Pickled Ginger Dilly Sprouts

What are you even doing if you are not pickling Brussel sprouts?

Ok, I get that you might have some other stuff going on in your life right now so I won’t judge you, but you all really need to get on getting some sprouts in the next few weeks while they are good and seasonal and pickle yourself some. They are truly some kind of amazing. Crisp and crunchy. Vinegary with all the flavors of dill and ginger and the slightly sweetness of the sprouts themselves . Oh jeez, they are just so good. And they are refrigerator pickled so you don’t have to do a hot water bath which means you really have to excuse to not make them.

And while you are at it you might as well just make a bunch of jars to give to people this holiday season. Think about it, wouldn’t you love a delicious jar of deliciousness instead of another stupid whatever or what not? You will be the coolest person with your jars of sprouts. Guarantied!

Now to the pickled sprouts!

The stuff. Brussel sprouts , vinegar, fresh dill, chunks of fresh ginger, mustard seeds, peppercorn, red chili flakes, and salt.

Nice and clean spouts. Cut them in half.

Cut up the dill into smaller pieces and as for ginger, I minced a little and cut some up into larger chunks.. I like to eat chunks of pickled ginger too.

Vinegar and water go into a pot with the ginger, salt, peppercorn, pepper flakes, and mustard seed and brought to a rapid boil.

Once boiling dump in sprouts and dill and keep on heat for about 3 minute so the sprouts tenderize a little.

Then dump it all into a clean jar. And that is it. Yes you can eat one, but really, you should wait like a day or two. And after a week.. Perfection.

So yeah, once you got them in a jar, let them cool to room temperature, top with a lid, and place in the fridge.

If you are wise you will make multiple jars because these sprouts will not last.

-C

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Pickled Ginger Dilly Sprouts

makes 1 quart sized jar

• about 20 good sized Brussel sprouts

• 2 cups white vinegar

• 2 cups water

• 3-4 sprigs fresh dill

• inch of fresh ginger root

• 1 teaspoon pickling or kosher salt

• 1 teaspoon peppercorns

• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds

• 1/2-1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (more for spicer)

Clean and halve all the sprout. Stick them all into a clean quart sized jar to make sure they all fit then dump them out.

Grab ginger and rough chop it. Cut dil up into smaller pieces.

Dump the vinegar, water, salt, peppercorn, red pepper flakes, mustard seeds, and salt into a pot. Bring to a rapid boil. Add in the halved sprouts and ginger and toss around. Keep on heat for about 3-4 minutes just to give the sprout a little bit of time to soften just a bit. Remove pot from heat and carefully dump all the sprouts and everything in the pot into the clean jar. Pack sprouts down with a wood spoon and make sure they are completely submerged in liquid. If all the liquid doesn’t fit, just dump into a smaller jar and use for a salad or something.

Let sprouts cool to room temperature then stick a lid on jar and place in fridge. Sprouts are good eaten whenever, but are at their best after a few days in the fridge.

They will keep for a month or so but who are you kidding, there is no way they will last that long.

Quick Pickled Green Beans

Any time is a good time for pickles, but now is a great time. There has been so much baking, heavy, rich, and time consuming foods in the past month that I think everyone could use themselves a good helping of veggies and maybe a little brightness, like a good pickled green bean. Freshy, crisp, and clean. A jar of happy green goodness. (Don’t you describe jars of pickles just like that, a happy green jar of goodness?)

Around there parts, it’s kind of a holiday tradition with the mr to get a jar or two of pickled beans. I don’t know exactly how it started, but they are something that he has been getting every year. So this year instead of buying him a jar, I just made them. And let me tell you, it is a heck of a lot cheaper to make your own then it is to buy them, plus I think mine taste better if I do say so myself. These pickles are of the refrigerator kind so there is no processing or stress of bad seals. Nope, these pickles take all of 15 minutes to make, a day to pickle up nice and good in the fridge, and that is that. Ready to go, ready to eat. A small task, nothing fancy, nothing a small child could not handle (um.. well I would not let a small child near boiling water so nix that but a medium to large child, yeah sure.)

Pickled green beans. You know you want them so go and make them.

To the pickled beans!

The stuff. Fresh green beans, white vinegar, salt, peppercorns, garlic, dill and a dried cayenne pepper. The dill and cayenne pepper are optional and you can use any spices you want, but these are good ones to try.… Next batch I am going to do fresh turmeric and ginger, see how that comes out.

The hardest and not hard at all part. Blanch the beans. Basically just toss the beans into a boiling pot of water for 2ish minutes then scoop them out into a bowl of ice water. Easy peasy.

Jar preparation. I figured I would do two flavors, a spicy cayenne and a dill. (Cayenne for me, dill for the mr) Both jars get a chunked up glove of garlic and some slightly smashed up peppercorns. The hot pepper goes into one and the dill into the other.

