The great thing about pickled vegetables is your ability to use any variety of fresh veggies you have on hand. While leafy greens won’t work so well (besides cabbage), you can really get creative with what’s fresh, local and, possibly, growing in your own garden. Use this mixed pickled vegetables recipe as a baseline, adding or subtracting veggies to suit your taste.

Pickled Vegetables Recipe

Yields about 5 pints

Ingredients

1 and 1/4 pounds pickling cucumbers 3 to 4 inches in length, sliced ½-inch thick (cut off and discard both ends of the cucumbers)
2 cups fluted carrot slices cut ½ inch thick (use a fluted garnishing cutter)
2 cups celery slices cut diagonally ½ inch thick
2 cups trimmed and peeled pearl onions
20 strips red bell peppers cut ½ inch wide by 3 inches long (about 2 large peppers)
3 cups small cauliflower flowerets (about 1 small head of cauliflower)
16 cups cold, distilled water
1 cup canning salt
2 cups sugar
¼ cup mustard seed
2 tablespoons celery seed
6½ cups white vinegar (5 percent acidity)

Directions

THE FIRST DAY: in an 8-quart, stainless steel kettle, place the prepared cucumbers, carrots, celery, onions, peppers, and cauliflower; set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, place the distilled water and canning salt; stir until the salt dissolves. Then, pour the salt water over the vegetables in the kettle. Cover the kettle; let stand, in a cool place, 12 to 18 hours.

12 TO 18 HOURS LATER: Drain the vegetables thoroughly; set aside.

In a clean, 8-quart, heavy-bottomed, stainless steel kettle, place the sugar, mustard seed, celery seed, and vinegar; stir to combine. Over medium-high heat, bring the vinegar mixture to a boil, stirring constantly. Cover the kettle. Reduce the heat and boil the vinegar mixture 3 minutes. add the vegetables. Cover the kettle and return the mixture to a simmer.

Simmer the vegetables, covered, 5 minutes. Remove from the heat; let stand.

Drain hot, sterilized, widemouthed, pint jars with straight sides, upside down, on a clean tea towel.

Decoratively arrange the vegetables (without liquid) in the jars, leaving ½-inch headspace.

Using a 1-cup measuring cup with a pouring spout, cover the vegetables in the jars with the hot vinegar mixture, maintaining ½-inch headspace.

Using a plastic knife or a narrow, rubber spatula, remove the air bubbles in the jars. Then, check the headspace in each jar and if necessary, add additional hot vinegar mixture to maintain ½-inch headspace. Wipe the jar rims and threads.

Place hot, metal lids on the jars and screw the bands firmly.

Process in a boiling-water canner for the time shown in the processing times chart at the end of this recipe.

Remove the jars from the canner and place them on a dry, wooden board that has been covered with a tea towel. Let

the jars stand, undisturbed, 12 hours to cool completely.

Processing times for pint and quart-size jars

Altitude of Canning Location
0 to 1,001 ft above sea level: 15 minutes
1,000 ft 6,000 ft: 20 minutes
6,000 ft and higher: 25 minutes

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Recipe courtesy of Blue Ribbon Country Canning Cookbook by Diane Roupe.

Photos by Erin Scott (Egg & Dart Press, 2013).

The post Blue Ribbon Country Canning: Pickled Vegetables Recipe appeared first on EcoSalon.

If pickled cucumbers are the extent of your experience with pickled vegetables, you’re missing out on some wonderful tastes and nutrition.

This recipe for pickled cabbage is a foundational recipe in that you can replace the cabbage with any other vegetable of your choice. Over time, you can experiment with the use of herbs and spices to create a more aromatic and delicious result. Enjoy!

There are many ways to get healthy bacteria in your diet, from the likes of such concoctions as kefir or kombucha, but pickled vegetables are probably the easiest way to do it yourself. Pickled vegetables are created by a fermentation process, which yields incredible health benefits. Fermenting vegetables increases their vitamins and digestibility, providing anti-carcinogenic and antibiotic benefits as well as increasing the proliferation of healthy flora in the intestines. Typically, this process involves storing vegetables in a brine for a few days until the carbohydrates and proteins break down and microorganisms, such as friendly bacteria, develop. These bacteria are so beneficial, they are considered probiotics and help to improve overall nutrition, from digestion to immune function. Try this pickled cabbage recipe out and then take it to the next level with your own tweaks and additions, or try out a homemade version of a Korean staple, kimchi. Bon Appetit!

Pickled Red Cabbage

Makes about 2 cups

Ingredients

• 1 red cabbage head
• 2-3 tablespoons sea salt
• Room temperature water

Directions

Peel off 2-3 pieces of the outer layer of the cabbage and set aside. You will use them later to seal the jars.

Chop off and toss the stem of the cabbage. Slice the cabbage into thin strips. Place into a bowl and with clean hands, massage the salt into the pieces. Continue to do so for about 2-3 minutes.

In one large mason jar or a few smaller glass jars, add the cabbage pieces. With each addition, use a mortar to pound the pieces into the bottom of the jar. This helps to extract the juices and create room for more cabbage slices. Continue this process until you reach the top of the jar. With about 1 inch remaining to where the lid will go, slowly pour water into the jar so that it reaches the crevices between the pieces and doesn’t simply just float above the cabbage. Once the water reaches the top of the chopped cabbage, take the whole leaves you removed earlier, fold them, and insert them flat on top of the sliced cabbage. It is important that all the cabbage is completely submerged in the water. The folded whole leaves at the top will act as a seal. Close the lid of the jar, but keep it slightly ajar or not fully sealed.

Store in a dark, dry place at room temperature for 3-5 days or until you begin to see bubbles form. Drain before eating. Add to your salads for an extra probiotic boost. Enjoy!

Photo Credit: quinn.anya, GlowKitchen

The post Fermenting Basics: Pickled Red Cabbage Recipe appeared first on EcoSalon.