Hot peppers? (Chicago, Washington, Sandwich: buy, law, stores)

[muffincake]

In Chicago, you guys seem to have this specific mixture of hot peppers everywhere. You have it at all your Subways, you have it Mariano's sandwich station and I'm sure I've seen it elsewhere. It's not the same hot pepper mix as Pot Belly's, but a similar concept. Where can In get the hot pepper mix being used at Subway and elsewhere? I assume you can buy it at the grocery store (maybe I should just ask Mariano's). It has green peppers, carrots and celery in it.

Are these peppers a Chicago thing? I have never seen them before. I know Pot Belly uses a similar hot pepper mix, but that was the only place that seemed to have them until I came here to Chicago. (In Washington D.C., they have a hot pepper relish at all their Subways. At all other Subways, including Boston, they don't have any special offerings.)

[marothisu]

Are you talking about Giardiniera? I've seen it in a number of places in the US. It's an Italian thing.

Giardiniera - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

You can buy it in grocery stores in many places.. Just walk into a grocery store and it might be near the pasta and stuff, or just ask someone for it. It's pronounced "Jar Din Era"


P.s. hope you're enjoying Chicago so far ;-)

[ProgMichael]

Ahhhh, muffincake, it's the best thing in the world (giardiniera). Goes great on an Italian Beef Sandwich (get one while you're here). Also, goes awesome on pizza. You can buy various varieties in the grocery store as noted by marothisu. Just make sure you buy the "hot" and not the "mild" giardiniera.

[gomexico]

It's one of those unique condiments found in only a few places, but noplace as it is in Chicago. It's outstanding!

[ChiNaan]

Originally Posted by marothisu

Are you talking about Giardiniera? I've seen it in a number of places in the US. It's an Italian thing.

It definitely exists all over the U.S., but is far more common in Chicago than anywhere else that I'm aware of. In other places it's a specialty item of sorts, whereas here it's a regular condiment.

[ToriaT]

Its very hard to find elsewhere. My sister in law carted forty dollars worth of it back to FL when she came.

[aragx6]

Giardiniera is even fairly hard to find in St. Louis, which certainly has a history of Italian immigration -- it's straight up ubiquitous in Chicago.

[tribecavsbrowns]

^Same story in Cleveland, which is a more Italian city percentage-wise than Chicago. I grew up in a more Irish/German part of town and my mom would drive to an Italian grocery on the other side of town to get it. Most people I grew up with had never heard of it.

[marothisu]

That's so weird. I could find it easily where I grew up in Minnesota and there weren't many Italians there.

[eureka1]

I have a jar of giardinera in my fridge right now, and always do. Mazzetta's brand, made in American Canyon, which is in the Napa Valley. A staple!