With farmers market season now in full swing, if they’re not in already, it won’t be long before you’ll be seeing stunningly fresh pickling cucumbers showing up. Great in salads, cucumbers star in quick pickles too.
We’ve been putting up various fermented dills as part of our fall pickling routine for years now, and diehard pickle aficionados will argue that there’s nothing quite like an old-school, pucker-your-lips, sour dill pickle painstakingly fermented and processed. I even posted about these on our fly fishing blog last fall –
…While I wouldn’t argue that fact, after an early August conversation with our friend Chef Libby in Austin, during which (among other things) she extolled the virtues of quick pickles, we’ve been quick pickling all sorts of stuff of late.
These quick dills have surprised everybody we’ve shared them with, in that they’re packed with great dill flavor (get really fresh dill frond and seeds), perfectly acidic (the sour that makes you pucker) without being too much so, and crunchier than fermented dills (without using alum as a cheat too).
Personally I think they’re far better with a bit of heat from the addition of several good peppers (long and skinny chile de arbol peppers work particularly well), though they’re good without the extra punch…
A child’s-play-easy ten minutes of effort here will make you look like a genius this next week.
1 lb pickling not-too-fat pickling cucumbers, trimmed, sliced lengthwise into quarters
2 large garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 C fresh dill fronds and stems, washed (or a bit more)
1 C filtered water
1/2 C white vinegar
2 T pickling or kosher salt
1 tsp (generous) fresh dill seeds
1 tsp (generous) coriander seeds
Optional: Hot peppers of your choice, try Thai, serrano, a split jalapeno…
Gently heat the water, vinegar, and salt, stirring until the salt dissolves. Remove from the heat to cool.
Scrub, trim, and slice the cucumbers; then prep the garlic and peppers if using.
Assembly is a piece of cake – pack a quart jar with the dill fronds and stems, garlic, then the cucumbers and peppers.
Sprinkle the dill and coriander seeds into the jar, then pour the cooled liquid over to within 1/4 of the top. Cover, leave out at room temperature for 3-4 hours, then throw in the fridge.
They’re not quite ready by the next day, but try one anyway; they’re good by the second day, getting better for the next 7-10 days.
Enjoy.
