# Pickling and Preserving



## mr drinky (Jan 22, 2012)

So this is the first technique post related to my earlier one about learning technique. 

So my house smells of citrus and vinegar. I mean it really smells like a big pickle.

Anyhow, here is what I pickled today.

* David Chang's quick pickled cantaloupe from Momofuku (takes an hour)
* Moroccan-Style Preserved Lemons from Gourmet 2007 (quick recipe, about 5 days)
* Preserved Lemons from Cuisine Magazine (takes 5 weeks)
* Preserved Calamondins (takes 5 weeks)
* Thai and Ginger pickled radishes from Food&Wine (takes overnight)
* Pickled mustard seeds from Momofuku (takes about 2 hours with cool down)

I must admit that I have done the radishes before, and they are a nice substitute for pickled ginger with sushi. The pickled mustard seeds are to die for. I was just spooning them into my mouth, but I can imagine using them in many places. They are just such a nice tangy sweet punch. The cantaloupe was very nice, and I could definitely see having them for finger food in the summer when entertaining. They were also the easiest thing to prepare.

As for the calamondins and other lemons, I will have to see how they turn out in five weeks. And the recipe from the late Gourmet magazine will take about a week. This recipe from David Lebovitz is pretty close to what I did.

I also used meyer lemons instead of regular lemons. Now I have to figure out what to do with everything once it is done 

k.


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## Eamon Burke (Jan 22, 2012)

I had a good afternoon!

Here's the fruits I went with:





The right is Meyer Lemons, blanched and wedged, de-seeded and salted. I used RealSalt sea salt for all of these.
The middle is Mexican Key Limes, halved, deseeded and salted. These are going to get some Guajillo Chile powder in a week.
The left is my "Quats". Kumquats, Limequats, and Madarinquats. They are all cut and de-seeded, except for the kumquats. I also sugared this batch in addition to salting it.
The bottom is my Shigefusa, my buddy for cooking fun. I should name it.

I'm not sure if these are going to give up enough liquid to cover themselves, but I'll deal with that tomorrow.


Also, I got my Sauerkraut going today. I don't have a ceramic crock, or money. So I borrowed some stuff from work(because the resto supply store is closed today). Thankfully, a 1gal lid fits inside an 2gal container closely.




It's shredded, but not super fine, with the hearts still in it--I want it to cruch!. It got sea salt and Juniper berries. It's not giving up tons of water yet, despite being beat up. 

I put the crock from my small electric crock pot on top, with rocks in it. The towel is to keep dust and bugs out, but this a city apartment, and I don't trust the roaches--so it got taped.





In the meantime, I picked up some Bubbie's pickles and sauerkraut today.

Can't wait to see what you guys are doing!


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## Eamon Burke (Jan 22, 2012)

Man, K, yours are way more interesting than mine!


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## jm2hill (Jan 22, 2012)

Care to post the cantaloupe one? I have one sitting in the fridge that I don't feel like eating!


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## ecchef (Jan 22, 2012)

I recently had to do an impromptu meal with preserved lemons. Because of time constraints, I went with the 'Ideas in Food' freeze/thaw cycling method, adding my own spices. Actually didn't turn out half bad. 

I really have to start doing preserved citrus with some of the local fruit.

My mother-in-law is staying with us for a bit. The fridge always has some kind of tsukemono lurking in it.


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## Ratton (Jan 22, 2012)

Here is a link to prepare preserved lemons using the sous vide method: http://svkitchen.com/?p=614


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## EdipisReks (Jan 22, 2012)

BurkeCutlery said:


> I had a good afternoon!
> 
> Here's the fruits I went with:
> 
> ...



rad! i've only pickled a couple times, the last batch being just carrot baton nets with garlic, thyme and peppercorns. you've inspired me to do more than the simplest thing possible! your stuff sounds great too, Drinky!


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## DeepCSweede (Jan 22, 2012)

Ok, too busy this weekend to do anything but next weekend I want to pickle some lemons and also some hot pepper/carrot/onions. I'm traveling during the week, so hopefully I can do it next weekend. Love that we're off to a good start. I am really interested to see how a pickled lemon is in a martini.


