More Than Cucumbers

So, are your pickles ready?  Mine are just to that nice, sour point and they're going in the fridge today.  (When they get to the right sour level for you, then they need to go in the fridge.  Otherwise you get pickle mush.  Blech.)

So last time we talked about classic pickles.  You can put these in jars and process in a water bath, and they're shelf stable for about a year.  That makes them, "canned pickles."  There are two other types, "refrigerator pickles" and "quick pickles."  Quick pickles are ones you cook in the brine for a brief period, chill, and eat right away.  Refrigerator pickles use a higher vinegar content, and ferment in the fridge.

But all of these methods can be used on any firm vegetable.  Below are some pickled vegetable recipes I've used – and enjoyed – in the past.

Photo via Food and Wine

Here's a recipe for general pickled vegetables.  It calls for a collection of beans, etc., but you can really use just about anything with a solid texture.  I use this recipe when I'm giving away preserves as gifts.  Choose a variety of vegetables with an assortment of colors and shapes.  Take your time and arrange them in the jar carefully and artistically, and it makes a nice gift.

Photo via handjobsforthehome.com

Cauliflower should be in season in just a couple more weeks, and these curried pickled cauliflower florets are amazing.  Probably the most common pickle I make, other than cukes.

Photo via rosemarried.com

The herb-y sourness of these green beans is really divine.  Be advised, a little bit of lemon peel goes a looooong way, particularly if you make enough of these that some will be on the shelf for a few months.    I usually cut the lemon peel by a third.

Photo via Serious Eats

Finally, let's talk carrots.  There's classic dilly carrots, which are a great way to remember summer come wintertime, but these spicy carrots have a lot of character.  Again, a word of caution.  It calls for slightly more than a tablespoon of red pepper flakes per jar.  I use a scant teaspoon, and they'll still really curl your toenails.

Anyone have any other pickled veggie recipes you like?

Pucker up!

I have quite a bit of canning to catch up on.  Seems like this year, other aspects of life have been continually cropping up. But now it seems like I'll be in the eye of the storm a bit, so I'm resolving to catch up.  Or at least reduce the backlog.  Hence, you'll see the next few weeks bring a group of pickling posts.  Not that this is a bad thing, as August is high canning season.

I'm the only one in my house who eats pickles.  At least so far, as I'm trying to acclimate the little guy to them.  In France they say children will like anything if they try it enough.  I hope they're right.

Nalls has pickling cukes right now. For any pickles you make, you'll want to use the same guidelines for choosing the good ones.  Look for small, very firm ones, with prominent bumps.  Like this one:

I make two kinds of pickles.  The first is a classic Kosher dill, and the second ones are sweet and spicy.

The dill pickles are the easiest.  I have a large Fado jar which starts being used when the cukes first appear and stays in use until the last pickle of the year is eaten.  Start off putting 2-3 sprigs of fresh dill in the bottom of a dishwasher-sanitized jar.  Take 2 or so (to taste) garlic cloves, halve, and toss in with 2-3 black peppercorns.  Cut the tips off the cukes, wash them thoroughly, and pack the jar halfway.  You can leave small cukes whole, cut them into spears, or slice disks, whatever your preference.  Add more dill, garlic and peppercorns, the rest of the cukes, and a final round of dill, garlic, and peppercorns.

Photo via about.com

Make the brine.  I use distilled water just to be sure about the salt level.  For each cup of water, add a teaspoon of Kosher salt and a tablespoon of white vinegar.  Microwave the water a bit if necessary to get the salt to dissolve.  Cover the cukes completely with brine, and leave the jar on the counter at room temperature.  You'll see bubbles form, that's the fermentation taking place.  Remember to "burp" the jar a couple of times a day.  After a couple of days, taste one.  When they're as sour as you like, put the jar in the fridge.

When my jar is half empty, I fill the bottom with more cukes.  When the brine starts getting cloudy, I change out the jar's contents.

Photo via Food Network

The sweet and spicy pickles are made with this recipe.  A word of caution on this.  I usually like spicy, the recipe as-is makes WAY HOT pickles.  I usually use about a third of the peppers.  I haven't had a lot of luck getting those peppers at stores around Alexandria, but Penzey's in Falls Church is a reliable source.

As other veggies come into season, we'll talk about more creative pickling.  Meanwhile, pucker up and enjoy!

Cucumber Salad just screams, "Summer!"

                                   

Another dish that brings back summer days is cucumber salad.  If you remember our post on coleslaw, the debate was vinegar vs. cream-based dressings.  Cucumber salad is much the same premise.  Slice the veggies really thin, then let them marinate in a dressing overnight.  If you found a dressing that works for your coleslaw, then by all means repurpose it for cucumber salad!  I will say that, in my experience, cucumber salads have more add-ins beyond cucumbers than coleslaws do beyond cabbage.

