Before I tell you about this amazing carrot quick pickle with ginger, I want to make sure you know this: pickling means preserving food in a seasoned brine or vinegar mixture, and in case you didn’t get the memo, pickles are the new cupcakes.
I sorta kinda doubt it — try bringing pickles to your nephew’s birthday party — but, as someone who grew up with store-bought jars of cornichons (gherkins) as the single pickled element of the family diet, I am most intrigued by the techniques involved, and the wide range of products they create.
I am a city dweller and it is unlikely that I’ll ever have the bumper crop and larder space (or, um, patience) to fill dozens of towering jars with multicolored vegetables biding their time in their sterilized bath, so the method I am most drawn to is the quick pickle: this simply consists in pouring a boiling brine or vinegar solution over pieces of raw vegetables, and letting the mixture cool to room temperature. This type of pickle keeps for about two weeks in the refrigerator, so it is usually done in small batches that you can consume within that time frame — unless you’re giving some away to well screened friends and relatives.
I am a city dweller and have neither the bumper crop nor the larder space to fill dozens of towering jars with multicolored vegetables, so the method I am most drawn to is the quick pickle.
My first near-pickling experience, long before this carrot quick pickle with ginger, occurred at my friends Braden and Laura‘s place recently, as I helped Braden prepare the quick-pickled chili peppers he was later to serve with squid ink pasta and fried squid rings. My involvement was limited to the chopping of said chili peppers, which taught me an important, though non-pickling-related lesson: you should protect your hand with a glove or a light film of oil before handling a large amount of hot peppers, otherwise you’ll wake up in the morning feeling like it’s been dipped in acid.
Scoville scale aside, I had thus been introduced to the quick pickling thing, and was ready for a re-run in my own kitchen. So when I received a copy of Pierre Lamielle’s very lovable cookbook Kitchen Scraps, the first recipe I decided to try was the carrot-and-ginger quickie pickle on page 82.
If you don’t know who Pierre Lamielle is, head over to his food blog and tell him I said hi: he’s a talented illustrator/cook with wit to spare, a definite knack for food-related puns, and a weakness for root vegetables.
His book is a collection of humorously written and illustrated recipes, and I am enjoying it more than a little. It is wacky, irreverent, and funny, yet the recipes are built on solid ground: the author went to culinary school, and this you can tell by his intermittent use of the verb “to blap,” a technical term that means sticking something in the oven without making too big a deal out of it. So it’s a book you can actually cook from, chuckling privately at the prospect of serving the bear butt-kicking granola, the whirled peas soup (give whirled peas a chance — get it?), or the angel hair conditioner pasta.
Among the recipes I’ve flagged are the bread of roses (a bread pudding with chocolate and rosewater), bruno “bloody beets” barbabietola’s beets and ricotta risotto (one of five mafia-approved risotti) and, of course, the stinking french onion soup, because that’s hard to resist.
The carrot quick pickle was indeed a breeze to make — it took about ten minutes, and I was on the phone for most of that time — and I am delighted with the result: the ribbons look terribly pretty, and we’ve been eating them as a sweet and sour condiment nested inside tuna sandwiches, as Pierre suggests, or swirled over this warm squash and bean salad, and I can see it bringing a lovely brightness alongside a hearty, brooding stew.
As for the book, it has earned its place on the special bookshelf I reserve for alternative publishing projects from Canada, right between L’Appareil and Au Pied de cochon, and when my little nephew turns 19 years old rather than 19 months old, I have an inkling he’ll get a kick out of it, too.
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Carrot and Ginger Quickie Pickle Recipe
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Makes about 400 ml (1 2/3 cups)
Ingredients
- 2 medium-small carrots, about 200 grams (7 ounces)
- a 40-gram (1 1/2-ounce) knob of fresh ginger, scrubbed but unpeeled, sliced thinly
- 120 ml (1/2 cup) white vinegar (I used a tarragon-infused white wine vinegar, but cider vinegar would work as well)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
Instructions
- Peel the carrots and, using the vegetable peeler, cut them into thin ribbons. Place the ribbons in a heatproof bowl, and set a fine-mesh sieve over the bowl.
- Combine the ginger, vinegar, salt, sugar, and 240 ml (1 cup) water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. When the mixture boils, stir with a wooden spoon to make sure the sugar and salt are dissolved, and remove from the heat.
- Pour the ginger brine through the sieve and into the bowl of carrots. Make sure the carrots are completely immersed, cover with a plate, and let cool to room temperature. Transfer to a clean jar, close tightly with the lid and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
- Note that the not-entirely-pleasant odor of hot vinegar will linger in your kitchen for a few hours afterward, so if you have guests coming over I suggest you make it the day before.
- Adapted from Pierre Lamielle's Kitchen Scraps.
https://cnz.to/recipes/vegetables-grains/carrot-and-ginger-quickie-pickle-recipe/
Unless otherwise noted, all recipes are copyright Clotilde Dusoulier.
FAQs
But unless the carrots are young and small, the skins can taste bitter, so I recommend peeling all but the smallest before pickling. After that, you'll need to decide how to prepare carrots. Shredded pickled carrots are delicious on top of a salad or in a sandwich. You can also slice them into coins.