Then make the brine. Just boil the vinegar with salt. Nothing fancy.

You got the jars ready and the brine made so now you just pack the two jars with the blanched beans. You might need to snip a few in order to fit, but I just eat those ends anyway so I am doing myself favor here.

Then you pour equal amounts of the brine into the jars then top off the the jars with ice water. Place a lid on those suckers and give them a good shake and into the fridge they go. 24 hours give or take and that is that.

And now you got pickled green beans. The question is weather you eat a few at a time or if one jar constitutes a vegetable serving and you eat the whole jar at once.

I say eat the whole jar. Not like it took very long to make right? So maybe you just a few extra jars.

Have a lovely weekend.

-C

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Quick Pickled Green Beans

maks 2 pint jars

• 1 pound green beans

• 2 cups water vinegar

• 1 1/2 - 2 cups cold water

• 2 teaspoons salt

• 1 teaspoon whole or slightly crushed peppercorn

• 2 big cloves garlic

• A tablespoon dried dill and a dried cayenne pepper (optional)

Rinse green beans. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and grab a large bowl and fill with cold water and a few ice cubs. Place half the green beans in the boil water and let cook for about 2 minutes. Scoop them out and place into the bowl of ice water. Repeat for the second half of beans.

Place the vinegar and salt in a small pot (or use the pot you used to boil water) and bring to a boil. Set aside

Grab 2 pint jars making sure the are nice and clean. Peel and cut the garlic into a few pieces and place into the bottoms of the jars. Add the dill to one and cayenne to the other (or whatever spices you do or don’t want to use) Give each jar some of the peppercorns then start packing the balanced beans into the jars. Try to make them all straight so you can fit in as may as you can, and if the bean is to long, just cut to fit (eat the ends) Once both jars are packed pour equal amounts of the vinegar brine to the jars. Top off each jar with cold ice water. Place a lid on the jars, give it a good shake and place jars into the fridge for 24 hours. After the wait, pop the lid and eat.

Pickled beans will last about a month in the fridge but really, if you have them for more then a week, that is just a shock.

Note about lids. I use plastic lids when dealing with anything acidic. The metal lids will work but will rust after a while and sometimes leaves metallic taste. If you only have metal lids, use a piece of wax paper in between the kid and jar.

Pickled Heart Beets and Celeriac

   

Because I love beets, I love celeriac and I love to pickle things…. And I love hearts. And Valentines Day is just around the corner so I though it appropriate to share these little darlings with you because even if you are not a fan of pickled beets or celeriac, you have to admit that these are just the cutest pickles you have ever seen. I have made a batch, sitting in the fridge, awaiting some sweet little dinner date that me and the mister will have come Valentines day. Or not, we might just eat them all before hand… because everyday is like Valentines day for us! (blah, barf, but awe, we are so cute!)

This is my basic pickling recipe….I figured you will want to pickle everything and anything once you realize (if you haven't already) how amazing pickled everything is! And how easy it is to do it yourself.

My Pickling method…...

1. Choose the jar that the pickles will live in
2. Prepare and pack the stuff  that is going to be pickled into the jar… leave about and inch of head space
3. Fill the jar to the top with a half water and half vinegar solution (I usually use apple cider vinegar because I think it adds a bit of sweetness.. I don't like to pickle with sugar)
4. If going for a crispy pickle (like green beans or crunchy carrots)…. strain liquid into a pot with a teaspoon of salt per cup of liquid and any spices* that you want to use and bring to a boil  Add back to jar
5. If going for a more tender pickle (like beets or celeriac), dump the liquid and the veggies into a pot with a teaspoon of salt per cup of liquid and any spices* you want to use. Bring to a boil for a few minutes, then remove and replace back into jar.
6. Place lid and stick in fridge for at least a day….(I alway cheat and end up taking a bite within the first few hours) The flavor only gets better after being in the fridge for a couple of days.

*You can spice your pickles anyway you see fit…. I like to use peppercorns, garlic, mustard seeds, celery seeds red pepper flakes. Or for a little sweeter and more fragrant pickle, cinnamon stick, cardamom pods or star anise…the possibilities are endless.

Pickles are usually good for about a month, but I have never been able to keep them that long!

A little about these specific pickles…...

I used one medium celeriac root, and 2 small beets. Sliced about a 1/4 inch thick and then used a cookie cutter to make the hearts.  The chosen vinegar was apple cider, and yeah ,you must pickle both the inner and outer hearts….don't waste the outer heart! And the spices I used were black mustard seed and peppercorns. 

And they be amazing!!!!

Have a Fantastic Weekend!! Hopefully full of  warm weather, fluffy clouds, and lots of pickles!

-C