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Video: How to pickle summer veggies

TODAY recipes
updated 8/3/2009 6:37:14 PM ET 2009-08-03T22:37:14

Lock in the taste of summer by pickling seasonal vegetables. Food Network star Tyler Florence shares his tips for preserving your finds from the farmers market so you can get a burst of warm-weather flavors when the cold weather hits.

Recipe: Pickling brine (on this page)


Recipe: Pickling brine

Ingredients
  • For the brine
  • 6 quarts water
  • 2 quarts apple cider vinegar
  • 2 cups pickling salt (kosher is fine if you don’t have pickling salt)
  • 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
  • 1/4 cup coriander seeds
  • 1/4 cup cumin seeds
  • 1 teaspoon whole cloves
  • 1/4 cup of yellow mustard seeds
  • 2 tablespoons of sugar
  • 1 big head of fresh dill, 1 stem per jar
  • 16 small cloves of garlic, peeled
  • 16 bay leaves
  • 8 whole dried red peppers, 2 peppers per jar
  • Vegetables for pickling
  • Pickling mini cucumbers cut into wedges
  • Baby carrots, washed and trimmed so an inch of the green is still attached
  • Green beans – left whole
  • Radishes, split in half with 1/2 an inch of stem still atttached
  • Cauliflower – medium-sized florets
  • Green tomatoes, cut into wedges
Preparation

Sterilize jars
Place jars in large canning pot with boiled water and simmer for about 5-7 minutes to sterilize. Do the same with lids in a separate smaller pot.

Make the brine
Place everything except the garlic, red peppers and dill in a small pot and bring to a boil. Set aside to cool. Meanwhile, stuff the jars with vegetables (keep vegetables separate in different jars so the flavors don’t get muddled up).

In each jar, insert a stem of fresh flowering dill down the side and add 2 cloves of garlic and 2 dried red peppers to each jar. Pour the cooled brine into each jar, filling to just 1/4 inch below the top. Place lid on tightly and submerge the jars back into the cannery pot with hot water. Simmer for 10 minutes, then remove and allow to cool undisturbed on the bench top — this is when the seal forms.

Leave for 12 hours undisturbed. Check the seal by tapping the center of the lid — it should be tightly sucked down. Label your pickles — they should be in their prime 3 months after canning.

Serving Size

Makes 8 quart-sized jars

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