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## Eamon Burke (Jan 22, 2012)

EdipisReks said:


> the last batch being just carrot baton nets with garlic, thyme and peppercorns.



I was literally just feeding those to my daughter. what a coincidence!


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## EdipisReks (Jan 22, 2012)

does that mean you'll pay me royalties?


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## Eamon Burke (Jan 22, 2012)

since nobody paid or got paid, probably not.


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## EdipisReks (Jan 22, 2012)




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## mr drinky (Jan 22, 2012)

BurkeCutlery said:


> Man, K, yours are way more interesting than mine!



No way man. That lime and quats look amazing. I did small batches this time to see what works and doesn't. I don't really have high hopes for the calamondin as it was from my own tree and who knows how that is going to turn out. It is my first year with a calamondin tree. 

I think it will be interesting to see how the blanching versus no blanching turns out. And for spices in one of mine I put cinnamon, a thai chile, bay leaf, and coriander.

k.


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## mr drinky (Jan 23, 2012)

Btw, I scratched the Indian Lime Pickles from the batting order because I had to get fresh curry leaves and asafetida and there are no Indian groceries in my area. 

I still owe pictures and the pickled cantaloupe recipe but I am traveling right now. Tuesday.

k.


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## Eamon Burke (Jan 23, 2012)

OK so my stuff didn't give up nearly enough juice, so I topped them off with juice and adjusted the seasoning.

Meyer Lemons got more lemon juice and salt.
Limes got more lime juice, salt, and the chile powder(since they were open already)
Quats got more salt, sugar, and topped with fresh Texas Ruby Red Grapefruit juice.
Results:





Where's everyone else's?? Let's see em!


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## mr drinky (Jan 23, 2012)

Did you consider just adding oil? That was what I was going to do. Though that David Lebovitz recipe I saw had this 'juice' reduction fix into it.

Moroccan Preserved Lemons

Scrub the lemons with a vegetable brush and dry them off.
Cut off the little rounded bit at the stem end if there&#8217;s a hard little piece of the stem attached. From the other end of the lemon, make a large cut by slicing lengthwise downward, stopping about 1-inch (3 cm) from the bottom, then making another downward slice, so you&#8217;ve incised the lemon with an X shape.
Pack coarse salt into the lemon where you made the incisions. Don&#8217;t be skimpy with the salt: use about 1 tablespoon per lemon.
Put the salt-filled lemons in a clean, large glass jar with a tight-fitting lid. Add a few coriander seeds, a bay leaf, a dried chili, and a cinnamon stick if you want. (Or a combination of any of them.)
Press the lemons very firmly in the jar to get the juices flowing. Cover and let stand overnight.
The next day do the same, pressing the lemons down, encouraging them to release more juice as they start to soften. Repeat for a 2-3 days until the lemons are completely covered with liquid. If your lemons aren&#8217;t too juicy, add more freshly-squeezed lemon juice until their submerged, as I generally have to do.
After one month, when the preserved lemons are soft, they&#8217;re ready to use. Store the lemons in the refrigerator, where they&#8217;ll keep for at least 6 months. Rinse before using to remove excess salt.
To use: Remove lemons from the liquid and rinse. Split in half and scrape out the pulp. Slice the lemon peels into thin strips or cut into small dices. You may wish to press the pulp through a sieve to obtain the flavorful juice, which can be used for flavoring as well, then discard the innards.

k.


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## Eamon Burke (Jan 23, 2012)

I don't want the flavor of the oils. I want the Limes to taste like salt lime chile, the lemons to be super concentrated salty lemons, and the quats to be sweet snacks.

I also topped off my cabbage today with water. The stuff was dry as the desert sand.


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## heirkb (Jan 24, 2012)

Do you guys know any good resources for info on pickling safety? I've always been wary of trying it, because of some of the potential dangers. Having my brain disintegrate doesn't sound all that appealing...


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## DeepCSweede (Jan 24, 2012)

I have been eating home made pickled / jarred foods most of my life and I don't think I have any drain bamage. :dazed::beatinghead:


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## DeepCSweede (Jan 24, 2012)

I would pick up a "Ball" Blue Book or a Kerr canning guide - they are updated every couple of years. Should be a fair amount of this info on the interweb also.