My go-to cucumber salad is one my mom used to make, and it uses some of the fantastic spring onions that were also in last weekend's box.  Slice both the cukes and onions very thin.  I use a mandoline, and it gets the job done in a real jiffy.  A word of caution:  The blade of a mandoline is incredibly sharp.  Never, ever, ever, *EVER* use it without either the included safety guard, or a kevlar glove.  Trust me on this, I have had several trips to the emergency room while learning to use my mandoline and I don't want you to have the same problem.  And isn't that what always gets them on Top Chef? After slicing your veggies, take some dill weed from your herb pots (how are they doing, by the way?) and chop that as well.  So you have:

                         

The dressing is simplicity itself:  

a little squirt of olive oil,

a few tablespoons of white vinegar (to taste), 

salt & pepper, 

and a little water. 

 Put it in a sealable container, shake it up, and let it seep in the fridge overnight.  This is something you'll find in my refrigerator pretty much continuously from now through September or so.

One raging debate about cucumber salad is whether or not to remove the seeds.  I find that when they're sliced thin, you don't have to.  If your recipe calls for more chunky pieces of cucumber, then you probably want to slice it the long way and scoop out the seed compartment with a spoon.  Cukes can definitely be enjoyed skin-on, but in salads I usually peel them.  Pickling cukes, though, traditionally have a thinner skin and are just fine left unpeeled. You don't just have to turn them into pickles! When we just cut them up and serve them at the table with a sprinkle of salt, my 5-year-old loves "stripy" ones (peel half the skin off, leaving a striped pattern along the cuke.)

Have you found any good dressings for cabbages and cucumbers?  I've made this one with tahini (you can find it at most upper-end grocers) which is really interesting.  Here's a creamy one on my list to try with our most recent cache of cukes.  Of course, the ultimate cucumber salad dressing is tzatziki sauce.  This tuna salad has cucumbers in it too, making it really refreshing for lunch on really hot days.

Please share any of your favorites in the comments section!

The Great Pickle Experiment: Part 2

Well after four days of fermenting in a sunny spot on my window sill, it was time to unveil the homemade pickles yesterday at cookout with some friends.  Now these weren't just any friends, these were two pickle connoisseurs.  In fact, one of them often receives the pet name of "pickle."  So the pressure was on to see if my pickles would pack a proper punch.  Off came the lid with a loud pop, in went some forks and...drumroll please..."Ooo, yum!"  The verdict was unanimous, these were some pretty yummy pickles!

Now I tend to like mine a tad more vinegary, so next time I make a batch, I'll include an extra slosh or two of vinegar.  But as far as the garlic and salt content, they were spot on.  And the best spot for them...sliced up on some hot dogs with spicy brown mustard!

So this summer, bring your own homemade pickles to the party and dazzle the guests with your kitchen pizzazz!

For the Part 1 and the recipe click here!

The Great Pickle Experiment: Part 1

I love a good Kosher dill pickle, so after last week's post on how to turn your pickling cucumbers into homemade pickles, I decided to try my hand at this culinary adventure!

I riffed off of the recipe for Old-Fashioned Kosher Garlic and Dill Pickle Cucumbers, but not having fresh dill on hand, I did the classy thing and just guesstimated on how much dried dill (it probably ended up being one Tbsp full total).  Also, I used 7 cloves of garlic (sliced in half), and my jar could only hold 3 cups of water, so only 1 Tbsp of Kosher salt went in and 2 Tbsp plus another splash of white vinegar.  Plus, since I'm hoping to bring these to a cookout this weekend, I sliced them up to be used as pickle chips for burgers.

These lovelies are currently fermenting in a sunny window sill for the next 4 days, so I will update on Saturday with the final verdict.  Will it be a winner, winner pickle dinner?  Stay tuned to find out!

Get Pickled!

If you're up for a kitchen adventure, then this week's pickling cucumbers are just the ticket.  While you can still enjoy them as you would regular cucumbers, by slicing them for salads or to make some afternoon tea cucumber sandwiches, making your own pickles can make for a great weekend family project.  So here's some easy pickling recipes to help you turn these cucumbers into the stuff midnight cravings are made of.  Click the links below to view the recipes...

Quick Fresh Pack Dill Pickles

(Recipe on page 2, but great tips on all 3 pages)

Korean Cucumber Pickle

Old-Fashioned Kosher Garlic and Dill Pickled Cucumbers