Haitian Pikliz

Love Haitian food? Then you have got to try this pickled condiment called Pikliz. A delicious tangy Caribbean spicy slaw made from cabbage, carrots, shallots, scotch bonnet, lime and pickled in vinegar. This spicy dish can be served with a number of cuisines!

Pikliz (pronouced pik-lese) is not the faint hearted. What I mean by that is if you don't like serious heat, then you better sit this one out.

When it comes to fiery recipes, I think it's safe to say the Caribbean region has it under lock and key. This pickled cabbage slaw is the business - vibrant, tangy, fiery and delicious and oh so simple to pull together.

What is pikliz

In short pikliz is a popular Haitian food, it's a spicy pickled slaw made from shredded cabbage, carrots, shallot/ onion, scotch bonnet, white vinegar and the juice of a lime.

This is just another variation of a unique recipe similar how Haitian have Epis (seasoning base) in their arsenal.

Some individuals jazz their pikliz up with other ingredients like peppercorns, bell peppers and garlic.

This fiery dish is served as a condiment to other Haitian dishes such as griot (fried pork) chicken (poulet) or tassot (goat or beef) so it really plays a staple role at meal times.

When I first made pikliz I didn't know what to expect, but I do remember my first impressions.

I thought the condiment reminded me of a Caribbean version of kimchi. Nevertheless, I gotta say I was pleasantly surprised by the taste.

The crunch from the cabbage and carrots and the zest of the lime with every bite and the heat from the scotch bonnet. Trust me that is heaven on earth for me, can we say 10/10.

The Haitians really struck gold with this pikliz dish, it's currently on rotation at the dinner table with my Jamaican food. A nice bit of Ja-Haitian going on, Caribbean fusion food at its best.

Another favourite Haitian recipe of mine is Akasan which is similar to Jamaican Cornmeal Porridge. I do enjoy having some Akasan in the mornings!

Pikliz vs kimchi

Although both pikliz and kimchi are fermented food they are not the same.

While the foundation of pikliz is cabbage, it's consists of a lot less vegetables than its Korean counterpart and doesn't need any brining salt to assist the initial process of salting the vegetable.

It's more about vinegar saturated vegetables infused with hot peppers to put it bluntly.

On the other hand, kimchi contains an array of vegetables - various type of cabbage/radishes, cucumber, celery, eggplant, bamboo shoots roots (burdock, lotus, flower) spinach, beets....... just to name a few and seasoning like scallion, garlic, ginger, chives and salted seafood known as jeotgal.

This is just a brief outline of what kimchi is as there is more than goes in it but you get the idea and can recognise the clear distinction between the two.

Ingredients you will need

It's really simple to make and there's not many ingredients to contend with which is a good thing.

• Cabbage
• Carrots
• Shallots
• Lime
• White vinegar
• Pink salt to taste

How to make Haitian pikliz

Place the shredded cabbage in a bowl along with the carrots

Add the shallots and scotch bonnet to the vegetables and use tongs to toss them together.

Add the pink salt and squeeze the juice of a lime on the vegetables before adding to a jar with the vinegar.

Additional ingredients to add

• Peppercorns
• Thyme
• Bell peppers
• Cloves
• Garlic
• Yellow onion
• Apple cider vinegar instead of white

Storage

Typically Haitians like to preserve their spicy slaw in a sizeable jar. First the vegetables are added and packed into a jar then the vinegar is poured into the jar. Use enough to fill ¾ of the jar.

For longevity and best results you will want to make sure the vegetables can hold in the jar.

Push down ALL of the vegetables (very important) to ensure they are submerged in the liquid and there is no unevenness to the longevity.

Store in your refrigerator for up to one month. Some people carry over their pikliz for a lot longer, but I personally use mine within a month so I don't have any exeperience with storing over a longer length of time.

Just keep a watchful eye on it on a weekly basis and make a note of when you first made your pikliz (label it with a date, if required)

Notes and tips

• Cutting the cabbage and carrots - I used half of a large cabbage which works out to be roughly 2 cups worth. I cut the cabbage lengthways to achieve those shreds. The carrots I skillfully julienned by hand, use a julienne peeler, if your knife skills aren't the best.
• Shallots - you don't need too many shallots, in fact one should be suffice. If you don't like the taste of shallots use a regular or red onion instead.
• Scotch bonnet - this is the best part for me. If you don't like heat simply skip using it or discard the membrane (the seeds) which is where the heat lies. Please be very careful when handling the peppers, use gloves if you must and do not rub your eyes.
• Toss the ingredients - use tongs to toss the ingredients together so they are combined. I like to add the pink salt and lime juice now before moving onto the next step.
•  Flavour intensity, For intense flavour allow to pickle for up to 5 days before use

Add a few more extra ingredients (see above) for intense flavour.

• Breaking down your scotch bonnet. Pulse the scotch bonnet pepper with some vinegar and pour over the slaw if you don't care to eat the pieces.

Serving suggestions 

• Griot (fried pork)
• Haitian Stewed Chicken (Poulet Creole)
• Curry Chicken
• Tassot (fried goat)
• Beans (vegan option)
• Brown Stew Fish
• Sweet Chilli Shrimp
• Baked Hake Fillets

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Haitian Pikliz

This red hot spicy Haitian slaw (Pikliz) is like the Kimchi of the Caribbean and make the perfect side dish or condiment.

5 from 9 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: Haitian

Prep Time: 25 minutes minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes minutes

Servings: 4 servings

Calories: 48kcal

Author: Charla

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 cups of cabbage shredded (roughly half of a cabbage)
• ▢ 1 carrot julienned
• ▢ 1 shallot/red onion sliced
• ▢ 3 scotch bonnet sliced
• ▢ 2 cups of white vinegar
• ▢ ½ teaspoon of pink salt
• ▢ juice of ½ lime

Instructions

• Add the cabbage, carrots, shallots and scotch bonnet to a bowl.
• Use tongs to toss evenly and combine together.
• Squeeze the lime all over the vegetables and sprinkle on the pink salt.
• Pack the vegetables into mason jars (might need 2-3) evenly and pour the vinegar so it fills roughly ¾ of the jar.
• Store in the refrigerator and use accordingly.

Notes

• Cutting the cabbage and carrots - I used half of a large cabbage which works out to be roughly 2 cups worth. I cut the cabbage lengthways to achieve those shreds. The carrots I skillfully julienned by hand, use a julienne peeler, if your knife skills aren't the best.
• Shallots - you don't need too many shallots, in fact one should be suffice. If you don't like the taste of shallots use a regular or red onion instead.
• Scotch bonnet - this is the best part for me. If you don't like heat simply skip using it or discard the membrane (the seeds) which is where the heat lies. Please be very careful when handling the peppers, use gloves if you must and do not rub your eyes.
• Toss the ingredients - use tongs to toss the ingredients together so they are combined. I like to add the pink salt and lime juice now before moving onto the next step.
•  Flavour intensity, For intense flavour allow to pickle for up to 5 days before use
• Add a few more extra ingredients (see above) for intense flavour
• Breaking down your scotch bonnet. Pulse the scotch bonnet pepper with some vinegar and pour over the slaw if you don't care to eat the pieces.

Nutrition

Calories: 48kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 312mg | Potassium: 153mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 2653IU | Vitamin C: 27mg | Calcium: 29mg | Iron: 1mg

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