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## mr drinky (Jan 24, 2012)

jm2hill said:


> Care to post the cantaloupe one? I have one sitting in the fridge that I don't feel like eating!



I took a photo of the cantaloupe pickle from Chang's book. One thing I will say is that they taste best eaten within the first 4-8 hours. I left a small amount over night and they were too sweet -- though my one-year-old still loved them. 

Also, here is a picture of my test jars. 

k.


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## Eamon Burke (Jan 24, 2012)

Why is they upside down, sir?


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## WildBoar (Jan 24, 2012)

I don't see quantites for the brine ingredients in that recipe page. Is that info higher up on the page?

I'd like to give the melon pickling a try.


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## mr drinky (Jan 25, 2012)

BurkeCutlery said:


> Why is they upside down, sir?



No reason really. I thought it looked better. 

And here is the recipe with ingredients (duh). Thanks for catching that.

k.


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## WildBoar (Jan 25, 2012)

Thanks!


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## AnxiousCowboy (Jan 25, 2012)

Today I made a carrot pickle at work that I make periodically. I julienne carrot and radish and toss it with salt, minced shallot, mustard seeds, fresh bay leaves, and allspice. Mostly carrots and just a bit of the radish and shallot. lots of mustard seed though. I'm really digging fresh bay leaf too lately. Anyway, I just let it sit out at kitchen temp until after service and then top them with a straight white wine vinegar and granulated sugar pickle. Salting vegetables awhile before processing them further is a technique I'm becoming fond of. We also make a Rutabaga sauerkraut at work where we rate the rutabaga, salt it all day, then cook with onion, white wine, white wine vinegar, and caraway seeds slowly. Not a ferment pickle, but still nice. I have been wanting to make a fermented turnip sauerkraut, though.

The carrot/allspice pickle goes on a duck sandwich that is confit meat, duck liver pate, duck and ham terrine, red white shallots, and frisee on baguette--a take on the bahn mi--_'m hungry now. _eat me.


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## Ontravelling (Jan 27, 2012)

Ok, I got some stuff done today. First up was pickled brussels, pretty straightforward pickle with apple cider vin, garlic and chile flakes...i used the chile flakes in all of these. Then I tried some pickled carrots, inspired by some that I had at Tartine Bakery on a trip to San Francisco last year. F'n amazing! I'm hoping these will even be half that good. Also did some limes with garlic and some campari tomatoes I had sitting around. Good times. Please excuse the poor photography.


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## mr drinky (Jan 27, 2012)

Very nice. I love my pickles with spice or chili in them. Sometimes I like doing a curry pickled asparagus. I'm interested how the tomatoes turn out. That hadn't occurred to me before. I thought they would just become a mushy ball. 

k.


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## Eamon Burke (Jan 27, 2012)

Nice variety!


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## apicius9 (Jan 30, 2015)

O.k., resurrecting yet another old one. My preserved Meyer lemons are coming along nicely after a month. So, what do I do with them now? Any good tips, recipes etc? I keep seeing the braied chicken with olives dish, that is on the list, bit I am sure there is plenty more that I would not think of...

Stefan


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## Scrap (Mar 15, 2015)

My pickling recently has been restricted mostly to a constant stream of kimchi, though I've managed to get my hands on Japanese pickling bran that will hopefully be finding use before long.


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## aboynamedsuita (Mar 17, 2015)

Scrap said:


> My pickling recently has been restricted mostly to a constant stream of kimchi...



Similar story here except its just plain sauerkraut. The current availability of organic cabbage and lower temperatures make it a no brainer to stock up now while you can. It's live culture fermentation unlike most of the junk sold in stores. Some caraway seeds and juniper berries add a nice touch to the subtle taste of the cabbage.


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## Bonertyme (Apr 8, 2015)

how long does the smell last in your place?


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## aboynamedsuita (Apr 8, 2015)

Bonertyme said:


> how long does the smell last in your place?



I have a fermenting crock with water lock sealing lid, so i don't really notice unless i open it. I only really have "the smell" for a few days once it gets going (I usually let it go 2+ weeks total).


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