Pickles--Cook-Off 32

[Pam R]

Mine will probably be late, but I'll post my methods & pics when I'm done.

No such thing as late. The beauty of the eGullet Recipe Cook-Offs is that they keep on going.

I'm going to see if I can find some small cukes this weekend.

[jasie]

Made the Everyday Daikon and Carrot Pickle from "Into the Vietnamese Kitchen". It goes awesome in summer rolls, cold noodles etc. Its even good as an acompaniment to hot savory stuff like fish sauce wings/lemongrass beef etc. The pickles are slightly sweet and tart. And not to mention, pretty easy to make with a mandoline & basic household ingredients. Hubby was kinda amused that I had to "massage" the daikon and carrots for a few minutes though.

[Sunny Simmons Steincamp]

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Whoooooah. (Said Joey Lawrence-style.) That. Looks. AMAZING! My mouth is, quite literally, watering...

[rlibkind]

For the pound of pickles I dissolved a quarter cup of Diamond kosher salt in a cup of boiling water, then chilled it down by adding about 8 or 9 ice cubes. I sliced each cuke lengthwise into halves (if they are larger you can slice them again into quarters -- just make sure they are always sliced longitudinally, not cross-cut), added a small handful of fresh dill, crushed four or five cloves of garlic, added water to generously cover, then topped the non-reactive container with a plate small enough to hold the cukes underwater, placing a heavy jar to weight them atop the plate. (When I remember, I also throw in some coriander and/or mustard seeds.)

After a day they were lightly picked; two days they were half sour; by the third day, when I placed them in the fridge to slow fermentation, they were all the way.

So there's no canning, but they're left unrefrigerated? And then once they achieve the right doneness, you toss them in the fridge? And all it takes is 3 days?

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Yep! And after about 24-36 hours, they are "new" pickles. So you don't even have to wait three days. And at three days they are verrrry pickle-y, so I think most folks would prefer them pickled at about 36-48 hours. But just taste them every 12 or 18 hours and stick them in the fridge when they are to your taste.

I got this recipe years ago from the NY Times. But it's essentially the same as the one in Bittman's HTCE. Also, I urge anyone who has a copy or can visit the library or borrow one to read the very informative pickling section in Harold McGee's On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen

[rlibkind]

Has anybody had Bubbie's pickles?  I'd like to try to produce pickles that are close to  those . . they taste amazingly similar to the ones my own grandmother used to make.

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The Whole Foods stores in Philadelphia sell them, along with Bubbie's kraut. I've had the latter, and while it isn't as good as the new barrel kraut I used to get in my childhood (and is still sold in a very few locations, but exceedingly hard to find), it comes closer than any other widely distributed kraut I've tried.

[SheenaGreena]

I would LOVE to make kimchi, but it is such a pain in the butt.  You need a bunch of different ingredients and it is really labour intensive and takes forever.  Take radish kimchee for example, that stuff takes forever to eat and the wait is excrutiating.

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Sheena: Have you made kimchi before? How long does it take? The recipe I was considering only calls for a few days (3?) of fermentation. Also, I think I have all the ingredients on hand except for the fresh seafood and vegetables. But I have been known to underestimate the PITA factor, so let me know what I'm getting myself into.

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nope never made kimchi before, but I've watched my mother and my grandmother make it my whole life. You need to salt the cabbage (my mother usually buys an entire box of cabbage to make kimchi) overnight then you need to add seasonings to taste. I have never seen my mom or family members measuring anything like salt, msg, gochugaru, garlic, etc. Does it really only take 3 days to ferment? I like it fermented longer...I like the taste of fresh kimchee dont get me wrong, but when its ripe and stinky then it's like a fine wine or fine cheese.

what ingredients did you buy? You should make kimchee and post pics because I would love to see you make it. When you are done you can mail me a jar

[annecros]

I would LOVE to make kimchi, but it is such a pain in the butt.  You need a bunch of different ingredients and it is really labour intensive and takes forever.  Take radish kimchee for example, that stuff takes forever to eat and the wait is excrutiating.

