Giardiniera: Chicago's Condiment

 

Giardiniera is a vital piece of Chicago culinary history. Giardiniera means “female gardener” or “mixed pickles” in Italian, and it refers to a mixture of vegetables marinated in oil, vinegar, or both. 

According to the Chicago Tribune, giardiniera originated in Italy as a way to preserve vegetables during the winter months. The Italian version of giardiniera usually consists of onion, celery, zucchini, carrots, and cauliflower pickled in vinegar. It is not spicy and is eaten as an antipasto or with salads. 

Giardiniera came to Chicago along with the wave of Italian immigrants in the late 1800s. Chicagoans put their own spin on the condiment by adding spicy peppers to the vegetable mix and marinating it in oil. Chicago-style giardiniera is usually made with serrano, or sport, peppers and some combination of celery, bell peppers, olives, pimentos, carrots, and cauliflower marinated in vegetable, soybean, or olive oil. Some recipes also use crushed red pepper flakes. 

Giardiniera is immensely popular in Chicago, to the point of being known as the city’s official condiment of choice. Giardiniera can provide a kick of heat and extra saltiness to any sandwich, including Chicago favorites like the Italian beef sandwich or the pepper and egg.  

Giardiniera can also be enjoyed on pizza or eggs, or with steak. Here’s a tip: If you’re ordering an Italian beef sandwich and want it served with giardiniera, order it “hot.” If you’re at Potbelly’s and want giardiniera on your sandwich, ask for “hot peppers.”

Just as there is no consensus as to who exactly invented Chicago-style giardiniera, there is also no consensus on the recipe. Chicago-style giardiniera varies in terms of spiciness and the vegetable and pepper mixture used. My brother Joe developed his own recipe for giardiniera, which I decided to try. It uses a 3-to-1 ratio of vegetables to serrano peppers, which makes it a nice medium hot. It’s a bit labor-intensive, but well worth the effort.

Joe’s Giardiniera

Makes enough to fill a 32 oz. jar

Ingredients:

¾ c. serrano peppers, chopped (4-5 peppers)

¾ c. green pepper, chopped (a little less than 1 full pepper)

¾ c. celery, chopped (a little less than 3 stalks)

¾ c. carrots, chopped (1-2 carrots)

1 quart water

Salt–¼ c. table salt or ½ c. kosher salt

1 quart white vinegar

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped 

1-2 tbsp. dried oregano

¾ c. spanish olives, drained and chopped

*extra virgin olive oil–enough to cover the mixture 

   * A note about oil: Using extra virgin olive oil, or regular olive oil for that matter, will cause the giardiniera mixture to solidify in the refrigerator. However, the solidified mixture will liquefy within about 30 minutes of taking it out of the fridge. You can also add it as-is to a sandwich and in moments it will liquefy. If you use a less expensive oil, such as soybean or canola, the mixture will not solidify in the fridge.

Equipment:

32-oz. jar

large bowl, pot, or container with lid (no aluminum)

saucepan

strainer or colander

Put the chopped vegetables and peppers into a large container with a lid. In a saucepan, combine water and salt. Heat and stir until the salt is entirely dissolved and the solution is clear (not cloudy). Pour hot salt water over the vegetables. Then add vinegar and stir. Cover and refrigerate for 2 days.

After 2 days, drain the vegetable mixture in a strainer or colander. Briefly rinse under cold running water to remove some of the excess salt. Mix in garlic, oregano, and chopped olives. Pack into a jar, pressing down to make it compact. Pour on oil until the vegetables are completely covered. Refrigerate for a few hours before using to allow the flavors to meld.

This giardiniera will keep in a refrigerator for several weeks as long as the vegetables stay completely submerged in oil. 

Sources:

Nick Kindelsperger, "How Giardiniera Crossed an Ocean to Become America's Favorite Condiment," Chicago Tribune (May 19, 2017).

Monica Eng and David Hammond, Made in Chicago: Stories Behind 30 Great Hometown Bites,  

3 Fields Books, 2023.