I stumbled upon Pikliz (pronounced PEEkleez), a fiery all-purpose Haitian condiment, while watching Gregory Gourdet on Top Chef. While not the norm, you can learn something about cooking from watching television.

I really love Greg’s style of cooking. I’ve been slowly working my way through his new cookbook. I particularly love his focus on healthy eating without harping on healthy eating. He just cooks delicious food you want to eat. And it happens to be good for you. That is the motto I also aspire to live by. Hope to make it out to Portland, Oregon, one day to eat at his restaurant.

I now always have a few jars of Pikliz in the fridge. It’s highly addictive.

According to author and food entrepreneur, Nadege Fleurimond, who has Haitian roots, you use its [Pikliz] crunch and tang to tame fritay [an assortment of fried food], which can be griot (pork fried in its own fat), tassot (fried beef) or banan peze (pressed and fried sweet plantains), or, if you’re eating a bowl of soup or rice and beans, you simply “drizzle” in the liquid. At any meal and at every table, Pikliz is always there, of course.

What sets Pikliz apart from your everyday cabbage slaw is the addition of scotch bonnet (or more really available habanero) chiles, which give the slaw a nice fiery, fruity profile. Of course, you can make it as tame or as spicy as you like, depending on the number of habaneros you choose to include. The addition of whole cloves imparts an interesting and unexpected note that I really dig.

This recipe comes from a combination of Greg’s and another cookbook called Fiery Ferments. The latter has a fermented and non-fermented version of PIkliz. I’ve made both. As you might guess, the fermented version has that sour, fermented flavor like you would find in sauerkraut. That being said, I actually prefer the traditional, fresh, non-fermented version.

On a side note, I save the liquid leftover from each batch and add it to my next batch of Pikliz.

Lately, I’ve been topping my tacos with Pikliz. This one with braised lamb neck and avocado. Curious to dive into some more Haitian recipes…

Yum, braised lamb neck tacos with sliced avocado and Pikliz.

Pikliz (Haitian Pickle)

You could and probably should double this recipe 🙂

Slightly adapted from Fiery Ferments
2 cups shredded green cabbage
3-6 Scotch Bonnet (or habanero) chiles, thinly sliced
1 medium green bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1 medium carrot, peeled, coarsely grated
1 medium white onion, thinly sliced
10 whole black peppercorns
large pinch of sea salt
3 whole cloves
Pinch dried thyme
3 cups white vinegar
Juice 1/2 lime

Combine the cabbage, chiles, bell pepper, carrot, onion, salt, pepper, cloves and thyme in a large bowl. Mix well. Pack the vegetables into a clean jar.

Mix the vinegar and lime juice and then pour over the vegetables, making sure that they are fully submerged. Screw the tops on and refrigerate for at least 5 days. Will keep for several months in the fridge.