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Sheena: Have you made kimchi before? How long does it take? The recipe I was considering only calls for a few days (3?) of fermentation. Also, I think I have all the ingredients on hand except for the fresh seafood and vegetables. But I have been known to underestimate the PITA factor, so let me know what I'm getting myself into.

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nope never made kimchi before, but I've watched my mother and my grandmother make it my whole life. You need to salt the cabbage (my mother usually buys an entire box of cabbage to make kimchi) overnight then you need to add seasonings to taste. I have never seen my mom or family members measuring anything like salt, msg, gochugaru, garlic, etc. Does it really only take 3 days to ferment? I like it fermented longer...I like the taste of fresh kimchee dont get me wrong, but when its ripe and stinky then it's like a fine wine or fine cheese.

what ingredients did you buy? You should make kimchee and post pics because I would love to see you make it. When you are done you can mail me a jar

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Now see, that's why people don't pickle more often, I think. It is so ingrained into our way of thinking, that everyone feels like they have to pickle a bushel or nothing. It is what put me off pickling for a very long time. I had trouble getting past the vision of my Granny with bushel baskets of cukes limed and curing in crocks for days.

Then, I realized, I can just do a quart or a few half pints of any particular pickle, as long as I kept the proportions to scale in the interests of food safety and quality of the finished product. Some more complex things (such a KimChi, corn relish, chow chow, the chutneys, etc.) that require several ingredients are hard to downsize, but it can be done. Once I shed myself of the "quantity" pressure, and most pickling recipes are scaled for huge quantities, it opened up a new world for me and I was able to experiment with different flavor profiles and find out what worked for my and my family's taste.

[Pam R]

Now see, that's why people don't pickle more often, I think. It is so ingrained into our way of thinking, that everyone feels like they have to pickle a bushel or nothing. It is what put me off pickling for a very long time. I had trouble getting past the vision of my Granny with bushel baskets of cukes limed and curing in crocks for days.

In the spirit of great minds thinking alike . . .

These aren't the 'right' cucumbers. I had to cut them into approximately 8 pieces (4 quarters that were each cut diagonally in half) to get them to fit into two 500 mL jars. I did these Friday after work, and I'm going to open them up and taste tonight.

By Saturday, they sure smelled like pickles. And they've slowly been changing colour. If they're good tonight I'll put them in the fridge.

[lovebenton0]

if i understand that we are counting all sorts of ''pickled preserves'' there may be others not named strictly pickles lurking in recipegullet also... perhaps relishes, chow chows, or chutneys.

while scoping out existing recipes you might want to consider these two:peppery green tomato corn relish and spicy pineapple/rhubarb chutney.

i love pickles of all sorts. so, yes, do count me in. i may not be very active for the next couple of weeks as i'll be away from home, but i'll try to get something pickled before i leave on wednesday. hmmm... maybe this afternoon for dinner tomorrow... shaved carrot and thinly sliced onion pickled with a serrano pepper and garlic clove or two is a nice quickie to serve with hot weather grilled chicky and arugula sandwich. the rhubard/apricot/serrano chutney i made last week is fantastic with chicken also, but in honor of this cook-off i'll try something else this week.

when i had a big garden in central tx i could pickle loads of goods from my own plants and trees. now i'm living on lake michigan with a small plot in the yard, gifted to me by my garden-loving landlady. i'm limited in space, variety and length of growing season. so some pickles will come from my homegrown food and some will come from vegs/fruits purchased at one of the numerous farmer's markets close to me. this is new for me; i always pickled/preserved what i grew myself. but there's no shame in taking advantage of good produce from a good source.

pickled watermelon was always the sweet pickle treat on our table for thanksgiving when i was a kid. i continued that tradition with my own family, pickling my own watermelon rind late in the summer. probably my favorite sweet pickle ever. and there's just something wonderful about using what most people consider garbage or compost material to make a fabulous sweet treat that shines like amber/green glass.

