Thriving ‘in a Pickle’
This article was written by a guest contributor, Max Aronson. Read about Max here.
When I would open up the refrigerator in my home growing up, I knew I could always find a juicy jar of sour dill pickles on the middle shelf towards the back on the right-hand side. As the descendent of the proud owner of a Jewish deli, pickle brine flows through my veins, and there has never been a time where I could imagine turning down a sour pickle. I was raised to have a strong opinion about what kind of pickles were acceptable, and which ones – sweet bread and butter pickles – were not. It was not until I started working in restaurants in high school, however, that I learned that the pickle world was wider than the classic pickled cucumber, and that pickling vegetables is economically efficient and shockingly easy.
As a senior in high school, I held an externship in the kitchen of Gramercy Tavern, a Michelin-starred New York City restaurant that served exquisite, farm-forward plates. They respected the farms from which their produce was sourced, and refused to let food go to waste. I learned that the best way to keep excess vegetables from expiring before they can be enjoyed was to pickle them. On my first day at Gramercy Tavern, I was set up with a 22-quart Cambro container of Numex Suave peppers that were just past their prime. My supervising sous-chef had me sort and slice the seemingly endless vat of peppers, and after two hours of monotonous vegetable processing, I was ready to pickle. Though the process was long and left my hands smelling like peppers for many days, learning that pickles can be more than just a sour dill sent me on a pickle frenzy.
I have tried pickling all sorts of fruits and vegetables from carrots and radishes to mushrooms and peaches. I think about my time pickling vegetables at Gramercy Tavern whenever I start to worry about the impending end to the amazing summer produce season. It’s hard to say goodbye to the vegetables of the season, so I just get around that by pouring some hot brine on top of fresh vegetables. Voila! Suddenly my vegetables can last a month instead of a few days. Plus, they are packed with zippy acid that can brighten up any dish.
Want to make your own?
1: Pick your produce
The first step in making pickles is to decide what you want to pickle. You can pickle pretty much anything, but I love a crunchy pickle, so I usually lean towards vegetables that are already firm like cauliflower, carrots, or onions.
The fresher the vegetable, the firmer the pickle. If you pickle a vegetable that is nearing the end of its life, it will likely result in a mushy pickle. You can also avoid mushiness in your pickles by trimming off the ends and stems of the vegetable you want to pickle. The butt end of certain vegetables have a higher concentration of an enzyme that will make your pickles softer.
The smaller the pickle is, the quicker it will absorb the pickling liquid. I like to break down my pickles into manageable, bite sized pieces for convenience and for more intensely packed flavor. This is also when I would get rid of any imperfections in the vegetables. If your vegetable has a soft spot, spicy seeds, or fibrous stems, trim those out to keep from affecting the whole batch and biting into them later.
2: Make your brine
A pickle brine can take a few different directions. You can adjust sweetness by playing around with sugar, you can adjust the aromatics by throwing in different herbs and spices, and you can play with the acidity by working in different blends of vinegar. I have a baseline pickling liquid recipe that I use as a catch-all, but sometimes I have fun with it.
Basic Pickling Liquid Recipe:
1 Cup Vinegar
1 Cup Water
2 Tablespoons Sugar
2 Tablespoons Salt
Add the ingredients to a small saucepan and whisk. Heat on a medium flame until the liquid just reaches a simmer and bits of steam start to appear on the surface. Remove from heat and pour enough liquid to cover all of the vegetables.
Cut a round of parchment paper large enough to cover the surface of the container and weigh down the top of the vegetables with any water and heatproof kitchen tool to make sure that everything is submerged. Let the pickles come to room temperature and then seal and transfer to the refrigerator. Leave for a few hours before trying any pickles. The longer you wait, the more evenly the pickles will infuse.
I love using white balsamic vinegar for a complex tart flavor, so I usually go ½ cup white balsamic and ½ cup rice wine vinegar. If you only had white vinegar or apple cider vinegar, use those! The end result will be a different flavor, but you will still end up with a beautiful pickle.
If you want to add any spices, I recommend toasting them in the pan before adding the brine ingredients. I typically use coriander seeds and peppercorns for an aromatic and spicy brine. You can also pack your pickles with more flavor by adding whole cloves of garlic to the brine.
3: Use your pickles
Now that you have your very own jar of pickles, you can use them for absolutely anything! I love throwing pickles on a salad, and then I use a tablespoon of the pickling liquid in the dressing with some olive oil. You can get creative with your creations, or just eat the pickles on their own.
This article was written by a guest contributor, Max Aronson. Read about Max here.
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