What is the difference between pickling and quick pickling? ›
Traditional pickle making includes canning, which uses high temperatures to sterilize and create an airtight seal that further preserves the contents from spoilage. Quick pickling uses the same basic ingredients as traditional pickling but you skip the canning process and store them in your refrigerator.
How do chefs quickly pickle vegetables? ›
Place the vinegar, water, salt, and sugar (if using) in a small saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the salt and sugar. Pour the brine over the vegetables, filling each jar to within 1/2 inch of the top. You might not use all the brine.
How healthy are pickled carrots? ›
Pickling: Full of good bacteria called Probiotics that aid in digestion and help our bodies break down and absorb all of carrots and daikon's wonderful nutrients! Healthy gut bacteria can even reduce the symptoms of depression and anxiety while protecting our microbiome and supporting of new growth!
Which is the best vinegar for pickling? ›
Most pickle recipes call for distilled white vinegar. This is the clear, colorless vinegar made by fermenting grains. It has a mellow aroma, tart acid flavor and does not affect the color of light-colored vegetables or fruits.
What happens if you don't peel carrots? ›
Because a carrot's skin isn't as thick as other root vegetables (like potatoes) or winter squashes, carrots are perfectly safe and delicious to eat without peeling so long as they are properly cleaned. When it comes down to it, peeling carrots or keeping the skin on is a matter of personal preference.
How long should quick pickles sit? ›
You want to completely cover the vegetables with the brine. Put a lid on, then let the jar cool to room temperature before storing in the fridge. I like to let the pickles sit in the fridge for at least one day, though they really start tasting more pickle-like after 2–3 days.
What are the best vegetables to pickle? ›
Beyond the classic cucumbers, other fruits and vegetables that work well for pickles include asparagus, beets, bell peppers, blueberries, cauliflower, carrots, cherries, fennel, ginger, grapes, green beans, mushrooms, onions, parsnips, peaches, peppers, radishes, ramps, rhubarb, strawberries, squash, tomatoes, turnips, ...
Are quick pickled vegetables good for you? ›
Did you know that pickled and fermented foods are actually really good for you? Not only are they delicious but they're packed full of minerals, vitamins and good bacteria.
How do you keep quick pickles crispy? ›
Use Calcium Chloride
Sea salt is sodium chloride. In this case, we're talking about calcium chloride! These little granules, which dilute quickly in water, are THE trick to crunchy pickles, as they prevent the enzymes from softening the pickle during lacto-fermentation.
3-5 minutes for leafy vegetables, e.g. bok choy, cabbage, kale, spinach, silverbeet. 8-10 minutes for firmer vegetables, e.g. broccoli, beans, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, leeks, peas, sweet corn. 12-15 minutes for harder vegetables, e.g. carrots, parsnips, pumpkin, turnips, yams.
Why boil vinegar before pickling? ›
Quick pickling, or refrigerator pickling, involves a simple boil-and-pour method of pickling. You take all of your ingredients, apart from the product that is being pickled, and bring them to a boil. The heating process helps activate the flavors in the brine and marry them together.
Is it OK to eat pickled vegetables every day? ›
Can you eat pickles every day? Daily pickle consumption depends on what the rest of your diet is like. “If you're someone who doesn't eat a lot of processed foods, fast foods or store-bought foods, or if you're mostly eating a very low-salt diet, then eating pickles daily might be fine,” Peart says.
What is the healthiest pickles to eat? ›
“The pickles that are beneficial for your gut health are the fermented ones, made by brining them in salt rather than vinegar,” says Dr. Oppezzo. “While vinegar pickling is a common method, true fermentation in brine enriches them with beneficial probiotics for your gut.
Why do people pickle carrots? ›
Simply put, foods are pickled to preserve them. However, this process also changes their taste and texture in interesting, yummy ways. And the most common way to pickle food is by using vinegar, like what I did with this pickled carrot recipe, or using brine.
Do you have to peel carrots when canning? ›
Prepping Carrots for Canning
Before you can even start heating your pressure canner, you need to get your carrots ready for canning. You'll need to cut the stem end off each carrot, peel, and rinse each one, and then cut them into the size and shape you want to have as a finished product after canning.
Should you pre peel carrots? ›
“There is no need to peel carrots before eating—many people enjoy eating them with the skin on,” says Alan Hilowitz, former communications director at Bolthouse Farms. “However, since carrots are grown in the ground, washing/scrubbing is important if you do choose not to peel,” he adds.
Do you have to peel carrots or can you just wash them? ›
When it comes down to it, you don't ever really have to peel carrots. As long as you wash and scrub them well to remove dirt and any debris (this natural fruit and veggie wash is a good start!), unpeeled carrots are perfectly safe (and delicious) to eat.
Why blanch carrots before pickling? ›
Blanching is the process of partially cooking vegetables in boiling water until they are slightly tender but still hold their crunch, then quickly submerging them in ice water to inhibit further cooking. This process helps to maintain the carrots' vibrant colour throughout pickling.
