I love pickles! I can wreck a jar in minutes. I tried to make my own quick-like. They taste okay, but because I was impatient and couldn't find little gherkins... (i love saying gherrrkins)...I used small English Cukes. Bad idea. They are all, um, flacid. ew.
Here is the inspiration behind me making pickles. Here is my friend Jadzia teaching me how to make pickles, while I was in Poland last week. As you can see hers turned out crisp and delish. I'll hit West Side Market on Friday and get the real-meal-deal-mini-GHERKINS! and try again.
Until then, what the hell do I do with all these rubbery pickles?
RECIPE FOR QUICK PICKLES
(You don't 'can' these babies, and there is no vinegar)
Clean a big glass jar with hot soapy water and rinse well.
Add tepid water with sea or kosher salt, this is all by taste. If in doubt, add more salt.
Start layering in small, clean, pickles. Nice and snug. Throw in a couple of halved cloves of garlic, fresh dill and whole black peppercorns. All to taste.
Here's the fun part...After the jar is filled up to the top with the salt water, place a slice of white bread on top. Tuck it in to seal around the inside of the top of the jar. Then, place a small plate, or I used a plastic container on top of that, and some sort of weight (i used a small jar full of dried beans). The bread helps the fermentation, as does the exposure to air. So, be sure to not make the seal of the plate airtight with the jar.
Check on your pickles in a day or so, and give em a taste. If you like, slap a tight lid on them, and throw them in the fridge to stop the fermenting. If you like em more sour, let em 'bake' a day or two longer.
These do not last as long as traditional canned pickles, so eat em up!
2 comments:
I NEED TO LEARN! WE NEED TO HAVE A PICKLING AND JARRING WEEKEND!
yes! we do. in late july and august, it's blueberry season in the catskills. we'll have to meet at the boys' and get to making blueberry jam. and we can pickle other stuff too.
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