Japanese Pickle Press

[rotuts]

this is a really new item and idea for me.  credit goes to AnnaN,

 

as it farmers market time, i can easily get fresh veg once a week

 

amason has these :

 

http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=japanese+pickle+press&tag=googhydr-20&index=aps&hvadid=79342021105&hvpos=1t1&hvexid=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=4765895992148834094&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=b&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_2dx9fv8q4s_b

 

those who use these, what is your favorite size ?  any of these brands stand out for you ?

 

I saw this vid that got me very interested as the VidMaster  mentions he used less salt for this prep and the result did not taste salty to him :

 

 

this is the exact sort of thing Im interested in .  as little salt as possible, fresh veg   some chili  etc

 

I have found the japanese pickle thread, this item is probably mentioned but I could not find it.

 

my library has the Asian Pickle book

 

and ive found this interesting site:

 

http://www.theblackmoon.com/Jfood/ftsuke.html

 

thanks

 

[Lisa Shock]

I have these two, I live near the store. The small one makes about a pint, the larger one holds 2.2 liters. Sometimes, you just want a couple of small servings for dinner, sometimes you want to make a larger batch to serve a group.

[rotuts]

by 'for dinner'  this would be a batch for one 'sitting' that you started at the appropriate time in advance of the dinner, not the same day ?

[Lisa Shock]

Many Japanese pickles are made the same day. They aren't fermented like western style pickles.

 

They do make pickled items which are put up for months, too. But generally, some sort of sour pickle like item is served at every meal and it's sort of halfway between a western pickle and a fresh salad.

Edited June 4, 2016 by Lisa Shock (log)

[btbyrd]

Sort of off topic, but I love using my chamber vacuum for quick pickles.

[rotuts]

thanks for the reminder

 

@btbyrd  

 

I do have a chanmber vac  but never got that far

 

I like the idea of a dry start and minimal salt that I can't taste when 'ready'

[Smithy]

2 hours ago, Lisa Shock said:

I have these two, I live near the store. The small one makes about a pint, the larger one holds 2.2 liters. Sometimes, you just want a couple of small servings for dinner, sometimes you want to make a larger batch to serve a group.

 

If you don't eat it all, how well does it keep?

[Lisa Shock]

2 hours ago, Smithy said:

 

If you don't eat it all, how well does it keep?

 

It depends on the vegetable you start with. Carrots can be kept quite a while, whereas, IMO, zucchini gets weird after a day. Same with onions. On some things, you want to try and be mindful of the pH and salt level in addition to texture when thinking of keeping them. Sometimes, I mix some rice wine vinegar, miso, and grated ginger without using a real recipe, and I get nervous about watery vegetables. That said, I like making 'salad sandwiches' for lunch -that is vegetable sandwiches, sometimes with salad dressing on them, sometimes just loaded up with the night before's pickles in addition to lettuce, tomato, sprouts, shredded carrots, thin sliced bell pepper, etc.

[Martin Fisher]

3 hours ago, rotuts said:

thanks for the reminder

 

@btbyrd  

 

I do have a chanmber vac  but never got that far

 

I like the idea of a dry start and minimal salt that I can't taste when 'ready'

 

 

 

I recommend trying the chamber sealer technique...it only takes a small amount of added ingredients and short vac time.

[ojisan]

I'd recommend two books:

- Quick & Easy Tsukemono < http://amzn.to/1RXClYa >

- Nancy Singleton Hachisu's Preserving the Japanese Way < http://amzn.to/1RXCwmt >

 

If you buy a small tsukemono-ki, I suggest a spring-loaded type instead of the screw type, for constant pressure. The veggies are only in there for a day or so, then transferred to a jar into the fridge.

For larger quantities, I use storage containers - I'm currently making umeboshi, using 1.2 kilos of fruit. The fruit and salt go in a Ziplock™ freezer bag, into a 4L round Cambro, then a similar sized Rubbermaid filled with water goes in the Cambro as a weight. (Following Hachisu's recipe).

[rotuts]

i was able to get both the above books from my library system

 

thanks !