How to guide on Quick Pickles, Its as easy as salt, sugar, pickle.

Intro

You might be saying “didn’t you just do a post on pickling?” and I will counter with “have you ever watched more than one video on how to set up a triangle?” Exactly, the exciting part about cooking is that there are endless combinations of flavors and techniques that result in countless different outcomes. Sometimes they are delicious and you will find yourself counting out the exact amount of grains of salt you put into a recipe to make it just right again. Sometimes they suck and should just throw them in the trash and order out. But experimentation is the root to finding what works and does not work. Lucky for you people have been cooking for generations and passing along techniques they have mastered in a fine tuned and easy to understand way. Just like black belts teaching a seminar on a kimura lock. This method of pickling is no different…I mean it is because well its a way to prepare food and not a way to tear a shoulder. Long story short, there are many paths to a certain destination. In this how to guide today our destination just so happens to be pickles. So come travel down a different path than we did a few weeks ago.

Quick Pickles

This is one of my favorite techniques on earth. I used to have to do this in a restaurant I worked at in NYC but always had to do more than was needed because I would be constantly snacking on them. Quick pickles are exactly as the title suggests. Instead of using a liquid/brine demonstrated in classic pickling a dry cure method.

The Ratio

The dry mix you use is a ratio of 3 parts granulated sugar to 1 part kosher salt. Or if you want to make it easier on yourself, go Ryan Hall style and make it 50/50. Having this 50/50 mix around is beneficial because in 10-15 minutes you can have sweet and salty pickles that still have a nice little snap to it.

Makes 1 cup

Sugar | Salt

¾ cup | ¼ cup

The Technique – Quick Cucumber Pickle Slice(r)

Thinly slice 1 cucumber and place it into a mixing bowl. Toss with 2 Tbsp of the quick pickle ratio and let sit for 10-15 minutes Drain any liquid that accumulates and serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 4 hours. Have mind blown by how delicious and simple these are

How it works

It is very simple actually, the salt pulls moisture from the product and results in tenderizing of the outside flesh. The salt that is absorbed seasons the vegetable and the sugar is there to add a little sweetness to cut the harshness of the salt.

What can I quick pickle?

Any vegetable really works with this technique. Radishes are good when cut into wedges, carrots shaved into strings, or sliced onions are even tasty here. Once again, if its a vegetable and in season, its worth trying to pickle.

Now that I have these pickles what can I do with them?

Spice up any of your classic dinners with some fresh pickles. We are creatures of habit and I know that if you are like most people you have a limited amount of dishes you have for dinner. I wont shock your system by breaking routine but rather enhance that repertoire. Like chicken stir fry? Top it with some pickled shredded carrots. Enjoy your chicken and rice with some refreshing pickled cucumbers, or even fuck it just have cucumber, radish or even water melon quick pickled for an afternoon snack that is refreshing as all hell. Having a batch in the fridge to snack on is not a bad thing. Who knows maybe it will get you eating the right amount of vegetables that you are lacking in.

Go pickle some vegetables, train some jiu jitsu and subscribe to the weekly newsletter to get posts like this hand delivered right to your email by the little gnomes that run the internet. OSS!



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