Lecho – Ukrainian Pepper and Tomato Preserve for Winter
There’s something deeply comforting about opening a jar of homemade lecho in the dead of winter and tasting summer all over again. This classic Ukrainian pantry staple is nothing more than ripe tomatoes and sweet bell peppers cooked down slowly until thick, glossy, and fragrant. No vinegar, no fuss, no artificial preservatives, just the honest, natural flavor of garden vegetables captured at their peak. You’ll find that one batch fills your shelves with that warm, ruby-red glow that makes the cold months feel a little cozier.
Lecho has deep roots across Central and Eastern Europe. While its name comes from the Hungarian lecsó, the dish was wholeheartedly adopted into Ukrainian home kitchens, where every family seems to guard its own beloved version. In Hungary it is often served fresh as a stew, but Ukrainian cooks turned it into a treasured winter preserve, sealing the harvest into jars during the late-summer canning season. For generations, putting up lecho has been a ritual of late August and September, a way to make sure nothing from the garden went to waste before the frost arrived.
The secret to great lecho is patience. You want to cook the tomato base down until it has reduced by about half, concentrating all that sweet-tart flavor before the peppers ever go in. Don’t rush this step over high heat or you’ll scorch the bottom; a steady, gentle simmer with regular stirring is your friend. Use the ripest, reddest tomatoes you can find, the squishy late-season ones that are too soft for slicing are absolutely perfect here. Peeling them after a quick dunk in boiling water gives you that smooth, velvety sauce.
Tips & Substitutions
- Pepper variety: Any sweet bell pepper works, but a mix of red, yellow, and orange peppers makes the finished jars look gorgeous and adds a touch more sweetness.
- Want a kick? Toss in a sliced hot chili or a pinch of red pepper flakes during the final simmer for a spicier lecho.
- Aromatics: A few crushed garlic cloves or a bay leaf stirred in near the end deepen the flavor without overpowering the vegetables.
- No fresh tomatoes? Out of season, you can substitute good-quality canned crushed tomatoes or passata for the tomato base.
- Sweetness: Adjust the sugar to taste depending on how tart your tomatoes are, very acidic tomatoes may need an extra spoonful.
Once your jars are sealed, flipped upside down, and wrapped snugly in a blanket to cool slowly, store them in a cool, dark, dry pantry where they’ll keep beautifully for up to a year. Serve lecho as a side with grilled meats and sausages, spoon it over rice or buckwheat, fold it into omelets, or simply enjoy it on a thick slice of crusty bread. Once opened, keep the jar in the refrigerator and use it within a week. One taste and you’ll understand why this humble preserve earns a permanent place on the winter table.
Part of Ukrainian cuisine — 301 more recipes in the section.
You might also like
Ingredients
Instructions
Pour boiling water over the tomatoes, peel off the skins, and chop them down to a smooth, uniform pulp.
Set the tomato pulp over the heat and cook, stirring, until the volume has reduced by half.
Remove the seeds and stems from the peppers and cut them into neat strips.
Add the peppers to the tomato base and cook until the peppers are completely softened.
Stir in the salt and sugar, mix well, and simmer for a few more minutes until they dissolve.
Ladle the hot lecho into sterilized jars so that the peppers are fully covered by the tomato.
Cover with lids and sterilize the jars in boiling water: 0.5 L jars for 20-25 minutes, 1 L jars for 25-30 minutes.
Seal the jars, turn them upside down, wrap them in a blanket until completely cooled, and store in a cool, dry place.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.