Italian immigrants to Chicago had an outsized impact on the city’s food scene during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Few items have endured and even grown in importance as giardiniera, the mix of peppers and other vegetables given a quick pickle and then a soak in oil.
Chicagoans and food tourists seeking out a Chicago-style hot dog or an Italian beef sandwich will find different versions of giardiniera depending on where they’re eating it. At home in Italian-American families like mine, it’s used for hot dogs and sandwiches but also served as a condiment with meat and cheese antipasti, and pretty much anything else that can benefit from the addition of acid, heat, salt, and a fresh and crunchy texture.
Chicago-style Italian beef sandwich
Chicago-style giardiniera is based on the Italian method (some say more Sicilian) of preserving vegetables for the winter months. My grandmother had jars of preserved vegetables in the cupboards in her basement that were similar to the Chicago style but true to the Italian method. It’s a method I channeled last March in the kitchen at Leopard des Artistes in New York City, when the abrupt lockdown caused the closure of restaurants, leaving me with an abundance of ingredients to use or preserve in hurry.
I quickly jarred as much giardiniera as I could, gifting the condiment to neighbors in my Bay Ridge, Brooklyn neighborhood.
This giardiniera recipe makes a big batch, but it’ll keep for six weeks in the refrigerator, and you can use it to make your own Italian beef sandwich, Chicago-style hot dog, or with salumi and bread.
Giardiniera
Yields 4 quarts
Ingredients
4 sport peppers, whole
2 red bell peppers, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 celery ribs, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
5 baby carrots, cut in half
1 head cauliflower, cut into small florets
½ cup salt
2 cloves thinly sliced garlic
3 teaspoons dried Sicilian oregano
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon fennel pollen or crushed fennel seeds
½ teaspoon celery seeds
1 teaspoon crushed black peppercorns
1 cup high quality white vinegar
1 cup olive oil (use a mild, neutral-flavored olive oil)
Method
- In a large bowl, mix and season the vegetables with the salt. Add enough water to cover the vegetables, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow the mixture to sit out for 8 hours.
- In the meantime combine all of the spices and vinegar and mix until well incorporated.
- After 8 hours drain and rinse the vegetables.
- Mix the vegetables with the spices and vinegar mixture.
- Place the vegetables into containers, add oil, cover with a lid, and refrigerate for up to 6 weeks.