Venezuela is a country known to possess the world's largest proven oil reserves. It is located on the northern coast of South America, with Caribbean beaches to the north and the Andean mountains to the west.
In Venezuela, glass jars and bottles have formed part of the major storage containers that preserve pickled vegetables, homemade jam, and drinks that appear every day on arepas (a flat, round, savoury corn flour patties), family tables, and supermarket shelves.
In this article, we will take a close look at how Venezuelan curtido, pickled vegetables, and drinks are stored and served in glass jars and glass bottles in modern days, and recipes you can try even if you are in the UK.
The Venezuelan Food Culture
The Venezuelan food culture reflects its geography, with indigenous, Spanish, and African culinary influences that have merged over centuries into something unique to Venezuela.
Dishes like the arepa are the cornerstone of Venezuelan food culture. Arepa is a thick, round cornmeal patty; griddled, baked, or fried, it is eaten at breakfast, lunch, and dinner, stuffed with everything from cheese and black beans to shredded beef and avocado.
Aside from arepa, pickled-vegetable condiments, stews, hallacas (plantain-leaf parcels), sauces, and homemade preserves play a major role in giving the Venezuelan food its unique profile.
Traditionally, for generations, the Venezuelans store their food using crocks, bowls, and simple containers, which served as the original vessels for pickles, sauces, and preserves.
Subsequently, as Venezuelan cities grew and consumer goods became more widely available in the country, glass jars and bottles became part of the storage containers, first through commercial food products, then increasingly through storage of preserves and other food items at home.
Venezuelan Curtido and Pickled Vegetables in Glass Jars
If you love Colombian curtido or tangy German kraut, you’ll feel at home with the Venezuelan version. Curtido is one preserved food that really defines the Venezuelan table as a condiment. It is a crispy, lightly fermented mix of shredded cabbage, julienned carrots, sliced onions, and spicy peppers (like ají dulce or mild chilli), which is not boiled or cooked.
Curtido is often used as a garnish or to accompany arepas, grilled meats, empanadas (fried, half-moon-shaped pastries), and street food across the country.
Venezuelan Curtido Recipe in Wide-Mouth Glass Jars
Ingredients
● 200g white cabbage, finely shredded
● 2 medium carrots, julienned
● 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
● 1 red pepper, thinly sliced
● 200ml white wine vinegar
● 200ml cold water
● 1 tablespoon caster sugar
● 1 teaspoon non-iodised salt
● Half a teaspoon of dried oregano
Method
● Combine the vinegar, water, sugar, and salt in a jug and stir until dissolved.
● Pack the vegetables tightly into a sterilised wide-mouth glass jar, layering the colours as you go.
● Pour the brine over until the vegetables are fully submerged, press down gently, and seal with an airtight lid.
● Leave at room temperature for two to three days, then refrigerate.
● The curtido is ready for consumption when it is lightly tangy and still has a good crunch. You can store it in the fridge and ensure to use it within three weeks.
Other Venezuelan Pickled-Vegetables
Aside from Curtido, other Venezuelan-picked vegetables include:
● Encurtido/Encurtido Criollo: It is similar to curtido but differs significantly in texture, preparation, and flavour profile. Encurtido Criollo is a mixture of chopped vegetables like carrots, cauliflower, onions, green beans, and sometimes garlic or chilli peppers (ají). It is pickled in vinegar with salt and seasonings.
● Ají Dulce en Vinagre: It is a pickled sweet chilli pepper, which is essential to Venezuelan cuisine.
● Cebollas Encurtidas: It is pickled onions, often served alongside meals to provide a sharp, acidic contrast.
● Escabeche: It is similar to encurtido; it usually refers to vegetables (and sometimes fish) preserved in a mixture of vinegar, oil, and spices.
● Giardiniera: Though Italian, this style of pickled mixed vegetables is also incorporated into dishes like hallacas (plantain-leaf parcels).
Glass jars are often used instead of plastic or metal containers because plastic containers easily stain or absorb smells, and metal reacts with vinegar. But glass is entirely inert, which helps maintain the original flavour, while also providing a clear view of the vegetables as they soften and the liquid turns slightly cloudy.
