I was going to write earlier, but I got distracted by a strawberry rhubarb pie.
Now that it’s cooling, I thought I’d tell you about a class I tought this past weekend on pioneer skills… this particular segment was on pickling.
Some dedicated picklers and I convened at a very cool blue Victorian house in Oakland and pickled in the sun.
And we ate snacks. Snacks are important for successful pickling. There was soft cheese and lemon curd and wild boar sausage from my favorite sausage maker you’re going to read about it my book soon.
I leaned over the table and ran up and down the stairs. That was the extent of my productivity.
But the picklers did a stellar job.
See?
And then they took a break for lemon curd.
If you only take one piece of advice from me, let it be this: always take a break for lemon curd.
One of the best things about canning and pickling is the colorful jars you end up with on your shelves. There are endless possibilities really. Saffron for yellow, red beets for red… Twinkies for black and white…
We did a good deal of hanging out. And we caught lemons from the trees as they dropped.
And these were the pickles of our labor:
1. Pickled cucumbers
2. Pickled red beet eggs
3. Pickled hot peppers
4. Amen
Contented picklers.
Oh… and the best part for me? One of the picklers works at a winery in Napa and brought this brandy that was made only for the family who owns the winery. And for me. Since he gave me a bottle from the secret stash.
It is in these moments, sitting in the sun, sipping secret brandy, that I like being me.
The End.
7 Comments
Bacchus aka Ron
I have resisted the idea of pickling, particularly after seeing Alton Brown do it and make such a big deal of sterilization of jars, lids, etc. It looks like your setup with the lids laying on the wood outdoor table may have been a little more relaxed, which is right up my alley.
Georgia
There's pickling and then there's canning… pickling you can do however you'd like as long as you keep it in the fridge. We did both. Canning requires "sterilized" jars and lids. That's done most easily by sticking them all in the dishwasher and pulling them out right as you want to use them. People get uptight about the instructions for liability reasons I think… should something crazy and rare happen. I'm a laid back canner… for better for worse. I figure the more exposure one has to the elements, the better prepared your body becomes to dealing with them. **This message is not endorsed by Georgia Pellegrini's army of lawyers**
Bacchus aka Ron
ah, ok. Thanks for splaining it. And btw, the peppers look great. Love me some hot peppers.
Jason
There were some serious skillz displayed. Sure we weren't working in a clean room, but the lids we used were boiled, and the jars dishwasher sanitized. Secret stash brandy, what a brown noser….
Bacchus aka Ron
Well I am convinced, and am gonna give it a try soon. i will go with the Jal's, and google for the brine or whatever is used.
Georgia
I'm going to post recipes for the brine soon Ron! Here is one already on this site for peppers, which is pretty universal: https://georgiapellegrini.com/blog/?p=715
Bacchus aka Ron
Thanks Georgia, I look forward to trying it.