CHUCK HUGHES: Mild Antipasto – 375ml

Montreal's answer to the antipasto platter

Chuck Hughes Mild Antipasto is a chunky mixed-vegetable antipasto in oil and vinegar from Montreal chef Chuck Hughes, made in Quebec — no heat, built for grazing boards, steak sangas and eggs. Chuck Hughes built his name on Iron Chef America and behind the pass at Garde Manger and Le Bremner in Old Montreal, and this jar is exactly the kind of big-flavoured, no-fuss condiment he'd have sitting on a grazing board before service even started. It's a proper mixed-vegetable antipasto — sweet peppers, eggplant, cauliflower, olives and more — packed in oil and vinegar with nothing shy about it. Built for people who want their cheese board to do more than sit there looking pretty.

The flavour

Front is tangy vinegar and canola oil carrying a proper hit of garlic. Mid palate you get the full vegetable medley doing its thing — sweet peppers and eggplant softening into cauliflower, carrot and celery crunch, with olives, capers and fennel adding salty, aniseed edges. Finish is savoury and mild, no heat to speak of, just clean vegetable and spice.

How to cook with it

• Spoon over soft scrambled or fried eggs for a proper weekend brekkie upgrade
• Scatter it across a pizza in the last few minutes of cooking
• Pair with grilled fish for an instant sauce that needs zero effort
• Layer onto a steak sandwich or alongside a grilled steak
• Rogue move: fold it through mayo for the fastest antipasto dip you'll ever make

In the jar

Expect a rustic, chunky mix — visible pieces of pepper, eggplant, cauliflower and olive suspended in a light golden oil and vinegar dressing. Not smooth, not a puree — this is a scoop-and-serve texture, not a spread.

Ingredients & Dietary

Ingredients: Mixed vegetables (sweet peppers, eggplant, cauliflower, celery, carrots, olives, cucumbers, onions, fennel, capers, green tomatoes), Canola oil, Spices, Minced dehydrated garlic, Salt, Vinegar, Sulphites, Calcium chloride.

Dietary: Vegan, gluten free and kosher (COR certified). Contains sulphites. May contain olive pit fragments. Always check the physical label for the most accurate ingredient and allergen information.

The Rub Smuggler's Verdict

Eleven veg in one jar, all tang and crunch with zero heat, and it makes a grazing board look like you planned it. My favourite job for it is a steak sanga: rump dusted with Butchers Axe Bullseye Beef, seared hard, sliced thin, then a big spoon of this on top. Put a wedge of cheese and Tracklements Quince Paste on the side and call it lunch.

Questions answered

How spicy is the Mild Antipasto?

Not spicy at all — this is the no-heat option, all tang and vegetable crunch, no burn.

What do I serve it with?

Cheese boards, grazing platters, grilled fish, steak sandwiches, or straight over eggs and pizza.

Any allergens I should know about?

Contains sulphites and may contain olive pit fragments. It's vegan, kosher and gluten free. Always check the physical label for the latest.