Thursday, August 4, 2011

rice vinegar ginger fridge pickles


I love refrigerator pickles. We have our favorite tried and true recipes, but I also love making variations on both vinegar and lacto fermented veggies to keep it interesting. This recipe is a fridge pickle made with ginger and rice vinegar - it has a milder vinegar flavor with a light ginger aroma. Not too sweet, not too salty, crunchy and crisp. So good!

For the tastiest crunchiest fridge pickles, after slicing your cucumbers place them in a bowl and sprinkle with sea salt. Toss, and then let sit for 30 minutes to an hour (or longer) and then pour off the liquid before placing the cucumbers in the canning jars for the next steps.


::rice vinegar ginger refrigerator pickles::

::ingredients::
3/4 cup rice vinegar
2 cups filtered water
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 onion, finely sliced
pinch of sea salt (see above, for sweating)
1 Tbsp kosher or pickling salt
3 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp of spice mix - mine included mostly dill seeds with some mustard seeds, peppercorns, a small dried pepper, and celery salt.
2 large heads of fresh dill, or sprigs if you don't have heads
2 tsp grated fresh ginger (more if you like)
How many cucumbers this equals depends on the size of your cukes. Enough to fill 2 pint jars...

After salting/sweating your cucumbers (see above) pack your slices into 2 pint jars along with one crushed garlic clove per jar, and 1/2 of the sliced onions per jar. Split your spice mix, grated ginger, and dill heads between the jars too.


Put the vinegar, water, sugar, and pickling/kosher salt in a pot and bring to a boil. Let salt and sugar dissolve. Remove from heat. Pour the hot liquid into the jars, covering the cucumbers, with a bit of head room. Push the cucumbers down if needed. Let cool to room temperature without any lids. Screw on lids tightly and put in your refrigerator. Great the next day, even better after a few days. Eat within a few months!


Tip:: when slicing your cucumbers toss the tips. The flower tip contains an enzyme which can make your pickles soft!

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