Zucchini caviar in a cauldron – finger-licking good

Every year I preserve squash caviar the same way I do store-bought. I know how to do it in a variety of ways, but the most delicious caviar comes out the same way I do with this recipe. Granted, it's a lot of work, but it's worth it!

I always take very ripe specimens, as they are always tastier than young ones (especially in caviar).

I peel them.

If it is very rough, then I additionally scrape off another 1-3 layers.

After this, I remove all the insides—the seeds. They won't be useful, as they're already too large and coarse.

After that, I cut the zucchini into cubes.

I heat up an Uzbek kazan (I use one because it reaches a higher temperature than any frying pan). I pour in some vegetable oil (refined), add the zucchini, and fry.

I place the softened vegetables (they should be very soft and not fried - this will allow you to get a more even consistency of the caviar without lumps) in a colander to drain the oil.

While the zucchini is frying, I peel and chop the onion and carrot.

I fry them too (be sure to fry them separately). The carrots take the longest to fry, as they're very tough and require more time to soften completely.

I chop the onion, like all the other ingredients, into random pieces. But I fry it until it's lightly golden.

While all this is frying, I transfer the fried zucchini with the drained oil into a blender and grind it.

I get this light but homogeneous mass, which I then pour into a clean cauldron.

I grind the remaining vegetables.

I transfer it to the cauldron with the zucchini. I mix thoroughly.

I put the peeled garlic through a meat grinder (when it’s hard, it doesn’t grind well in a blender).

I pour it into the general mass.

I mix everything again, add the remaining ingredients, and cook. Or rather, fry it over high heat for the first 5 minutes, then reduce the heat slightly and continue frying for about another half hour.

Over time, the caviar becomes darker.

After this, I transfer (without turning off the stove) into sterile jars and close them.

Now about the proportions:

• 3 kg of zucchini;
• 1 kg of carrots and onions;
• 2 tbsp. vinegar;
• 1.5-2 tbsp. salt;
• 1-1.5 tbsp. sugar;
• about 10 cloves (medium) of garlic;
• 4 tbsp tomatoand paste;
• vegetable oil, ground black pepper - at your own discretion.

The taste will be different right away, but once it sits for at least a month, it will change completely!!!