Reusing Kraft Mayonnaise Jars for Homemade Jam in Venezuelan Homes
In May 2024, the Venezuelan Kraft mayonnaise‑jar reuse campaign took off to encourage sustainability, and the message was about washing the jar, peeling off the label, and reusing it for homemade jam, dry beans, or leftover sauces. This campaign has further enhanced the country’s culture of reusing commercial glass jars rather than throwing them away.
Often, after the Kraft mayonnaise is finished, those jars are used to store:
● Homemade jams made from fruits like guava, pineapple, passion fruit, and mango, cooked down with sugar and lemon juice, then hot-filled and sealed.
● Dry foods such as rice, lentils, dried herbs, and spices are kept fresh and pest-free in sealed glass jars on pantry shelves.
● Sauces and condiments like homemade salsas, hot sauces, and vinegar-based dressings were stored in clean glass jars and placed in the fridge.
Venezuelan Homemade Tropical Fruit Jam Recipe in Jam Jars
Ingredients
● 500g ripe guava or mango, peeled and roughly chopped
● 300g caster sugar
● Juice of one lemon
● 100ml water
Methods
● Combine all ingredients in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring slowly to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
● Reduce the heat and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, stirring regularly, until the jam thickens and a small amount sets on a cold plate.
● Pour into sterilised glass jam jars while hot, seal immediately with airtight lids, and leave to cool upside down.
● Store in a cool, dark cupboard.
● Once opened, refrigerate and use within four weeks.
Venezuelan Drinks and Ferments Stored in Glass Bottles
Aside from the solid preserves, Venezuela has a rich tradition of homemade drinks and ferments, which they often store and serve in glass bottles. Traditional fermented drinks, like masato (fermented rice or cassava), similar to yuca (a raw liquid, solid root cassava used for cooking), and light fruit‑based ferments, are often made in large earthenware vessels, then poured into glass bottles for storage and serving.
More commonly in Venezuela, you’ll see rum, aguardiente (anise‑flavoured spirit), soft drinks, and homemade cordials or syrups made from tamarind, passion fruit, guava, or hibiscus, widely stored, sold and served in glass bottles. In homes and among street vendors, you will often find these drinks bottled in repurposed or new glass bottles and wine bottles.
While clear bottles may be used for some drinks, amber glass bottles are particularly used to protect the delicate colour and aromatic compounds of fruit-based syrups from degrading due to UV light.
Venezuelan Fermented Hibiscus and Ginger Cordial Recipe in Glass Bottles
Ingredients
● 50g dried hibiscus flowers
● 30g fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
● 150g caster sugar
● 1 litre of water
● Juice of one lime
Methods
● Bring the water to a gentle simmer and add the hibiscus flowers and ginger.
● Simmer for 10 minutes, then remove from the heat and stir in the sugar until fully dissolved.
● Add the lime juice, leave to cool completely, then strain through a fine sieve.
● Pour into a sterilised glass bottle, like a 500ml swing-top bottle or large glass jars and seal.
● Refrigerate and use within three weeks, diluting with still or sparkling water to taste.
2 Interesting Things About Venezuela's Food and Jar Culture
1. The Kraft Mayonnaise‑jar Reuse Campaign
The Venezuelan Kraft mayonnaise-jar reuse campaign became a cultural touchstone in the country because it reflected something Venezuelans already understood: that a good glass jar is too useful to throw away. The campaign further gave formal shape to a habit that had existed in Venezuela for decades, turning an everyday act of domestic resourcefulness into a recognised and celebrated practice.
2. Curtido is to Venezuela what ketchup is to the UK
Curtido is not a side dish in Venezuelan food tradition; it is a staple condiment often found at virtually every meal with arepas, grilled meat, empanadas, and even plain rice. In street-food stalls across Venezuela, a jar of curtido on the counter is as standard as salt and pepper, and locals often judge the quality of a stall partly by the brightness and crunch of its pickles.
Using the Right Glass Container in the UK for Venezuelan Food and Drinks
You don’t need to be in Venezuela to make a really good curtido or guava jam. In addition to the right recipe, you will need the right glass container, and in a UK home, the choices are straightforward, especially if you have the needed glass jars and bottles.