They also go into stews and casseroles. Keep up the good work you are doing brilliantly.

@EnglishCountryLife

4 жыл бұрын

Thank you! Shallots in gravy makes the best tasting roast!

These look fantastic!

@EnglishCountryLife

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you!

Love this video. Thanks for posting buddy

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

Thanks Gary - hope you enjoy it - the vinegar spice is worth the effort!

Love the knowledge and passion. Can't wait to try!

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

Really hope you enjoy them William - I'm very pleased with the spiced vinegar flavour 🙂

Oh mate they're superb............Ill give this a bash............Cheers for this

@EnglishCountryLife

4 жыл бұрын

Let us know how you get on please?

Love your recipe

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

Thank you 🙂

Truly, such a helpful content.

@EnglishCountryLife

4 жыл бұрын

Thank you!

😊 definitely going to try this, looks awesome. Thank you!

@EnglishCountryLife

3 ай бұрын

Enjoy! Let me know what you think?

EXCELLENT

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

Thank you 🙂

I will be trying out this recipe Thank you for sharing

@EnglishCountryLife

2 жыл бұрын

Do let us know what you think Germaine?

You have a beautiful country house.

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

Thank you 🙂

Great video, Hugh, thanks. It's different to the recipes I've used to date, but I'm intrigued, so I think I'll give it a try. I do like the combination of spices you've suggested.

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

I'd love to hear what you think when you try it 🙂

Absolutely brilliant thanks very much 😊

@EnglishCountryLife

9 ай бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it!

Absolutely fantastic video! I watched several but this is by far the best 😁. I have done pickled eggs a couple of times, now to try pickled onions. I'm inspired also to grow my own shallots. Excellent 👌

@EnglishCountryLife

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you so much! Please let me know what you think when you taste them 🙂

@rho1360

2 жыл бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife I'll let you know, I just put up two 850ml jars 👍

Really enjoyed this video thanks so much

@EnglishCountryLife

2 жыл бұрын

I'm so glad Mark 🙂

Great videos, looking forward to trying this out!!

@EnglishCountryLife

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks John, let me know what you think of them! Hugh

@jc55555jc

4 жыл бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife Will do! 👍

Harvested ours today., looking forward to pickling

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

Do let me know what you think of the recipe please 🙂

It's March, and I'm finally getting to the onions I didn't eat this winter and that are left over from last fall's harvest. They are fresh still and I look forward to making your recipe. Thanks so much!

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

One of the joys of shallots is that they keep so well!

Great vid, can’t wait to see how mine turn out!

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

If you use our vinegar recipe, we would love to hear your thoughts 🙂

@ElleEm11

Жыл бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife I’ll keep you posted!

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

@@ElleEm11 Thanks Lisa 👍

I'm so excited to try and make these shallots!! Ty for sharing ur secret recipe❣️

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

I hope you love them as much as we do - please let us know what you think?

Great video, thank you! Could find all the spices at our local Asian supermarket bar the juniper berries, but luckily the supermarket had some - not something they normally carry so was lucky. Have done the malt vinegar - which smells fab, and prepped the onions, bottle tomorrow! Will keep you posted!!

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

Please do keep us posted - we would love to hear what you think!

I've been knocking up pickled onions for a while. Around 30 years. My preference is the hot variety that bites back. Unless you grow your own shallots or pickling onions it can get expensive I use the value or wonky onions you can get for buttons in the supermarket. Larger than the pickling variety but small enough to get into a jar. Brining or salting really does give you a proper crunch so don't skimp on that step people. Experiments on going with dry spicing directly into jar. Looks good in distilled malt vinegar adding a touch of class to the home made gift. Takes longer for the flavour to develop but you can't rush quality. First tried the idea with eggs to avoid discolouring and dust settling at the bottom of the jar. it worked ok but needs a couple of tweeks.

@EnglishCountryLife

2 жыл бұрын

I think if you want to spice in the jar, whole, rather than ground, spice is the way to go.

