Korean-style zucchini for winter is a spicy, garlicky preserve modeled after the famous Korean carrot salad — but built around zucchini. The recipe skips water-bath sterilization and keeps all winter thanks to the generous amount of vinegar and oil in the marinade. The seasoning is classic Korean-style: zucchini, carrot, bell pepper, onion and lots of fresh garlic, coriander, paprika and chili. Cut the vegetables into long matchsticks, toss with a marinade of oil, 9% vinegar, salt, sugar and spices, let stand 3-4 hours so they soak up all the flavor, then pack into sterilized jars and seal. Proven proportions for 3 kg of zucchini inside.

"Mother-in-law's tongue" is a beloved Eastern European canned eggplant recipe that gets its cheeky name from the long fried strips of eggplant suspended in a fiery, garlicky tomato sauce. It's one of those preserves that earns its place on the pantry shelf year after year — bold, slightly spicy and ridiculously good with grilled meat, potatoes or just a slice of bread. Cut eggplants lengthwise into thin strips, pan-fry in oil until golden, then drown them in a sauce of fresh tomatoes, garlic, sweet bell pepper and chili. Pack into sterilized jars, top with the hot sauce and process for 15-20 minutes. Proven proportions for 3 kg of eggplant inside.

Yurcha from zucchini for winter is a fragrant, thick and remarkably tasty vegetable preserve in which zucchini comes together harmoniously with bell peppers, tomatoes and savory spices, creating something between lecho and a vegetable stew. The finished yurcha works equally well as a standalone appetizer, as a side with meat or potatoes, or as a base for winter gravies and sauces. It's a great idea for anyone looking to vary the usual zucchini preserves. Cube the zucchini, slice the bell peppers into strips and run the tomatoes through a grinder or blitz in a blender into a puree. Sauté onion and carrot in oil until soft, add the rest of the vegetables, salt, sugar, vinegar and black pepper and simmer everything together for 40-50 minutes until thickened and a deep orange color. Ladle the hot yurcha into sterilized jars and seal. Proportions for 3 kg of zucchini inside.

"Winter King" cucumber salad for winter is one of the most successful and fragrant cucumber preserves, where the cucumbers — when prepared correctly — keep not only their crunch but literally "the taste and smell of summer," as if they had just been picked from the garden. The key secrets are minimal heat treatment, plenty of fresh herbs (dill, parsley, garlic) and a balanced marinade of vegetable oil, vinegar, salt and sugar. Slice the cucumbers into thick rounds or wedges, toss with chopped herbs, garlic, oil, vinegar, salt and sugar and let rest for 1-2 hours so the juices come out. Pack into sterilized jars, warm gently over low heat for 10-15 minutes and seal. Proportions for 4 kg of cucumbers inside.