Pusta salad is one of a popular pickled salads in Europe.
Like the name says, it origins from Hungary. From the region of Puszta
Actually, I forgot about this salad, because here in Australia, I never saw it at the supermarkets.
And out of sight,... out of mind.
I don't know how I remembered it again. I guess it was because of the visit from my parents recently.
Dad used to buy this salad and enjoy it as side to some dishes mum cooked.
Or just on its own.
I always also loved it. Capsicum is one of my favorite veggies. Specially cooked and pickled.
Unfortunately, I could not get celery root. It should be in this salad!
But not the green stalks, you need the root for it.
But anyway, my salad turned out pretty nice, even without the celery root :-)
The salad is simple to make. It takes a couple of days to get ready, but the wait is worth it.
You can enjoy this as a side-dish or on its own.
I mostly eat it on the side for dinner. Dinner mostly is sandwiches at my place.
The recipe contains apple cider vinegar. I know detox followers don't use vinegar's.
But remember,... the program talks about excessive vinegar consumption.
And my recipe contains a small amount for 2 big jars.
The jar fits 900ml of liquid or about 800g-1kg of food.
I recommend to stay with the apple cider, but if you really want to keep it vinegar free,
just add more lemon juice.
Usually there is no garlic in this salad. But for me, the garlic makes it really tasty.
I call it Pusta Salad with my own note, haha. But if you do not like garlic, feel free to leave it.
To make 2 jars you need:
750g fine grated white cabbage***
200g fine sliced red capsicum (pepper)
100g grated carrot
80g fine sliced onion
5g garlic - grated
3 tbsp lemon juice
4 tbsp certified organic apple cider vinegar
1,5 tbsp Maple syrup
3/4 tsp pink salt or sea salt
450ml filtered water
***I think the cabbage is also called green cabbage. Have a look at the end of the page.
Directions:
1. prepare the cabbage and other veggies. Feel free to also add celery root if you can get one.
Add everything into a big bowl.
2. Mix the liquid part and add to the veggies.
3. now the fun part,... get your hands into it and kind of massage the veggies.
That binds the liquid with the cabbage and also releases fluid from the cabbage.
Don't be shy to squeeze it well with your hands and fingers. Work it out, haha!
Do that for about 5 minutes and mix all well.
4. Fill into your jars. You can use whatever size you like. I used 2 big ones.
5. close jar with a clean lid and place up-side-down on the table or counter for 10 minutes.
6. Turn around and store in the fridge! It is important to cool it and store in the fridge.
This is all raw - when it gets to warm, it would start to turn to fermentation with little bubbles etc.
We do not want this. We want to keep the salad as raw and fresh as possible.
7. shake jar ones a day to make sure the upper parts gets also enough liquid.
Just turn around 2-3 times and return to the fridge.
8. rest for about 5-6 days.
The salad will last for at least 2-3 weeks in the fridge!
You also can add chili if you like, to spice it up when you like it hot.