@chrisfox3161

2 жыл бұрын

Oh yes. Whole spices is the only way to go. If I did a hot infusion I'd get fine particles in the vinegar . Ok in brown malt but looked less appetizing in the white. A real tinker to try and filter out so went for washing any dust off the spices and a cold infusion

Nice. I want to make this♡♡ Thank u for sharing ur recipe. Have a nice day ♡♡♡

@EnglishCountryLife

4 жыл бұрын

Please do try, they are delicious!

Hi buddy , reminds me of my 1970s childhood , my Nan made these , but as a kid I did not know how it happened . We have such history in England & long may it continue . Thank you for sharing . Great video

@EnglishCountryLife

2 жыл бұрын

Hi Paul, my grandfather grew and made them too - although I think he would have thought my spices too "fancy" 😁

@paulrumbold2436

2 жыл бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife yeah I don’t you4 grandad would have so many ? Maybe cloves . Great traditional food

@EnglishCountryLife

2 жыл бұрын

@@paulrumbold2436 I think he used mustard seed too. That said, infusing with the aromatics we can now get makes the even better!

Just came across your spicing/pickling recipe..I’m a chef & going to give this recipe a go..Looks great 😊

@EnglishCountryLife

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks Tracy. It's heavy on the aromatics & I'm very happy with it. I would love to hear what you think when you've tried it. Hugh

Interesting. I'm going to let you know how mine came out and how it tasted.❤

@EnglishCountryLife

2 ай бұрын

Yes please, we would love that

Thank you so much for sharing your video. I will be pickling my own onions for the first time today, so your tips will help me a lot. I love pickled onions, but they are very expensive to buy here in the USA. Time to take matters into my own hands. :o) I've subscribed to your channel!

@EnglishCountryLife

2 жыл бұрын

Oh home made are so much better anyway😉. The other great thing is that once you start growing shallots, you never have to buy more! Every shallot produces eight more. Just keep some back to re-plant and pickle away!

Quite the different take on the pickling spices! I've never cooked with juniper berries or allspice berries, so I'm curious. Ironically, I have some green cardamom

@EnglishCountryLife

2 ай бұрын

I do hope you give them a try - they really add something

I toast my pickling spices in the pan before adding the vinegar to boil. Adds flavour. But love your video.

@EnglishCountryLife

8 ай бұрын

I'll give that a try!

@adamlee3772

8 ай бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife forgot to say, I also pour the spices in to the jars as I find it adds to to the flavour as the jars mature. But I can understand why you like the nice clear vinegar.

@EnglishCountryLife

8 ай бұрын

@@adamlee3772 I've tried both but as you say prefer clear vinegar 😉

@adamlee3772

8 ай бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife it’s a personal choice as these things are. I like the rustic look of the spices in the jar. Not as important in pickled red cabbage of course as the vinegar goes very dark so can’t see the spices. Again though, great video. Have a like and subscribe.

@EnglishCountryLife

8 ай бұрын

@@adamlee3772 Thanks Adam!

Just brewing up your picking mix now. The hardest part is waiting. All the best from Wiltshire, England

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

I really hope you like it Tom - do let me know what you think if you taste the vinegar after it cools?

@WalksandAll

Жыл бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife Absolutely will! TYVM for your response. Just getting the skins off and the bottling begins tomorrow evening. Can't wait for the taste test. All the best to you and yours!

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

@@WalksandAll And to you!

The 'scene' of the spices floating on the vinegar is fabulous -- I'd also recommend you either make or invest in (v. small investment!) an Otoshi Buta or 'Drop Lid' - you can make one from food safe offcuts of timber or pick up one of the stainless steel, expanding/multi sizing, versions from A&azon. It will ensure all those lovely spices are held under the liquid line for maximum infusing!

@EnglishCountryLife

4 жыл бұрын

A great suggestion! I do find that, after being brought to the boil, most spices sink to the bottom. I fear a plate would prevent the vinegar circulating, but something mesh......

@selmaalves1501

2 жыл бұрын

Legal

I CAN ALMOST TASTE IT BY LOOK AT YOU MAKE IT 😜🤠😜😜

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

They are nice 🙂

Love your videos thanks. I made loads of pickled onions this year. I grow potato onions. I have 6 or 7 types of them now. They have great pickled onions. I add chilly flakes and cloves in mind often. But I'm going to give your recipe a go this week. I've got 9 pigs to butcher first and to check if the geese and ducks are fat enough for the freezer .. it's a great life. This week we cut into my Spanish style ham. Wow it was great. Thanks again for your lovely videos. I have to get making some nice videos too. X

@EnglishCountryLife

4 жыл бұрын

I'll look forward to your videos, 9 pigs should fill your freezer!

