Piccalilli, or mustard pickle, is a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

interpretation of South Asian pickles, a

relish A relish (a pickle-based condiment) is a cooking, cooked and pickling, pickled culinary dish made of chopped vegetables, fruits or herbs, typically used as a condiment to enhance a staple. Examples are chutneys and the North American relish, a p ...

of chopped and pickled vegetables and spices.Spelling as per The Chambers Dictionary, 1994, . Regional recipes vary considerably.

Etymology

The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' traces the word to the middle of the 18th century when, in 1758, Hannah Glasse described how "to make Paco-Lilla, or India Pickle". An apparently earlier reference is in Anne Blencowe's ''Receipt Book'', written , which has "To Pickle Lila, an Indian Pickle" credited to Lord Kilmory. The more familiar form of the word appears in 1769, in Elizabeth Raffald's '' The Experienced English Housekeeper'', as "To make Indian pickle, or Piccalillo". Richard Briggs, in his 1788 '' The English Art of Cookery'', similarly calls it "Picca Lillo". The spelling "piccalilli" can be seen in an advertisement in a 1799 edition of ''The Times''.

British piccalilli

British piccalilli regularly contains the common vegetables

cauliflower Cauliflower is one of several vegetables cultivated from the species '' Brassica oleracea'' in the genus '' Brassica'', which is in the Brassicaceae (or mustard) family. Cauliflower usually grows with one main stem that carries a large, rou ...

onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' , from Latin ), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion which was classifie ...

, shallot, runner bean, carrot, courgette and gherkin, with the seasonings flour, vinegar, ginger, garlic, coriander, mustard powder and

turmeric Turmeric (), or ''Curcuma longa'' (), is a flowering plant in the ginger family Zingiberaceae. It is a perennial, rhizomatous, herbaceous plant native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia that requires temperatures between and high ...

. Available from major British supermarkets, more finely chopped, is "sandwich piccalilli". It is used as an accompaniment to foods such as sausages, bacon, eggs, toast, cheese, and tomatoes. It is eaten as a relish with cold meats such as ham and brawn, and with a ploughman's lunch. It is usually made in the autumn, when pickling onions become available. As well as being a commercial product, piccalilli is a mainstay of Women's Institute and farmhouse product stalls.

Cypriot piccalilli

An unsweetened variation of British piccalilli is found in

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

(including northern Cyprus). It is without baby onions, with a milder mustard sauce, and with the addition of carrot pieces. Piccalilli is known in Cyprus as ''πίκλα'' (''pikla'') in Cypriot Greek, and ''bikla'' in Cypriot Turkish. It is served as a

condiment A condiment is a preparation that is added to food, typically after cooking, to enhance the Flavoring, flavour, to complement the dish or to impart a specific flavor. Such specific flavors generally add sweetness or pungency, or sharp or piquant ...

, and occasionally as a meze dish.

American piccalilli

In the

Northeastern United States The Northeastern United States (also referred to as the Northeast, the East Coast, or the American Northeast) is List of regions of the United States, census regions United States Census Bureau. Located on the East Coast of the United States, ...

, commercial piccalillis are made with a base of sweet peppers or green tomatoes. This style is somewhat similar to sweet pepper relish, with the piccalilli being distinguished by having a darker red or green color and, like British piccalilli, the chunks are larger and it is slightly sweeter. It is commonly used as a topping on such foods as hamburgers and hot dogs. British-style, yellow, piccalilli is also available. In the

Midwestern United States The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...

, commercial piccalillis are based on finely chopped gherkins. Bright green and on the sweet side, they are often used as a condiment for Chicago-style hot dogs. This style is sometimes called " neon relish". In the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, Dixieland, or simply the South) is List of regions of the United States, census regions defined by the United States Cens ...

, piccalilli is not commonly served. In its place, chow-chow, a relish with a base of chopped green (unripe)

tomato The tomato (, ), ''Solanum lycopersicum'', is a plant whose fruit is an edible Berry (botany), berry that is eaten as a vegetable. The tomato is a member of the nightshade family that includes tobacco, potato, and chili peppers. It originate ...

es, is offered. This relish may also include

bell pepper The bell pepper (also known as sweet pepper, paprika, pepper, capsicum or, in some parts of the US midwest, mango) is the fruit of plants in the Grossum Group of the species ''Capsicum annuum''. Cultivars of the plant produce fruits in diff ...

s, cabbage, green beans, and other vegetables. While not similar to other piccalillis, chow-chow is often called as such and the terms may be used interchangeably. In the

Western United States The Western United States (also called the American West, the Western States, the Far West, the Western territories, and the West) is List of regions of the United States, census regions United States Census Bureau. As American settlement i ...

, piccalilli is uncommon compared to dill relish.

Surinamese piccalilli

A far spicier variant of piccalilli comes from the former Dutch colony of

Suriname Suriname, officially the Republic of Suriname, is a country in northern South America, also considered as part of the Caribbean and the West Indies. It is a developing country with a Human Development Index, high level of human development; i ...

, where traditional British piccalilli is mixed with a sambal made of

garlic Garlic (''Allium sativum'') is a species of bulbous flowering plants in the genus '' Allium''. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, chives, Welsh onion, and Chinese onion. Garlic is native to central and south Asia, str ...

and yellow Madame Jeanette peppers. This piccalilli is often homemade but can also be bought in jars in Dutch corner shops. Whilst Surinamese piccalilli is similar in appearance to ordinary piccalilli, the taste is much spicier.

Media references

As a term for a mixed collection, piccalilli lends its name to several books of poems, for example, ''Piccalilli: A Mixture'', by Gilbert Percy (1862), and ''Dilly Dilly Piccalilli: Poems for the Very Young'' (1989), by Myra Cohn Livingston. Mr Piccalilli is the name of a character in the children's book ''Mr Pod and Mr Piccalilli'' (2005), by Penny Dolan. The song " Lily the Pink", recorded in 1968 by UK comedy group The Scaffold, includes a humorous reference to piccalilli when describing Lily's eventual demise, in the lyric "...and despite her medicinal compound, sadly Picca-Lily died". The song was based on an earlier folk song "the Ballad of Lydia Pinkham", which celebrated a herbal remedy invented by the eponymous heroine, marketed from 1876 as " Lydia E. Pinkham's Vegetable Compound". The connection between piccalilli and the vegetable compound is in name only, as the recipes differ completely.

References

External links

Piccalilli recipes from RecipeSourceBritish piccalilli recipe from the BBCU.S. Southern-style chow-chow
{{English cuisine Pickles British condiments American condiments Cypriot cuisine Surinamese cuisine Brassica oleracea dishes Vegetable dishes