5 Links to Read Before Pickling

Each week, we’ll be sharing a comprehensive list of links to help you master something new in the kitchen. Culinary greatness, here you come.

Today: Your guide to pickle perfection. 

It's hard to mention pickles these days without an eye roll from someone lamenting their trendiness and their consequently high price tags. Remember when pickles were just something you grabbed out of the fridge and happily crunched on as a kid? Let's bring pickles back (not to be confused with picklebacks) to a time when they were simple and made in your own kitchen. These links will show you how.

• A pickling primer to get you started. (The Kitchn.)

• Prepare for pickling season by stocking up on essential tools and ingredients. (Serious Eats.)

• Three secrets to crispy pickles -- because, in the words of Marisa McClellan, "nobody wants a soft pickle." (NPR.)

• The next time you try quick pickling, avoid these common mistakes. (Bon Appétit.)

• Waste not, want not: Here are 6 uses for leftover pickle brine. (Food52.)

Pickle pros -- what are your pickling secrets? Share them with us in the comments!