@scarletpeate

4 жыл бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife thanks. I have our Simmental cow to do too this year. Two huge freezers will be full for sure. It's a great life.

@EnglishCountryLife

4 жыл бұрын

I envy you all that pork 😄

I recently found your channel absolutely love it. I normally buy shop bought pickling vinegar but I will definitely try your recipe. I’ve noticed that a lot of people recommend putting Salt directly on the onions leaving those for 24 hours not in the brine. I wonder what your view on this is. I’m happy Christmas keep on Crunching

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

Hi Tim, either way will draw out water through osmosis, I find that brine gives a more complete contact. If you want a very crunchy onion, make a saturated salt solution & leave for 48 hours 🙂

Looks like another great recipe: YES PLEASE for the wholegrain mustard recipe!

@EnglishCountryLife

4 жыл бұрын

Will do John

@johnamriding6862

4 жыл бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife Just bought my pickling onions today: now have to get spices & malt vinegar then I'm hopefully "good to go"

@EnglishCountryLife

4 жыл бұрын

Do please let us know what you think of the recipe? You can get a good sense by trying the infused vinegar once cooled!

@johnamriding6862

4 жыл бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife Do you know the manufacturer of the malt vinegar? I'm trying to do the recipe vaguely properly...

@EnglishCountryLife

4 жыл бұрын

So long as its "pure malt vinegar" any supermarket own brand is fine!

I am really enjoying your recipes. Thanks. When are you going to share your brown sauce (HP) recipe? :) X

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

Hi Sharon! I hope to do it over Winter when I have a little more time 🙂

Hugh, thank you so much for sharing this video. This is the most straight forward video I have come across for pickling onions thus far. After you place the vinegar over the onions, do you just store them in a cupboard? Thanks again, you have a new subscriber.

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

Hi Jade, yes just store in a cupboard, no need to refrigerate 🙂

My mouth's watering at those :) Do you ever do chili pickled eggs as they're a great item to have as well.

@EnglishCountryLife

4 жыл бұрын

I haven't, but given we keep chickens, we really should

@srh1101

4 жыл бұрын

You're missing out a great delicacy Hugh :) @@EnglishCountryLife

Amazing video. How I miss the my homeland! Couple of thing I would do different is skipping the boiling water step. because I find it softens the onions slightly. Also, I don't salt because I like the onion raw onion taste. Oh one more thing I do is condense the malt vinegar by 1/3 to increase the acidity to around 7%.

@EnglishCountryLife

4 жыл бұрын

I find they go soft if I don't brine them, but each to their own!

@Errol.C-nz

Жыл бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife wouldn't the vinegar.. in the jar.. do the same water extraction as the brine ing before bottling

@Errol.C-nz

Жыл бұрын

Condense?? .. meaning concentrate ? ? .. boil off ?

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

@@Errol.C-nz No, not at all. The relatively weak acetic acid in vinegar isn't a concentrated solution like the brine and won't draw out liquid by osmosis nearly as well

Thank you, new sub here.

@EnglishCountryLife

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you & welcome! If there's anything you want us to cover, please, let me know!

This looks delicious and such clear instructions. Could you please tell me how long these would stay good in a sealed jar? Do you store them on a shelf or in the fridge? I'm new to preserving... Thank you!

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

Hi Char ! I'm not exactly sure how long these will last but definitely more than three years. They are shelf stable (no need to refrigerate) as the vinegar inhibits bacterial action so refrigeration (which slows bacterial action) is redundant 🙂

@charswellness

Жыл бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife Thank you so much! That's perfect.

Thanks for your pickled method and recipe. I'm trying this today. Do you mix your vinegar with water 50/50 or 75/25 ?

@EnglishCountryLife

6 ай бұрын

Hi, I don't dilute the vinegar, I use 5% acetic acid malt vinegar without adding water

you can use old store-bought pots just pop them into a large pan of water after you washed them well and the lids put the lids in as well and bring the pan to a boil now your pots and lids are sterile.

