Back in January, I wrote about pickling watermelon radishes. That post got quite a few comments as many of you did not realize how simple it is to pickle vegetables.
Then a few weeks ago I was watching Bobby Flay's Throwdown where he made a hot dog topped with avocado, pickled onions, and queso fresco. I thought it was an awesome idea, but did not do anything about it.
Fast forward to last week, when Mary of The Arugula Files posted a recipe for pickling onions. That did it! I had to make pickled onions.
My recipe varies from Mary's, but that's the beauty of cooking: you can pretty much use your imagination and try out a combination of different ingredients.
Ingredients
1/2 red onion, cut in half and thinly sliced
10 coriander seeds
10 peppercorns
1 bay leaf
enough black currant vinegar to cover (this is the vinegar I had left from freelancing for Robyn Webb) {You can use any other vinegar you have on hand.}
Directions
1. Add onions and spices to a clean glass jar. Top with vinegar. Tightly close the lid. Shake the jar. Set in your refrigerator.
2. Wait 24 hours.
3. Open the jar and enjoy these pickled onions!
Stay tuned because I'll be posting at least one recipe that uses these pickled red onions. In the mean time, feel free to add them to salads, on top of fish or chicken, eat them with burgers or on top of hotdogs, or just put them out as a snack with nuts and olives.
What have you pickled lately?
6 comments:
I have been in LOVE with pickled red onions for about 2 years. I started putting them on my breakfast sandwich each morning (one egg, 3 slices of prosciutto, one quarter of an avocado, pickled red onions, and about 1/2 tbs of light mayo on a hoagie roll).
Anywho, I pickle a bit differently. Here is my recipe:
1/2 red onion (thinly sliced)
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup water
1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp honey
1 bay leaf
10 black peppercorns
Place the vinegar, water, and salt in a pot and bring to a simmer, then stir in the honey (the hot liquid helps the salt and honey dissolve better). Place onions, bay leaf, and peppercorns in a clean jar and pour the still hot liquid over them. Shake well and leave on the counter for 1 hour to cool, then refrigerate for 24 hours.
The hot liquid helps to soften the onion a bit, but it still retains it's crunchy bite. I'm not saying this method is better or worse; it's just the way I like them.
I try to always keep pickled onions in the fridge ... mine are usually quick-pickled: Slice some onions and cover them with boiling water for a minute. Drain. Refrigerate. When cool, add the vinegar, salt & sugar of your choice. Simple and delish.
I absolutely love pickled onions. I did not realize they were so easy to make!
I just pickled some onions and other veg using an Alice Waters recipe... Pretty much same ingredient list but you boil each type of veg used separately until just tender and they are good to eat right away... I will try the fridge method soon and report back my findings.
What a beautiful jar~!
Pickling whole shallots is great too. And for that extra kick just add a pinch of red pepper flakes.
Post a Comment