Recently I was asked to check out a great home made Bread and Butter Pickle recipe video found right here at the
Chef John blog. After watching, it looked so easy and fun, I decided to do some pickling..
To get a better feel for the whole business of pickling, I further researched online and discovered loads of other recipes, and it became apparent that you can pickle just about any food including fruits, not just vegetables, and well, it seems almost anything can be pickled!
I got enthused and decided to take the plunge and make several batches of pickled stuffs
 |
| Pickles |
1st: The classic refrigerator Bread & Butter pickles (per the video),
2nd: Corn 'Wheels' ; I found some fresh Olathe corn on sale at the local grocery, and decided to see how it might do as a pickling item, 3rd: of course a classic fave: Carrots, Peppers, Garlic & Onions (a la your favorite Mexican restaurant). Next: Apples with Pears and Grapes – the next project
I went to the store and found most of the ingredients right away, although some took several stores to find. Pickling spices and the various other spices were readily available, although the 'star anise' has been a bit tricky, but it's for the apples and fruit, so not yet needed.
I'm still planning to make the pickled apples and pears with grapes. One recipe suggested using maple syrup instead of sugar. I think maple syrup along with some classic apple pie spices ought to be quite delicious and create a tasty flavor profile; nutmeg, mace, cinnamon, star anise, all along with pickling spices. I think this'n is going to be a winner!
But now for the gory details so far – batch by batch ...
I'll describe the first attempt at the Bread and Butter pickles.
Following instructions, I sliced 2 lbs of small pickling cucumbers, and then dusted them with kosher salt. I let them sit for several hours stirring every so often. This 'salting' removes excess water and makes the pickles 'crunchy'. The recipe said to rinse well after the salting. I thought I did! I rinsed the slices quite well under running water for about 3-4 minutes per the instructions. I will give you a hint here ... taste 'em before you go any further. I didn't. I proceeded to make the hot brine and stir in the slices and soak as instructed. The smell was sensational, so much so that I couldn't wait the suggested 48 hours to try them. I selected a delectable slice to test... and I'm sure glad I did.
OMG!! The pickles were inedible... gah .. salt, salt, salt!!! egad I thought, what to do now?? I asked some professional cooks and chef friends if they had any idea how to remove the excess saltiness? Nothing concrete was offered.
Eventually I found one person – who had actually taught Betty Crocker how to cook – who suggested soaking and rinsing heavily and thoroughly over and over, and see if that would help – it certainly couldn't hurt!? HOORAY for Betty Crocker's teacher !!!
Quite to my surprise after 24 hours of soaking and rinsing MANY more times, and then putting them into a new salt free brine and refrigerating for another 24 hours, THEY WERE PERFECT!! What a journey those cukes took. Now they only have one short trip left to take – directly to the dining table !! yum yum!
Now that the first batch was 'saved', it was safe to proceed with batch #2. I followed all the steps exactly the same, except These were rinsed, rinsed, rinsed ,and rinsed some more. Then rinsed again just to be sure! This batch came out PERFECT! No doctoring needed. Dee-lish !!!
Buoyed by initial success', I turned to the corn. There was a sale on the seasons first Olathe corn at the local grocery (6 ears for $1), so I grabbed 6 really nice ears for this project.
First though, I had to prepare them and was delighted to use a wonderful trick I found on
Chef Johns food blog. This is a really easy way to remove the husk and all the silk in one swoop!
Here's the trick - Put the whole un-shucked ear in the microwave for 3 minutes, then carefully take it out and cut off the butt end - through the husk and all. Then by grasping the tip end with a towel the husk and silk just slide right off the cooked corn and voila ... perfect hot corn on the cob!! - I did 3 ears at a time and it worked great !!! I ate one to 'test' it just as it came out of the microwave, and it was perfect. I don't think I'll ever boil corn again.
For the corn, I made a lighter brine – combining several recipes I liked online, and as it brewed the smell was wonderful! However, I quickly realized it would be hard to put 6 whole ears into the 2 qt. brine pot, and also getting them into a jar was problematic too. What to do? Well I cut the corn - still on the cob - into slices I call '
wheels'! Necessity is the mother of invention. This was a brilliant Inspiration!!
The corn 'wheels' now went into the brine, (These little wheels make great little finger holds to nibble the nibblets!!) I added some celery (cut into 2" pieces) to give some variety, color and a different flavor. The celery has been a pleasant surprise, and very tasty too! The corn brine was a bit different from the B&B pickle recipe, milder and less strident, less 'pickle-y', and it perfectly enhanced the lovely corn flavor. I am totally delighted at how tasty the corn and celery are!
Next batch: Carrots and Peppers, which were quite easy to make. I gave these more of a full flavored brine with about10 bay leaves added. The big job was peeling and slicing the carrots. The brine was just coming to a boil as I was done slicing. In they went, fire went off. After soaking in the brine for several hours – I popped 'em into the fridge! Wow! They turned out as good (better?) than the restaurant kind. Now I have a big jar of those which I've been enjoying with all my meals and especially good with Mexican dishes.
Pickling – what a great, fun way to do veggies and fruits. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it all was. I just suggest making one kind at a time for less confusion though. It was a bit of craziness whilst doing 3 different kinds at once.
Now I'm enjoying B&B pickles with everything. The corn wheels are great adds to salads or crudité, and the carrots work anyplace ... I've enjoyed those with my eggs in the morning or rice at dinner, and they make a nice crunchy substitute for chips whilst watching TV. A pickle for all seasons!
Well, they're not just your grandma's pickles anymore .. although maybe the flavors will awaken some old memories of 'back in the day' – try making some yourself. I only suggest you RINSE RINSE RINSE if you do the salting!!
Manga Manga – Abondanza!!
 |
| Pickles and Corn Wheels |