[NWKate]

" For anyone who ever espies a copy of the Farm Journal Canning book at a garage sale or thrift store, pick up a copy."

HA! I found this at Goodwill and lent it to a friend...just last week, I got it back before she "forgot" from whence it came!

Kate

[Pam R]

pickled watermelon was always the sweet pickle treat on our table for thanksgiving when i was a kid.  i continued that tradition with my own family, pickling my own watermelon rind late in the summer. probably my favorite sweet pickle ever. and there's just something wonderful about using what most people consider garbage or compost material to make a fabulous sweet treat that shines like amber/green glass. 

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What goes into a watermelon pickle? (Yes, I'm still waiting for my pickling books to arrive.)

[SheenaGreena]

I love watermelon rind pickles. I can always get those from the amish or mennonites that live in maryland. I think I should buy a jar of those when I go home in 3 weeks...that and chow chow yum!

[polly]

Count me in. I love pickling, and just this morning I bought some little onions to pickle.

I might try an Indian style carrot pickle I made up a while ago, and as it is winter here in Australia, maybe something with cabbage, cauliflower or fennel.

I'm getting excited now, it's off to write down some ideas...

[Hiroyuki]

I bought a pack of small melons for pickling and "sagohachi"

Sagohachi is a pickling bed of salt, rice malt (koji), and steamed rice mixed together at a ratio of 3:5:8 (san-go-hachi in Japanese), thus its name.

I'll report back tommorrow.

[SheenaGreena]

hiroyuki are those "melons" in fact fat zucchinis (sp?)? Those are really delicious coated, deep fried, and served with a soy dipping sauce.

never had pickled zuchini but it sounds great

[SheenaGreena]

I just made my version of oi moochim without the oi (cucumber). I took the recipe from egulleter zenkimchi's blog. After reading his blog entry about oi kimchi I knew I had to make my own. I was planning on buying a few cukes today....but I wanted to try it with some radishes. The radishes I have are either chinese or japanese I have no clue. They are long, skinny (width of an inch), and mostly green with a bit of white at the bottom.

here is zenkimchi's recipe zenkimchi's oi moochim recipe

instead of honey or corn syrup I used sugar and am planning on using probably a teaspoon more of gochugaru.

This recipe is great as a side dish with grilled kalbi and eaten outside.

Next I am going to make some mul kimchi which is water kimchi.

eta: here is a photo of the daikon I'm using green daikon

Edited June 19, 2007 by SheenaGreena (log)

[Hiroyuki]

hiroyuki are those "melons" in fact fat zucchinis (sp?)?  Those are really delicious coated, deep fried, and served with a soy dipping sauce.

never had pickled zuchini but it sounds great

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They are thinned melons, and they are often pickled in Japan.

I tasted the pickle this morning, and found it wasn't as flavorful as it should be. Apparantly, lactic acid bacteria fermentation hasn't started yet because the room temperature was 30 C last night and I had to put the container in the fridge. Sagohachi has to be kept below 18 C. It will take some more time until fermentation takes place.

[annecros]

I started my pickled eggs yesterday.

Because they are not processed and are a fridge pickle, I got to use one of my old bail type canning jars. The authorities say they are not safe for home canning uses, but I have a source for the gaskets and think they are pretty, so I use them when I don't have to process in a boiling water bath or under pressure. They make me smile.

Half a dozen peeled hard cooked eggs, half a sliced onion, three serrano peppers from the garden, three cloves of garlic, mustard seed, cumin seed, red pepper flakes, salt, three dashes of tobasco, all loaded into the sterilized quart jar. Distilled white vinegar and water in a 50/50 ratio, brought to a boil and poured over the eggs/veg.

When they cool, into the fridge for a week to 10 days, then they are ready to go.