@EnglishCountryLife

4 жыл бұрын

Do be careful that the lids seals are still in tact and the lids aren't rusty!

Hi Hugh I’m trying to find the recipe but I can’t seem to find it on here for you pickled onions 😢would be awesome to try your recipe I’m from qld Australia and just starting out with pickling

@EnglishCountryLife

4 ай бұрын

Hi Stacey, the pickling spice ingredients are shown on screen at the end of the video 😉

@staceycook1736

4 ай бұрын

Oh thankyou very much I have one more question what kind of jars are you using do they have rubber lining in the lids because where I live they only have the metal lids I think it might react with the vinegar also how big are the jars your using..?

@EnglishCountryLife

4 ай бұрын

@@staceycook1736 Hi Stacey. They do have a plastic lining. They are just old jam jars. I save all the ones that take a standard lid (63mm). I buy new lids 200 at a time on line. Jar size doesn't matter. Brine the shallots for 24 hours, rinse and pack into jars of any size. Cover the shallots with spiced, cooled vinegar. Stick a lid on. Leave for 4 weeks. Done.

@staceycook1736

4 ай бұрын

Thankyou very much will give it a try and let you know what I think looks great can’t wait to try your recipe 😊

You said you would put the ingredients in the description, but they're not there - or at least I can't see them

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

Hi Linda - they are shown at the very end of the video 🙂

So you don’t need to water bath these. Stay stay good for how long?

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

You definitely don't need to water bath, the vinegar preserves them. They are good for at least 3 years.

Can I grow shallots in a bucket ?

@EnglishCountryLife

4 жыл бұрын

So long as you keep them watered, I'm sure that you could. We've grown garlic withe great results in buckets

How long will these last without canning/water bath please?

@EnglishCountryLife

3 ай бұрын

At least 3 to 4 years. The vinegar is the preservative here, canning wouldn't help to preserve them 🙂

@smallforestdweller6999

3 ай бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife Thank you! I've been watching videos from people in the States and they seem to insist on canning anything for long shelve life so I was concerned and didn't want to spoil my onions.

@EnglishCountryLife

3 ай бұрын

@@smallforestdweller6999 No problem, canning is much less prevalent in the UK but we make a lot of pickled onions!

How come you don't heat the jars & vinegar so they seal?

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

Hi Linda, the jars don't seal like they do with water bath canning but, by turning the lid they form a watertight seal. Waterbath canning is not often done in the UK and almost never for pickling. With pickling it's the acid in the vinegar that is the preserving agent. The level of acidity in vinegar c. 5% acetic acid is inherently anti bacterial and provided that the vegetables are immersed in that, the food should not spoil.

@lindasands1433

Жыл бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife Thank you. I've done day one of the process today. Putting them in jars tomorrow 👍

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

@@lindasands1433 Excellent - please let us know if you enjoy them?

... or, you could just use a plate slightly smaller than the diameter of the pan lol

No sugar? All the recipes I have seen include brown sugar.

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

Definitely not - pickled onions shouldn't be sweet 🤢

@twistedpudding

Жыл бұрын

@@EnglishCountryLife I've never had them so I wasn't sure. I'll make 3 pints today and I'll add a little brown sugar to one of them just to see how it comes out. Thanks for your videos!

@EnglishCountryLife

Жыл бұрын

@@twistedpudding Glad you enjoyed them. Some pickling definitely needs a little sugar - cucumber certainly does, but a sharp pickled onion is delicious with a good strong cheese. Please let us know what you think when you try them!

@ssmith2608

9 ай бұрын

​@@twistedpuddingwas adding the sugar a good idea? Good to know before I give it a try. Its all up to personal taste I guess...

@mikem1018

9 ай бұрын

@@ssmith2608 Exactly! I made 1 with malt vinegar, 1 with malt vinegar and just 1/2 tsp sugar to a pint, and then I made 1 with 1/3 white, 1/3 apple, and 1/3 red vinegar. They were all very good and I can't really pick a favorite. I liked the touch of malt, but all of them gave you that nice and sour kick that is great after a few beers and all flavors were to my liking.