Quick-Pickled Vegetables

Quick-Pickled Vegetables
Paola & Murray for The New York Times. Food stylist: Victoria Granof. Prop stylist: Rebecca Bartoshesky.
Total Time
30 minutes
Rating
4(281)
Comments
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Almost any seasonal vegetable will lend itself to being pickled in a mix of apple cider vinegar and rice vinegar, tweaked with a little salt and sugar. Use a mixture of what's in season, and choose small, slender vegetables when you can. Whatever you choose, make sure to scrub vegetables well and peel away roots and thick skins. 

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Ingredients

  • 1cup water
  • ¼cup rice-wine vinegar
  • ¼cup apple-cider vinegar
  • 5tablespoons white sugar
  • 2teaspoons kosher salt
  • 3whole star anise
  • 15black peppercorns
  • 15whole coriander seeds
  • 1serrano chile, split in half
  • 6 to 8carrots, peeled, cut diagonally into 3-inch pieces
  • 6 to 8small turnips, scrubbed and halved
  • 1small fennel bulb, cored and finely sliced
  • 2Asian pears, peeled, cored and finely sliced
  • 3 to 4rainbow beets, peeled and finely sliced
  • ½white onion, finely sliced
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)

182 calories; 1 gram fat; 0 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 1 gram monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 43 grams carbohydrates; 10 grams dietary fiber; 27 grams sugars; 4 grams protein; 783 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Bring water to a boil, and pour into a heatproof bowl. Mix with vinegars, sugar, salt, star anise, peppercorns, coriander seeds and chile, and stir until sugar is dissolved.

  2. Step 2

    Arrange prepped vegetables and fruit in a large jar or glass dish, and pour the vinegar mixture over them. (Depending on the size of the container, you may need to mix another batch of the vinegar mixture to cover them.) Let sit at room temperature until the liquid is slightly cooled, then transfer to the refrigerator for at least one hour, or overnight. Eat within the week.

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4 out of 5
281 user ratings
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Comments

Yes! Sugar is vital to the pickling process. It feeds the microorganisms that "pickle" the vegetables. Other sweeteners like honey or agave won't work as substitutes here.

This works just as well with 1 1/2 cups rice vinegar or half and half cider vinegar and water. Radishes, especially watermelon radishes, are fun to pickle, and delicious - but be sure to have a tightly sealed container. The pickle smells awful!

I’ve made this several times with carrots, celery, cauliflower, red onions and sliced up cabbage. Without fail, the crowd favourite is always the cabbage! I thought 5 tbsp of sugar was too much so have always made it with a scant 4 tbsp of sugar, and it is perfect, right on the edge of sweet but not. Great recipe, it’s been such a handy way to get vegetables out on a table during a party, and goes particularly well with my homemade Cantonese style crispy pork belly.

When do you put the lid on the jar of pickles?? When it comes to room temp and you put in fridge??

Did anyone else find there was way too little liquid for the amount of vegetables? This did not work for me at all.

Robinn: yes, I quadrupled the liquid and it just barely covered.

Michael Camacho, based on the jar of pickled onion from last summer that we are eating now, your suggestion via Thomas Keller's Master Class is that a year is good. I just bought red onion at our local farmers' market to make another batch, and looking forward to having them add crunch to a leftover turkey sandwich come Thanksgiving.

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