I think the longest I've ever kept them is 6 months, but they do get rubbery after a month or two. Hubby eats them with a cold beer after mowing the lawn or working in the garden on a hot summer day. I like them sliced on a cold salad from time to time. Hubby considers the pickled onion, garlic cloves and pepper his personal treat.

Will post a pic of the first sliced one when they are ready.

[SheenaGreena]

wow I love pickled eggs, but I've only had them with pickled beets so they are purple in the end rather than just white. When they are pickled with the beets they turn really sweet and go really well as a side to pretty much everything, but especially sauerkraut and pork

[annecros]

wow I love pickled eggs, but I've only had them with pickled beets so they are purple in the end rather than just white.  When they are pickled with the beets they turn really sweet and go really well as a side to pretty much everything, but especially sauerkraut and pork

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I use beets when I want to do them sweet, and lots of onion, cider vinegar and brown sugar, a couple of cloves, and sometimes even some fennel seed if I am feeling frisky. That is the winter pickled egg version around here.

Summer, I go hot (as in spicy) and tart them up! Great with sliced tomato.

Maybe I'll go ahead and do a jar of sweet to demonstrate the comparison. The two types sliced on a plate should be pretty.

[DCP]

I use beets when I want to do them sweet, and lots of onion, cider vinegar and brown sugar, a couple of cloves, and sometimes even some fennel seed if I am feeling frisky. That is the winter pickled egg version around here.

Summer, I go hot (as in spicy) and tart them up! Great with sliced tomato.

Maybe I'll go ahead and do a jar of sweet to demonstrate the comparison. The two types sliced on a plate should be pretty.

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The photo you posted earlier looks great, and both varieties sound tasty. Would you be willing to share more precise quantities/recipes for both varieties?

[annecros]

I use beets when I want to do them sweet, and lots of onion, cider vinegar and brown sugar, a couple of cloves, and sometimes even some fennel seed if I am feeling frisky. That is the winter pickled egg version around here.

Summer, I go hot (as in spicy) and tart them up! Great with sliced tomato.

Maybe I'll go ahead and do a jar of sweet to demonstrate the comparison. The two types sliced on a plate should be pretty.

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The photo you posted earlier looks great, and both varieties sound tasty. Would you be willing to share more precise quantities/recipes for both varieties?

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Of course. Will post recipes in RecipeGullet as a "Grand Pickle Finale" with links. I plan on a relish tray that any Southern Lady would be proud to walk into a family reunion/funeral with!

Seriously, though, teaspoon, teaspoon, teaspoon when working in these small quantities. Usually loaded in the jar before the brine hits it.

The sweet ones, well, I will just have to see if I can find, and purchase, one or two beets fresh. If not, I will cheat and use a half pint of off the shelf pickled beets, otherwise I would cook the beets in the brine while I was bringing it to a boil.

[SheenaGreena]

I'd love to see your rendition of pickled eggs and beets. My grandmother makes her own every summer and I can eat just beets and pickled eggs for a meal.

[Pam R]

I left the pickles on the counter from Friday evening until yesterday (Tuesday) morning. Tried one this morning (mmm. . . breakfast) and it wasn't done enough for my taste. I knew I was a fully sour girl. Is it safe to pull it out and set it on the counter for another couple of days?

They're also a little salty - I'll have to adjust that.

[Live It Up]

So I did pickle something, but not kimchi yet. I made red onion pickles from this blog which were aparently "inspired" by the Zuni Cafe cookbook. I don't have the cookbook, so I don't know how close the recipes are. Anyway, I decided to french my onions, rather than cut them in rings. Here's a pic of the prepped onions:

Brine:

You blanch the onions in the brine in batches, then let them cool and repeat the process.

The recipe calls for doing this process 3 times. Because my onion pieces were so much smaller than the recipe I decided to only do it twice.

Here's the finished product in a recycled kimchi jar.

sorry it's a little blurry.

These are going to be eaten on some burgers on saturday, so I'll update then.