Best cukes for pickles?

I'm making quick sake pickles (sake, seasoned rice vinegar, red Fresno chile, grated ginger and sesame seeds). In a test batch I used mini seedless cukes, but they got way too soft. Suggestions? Pickling cukes vs. English hothouse cukes?

JulieS
  • Posted by: JulieS
  • June 11, 2015
  • 1805 views
  • 5 Comments

5 Comments

Horto
Horto June 13, 2015
Chef June,
Tell me about the cornichons
Can't seem to find how to make that pickle
Or which cukes to use
I have planted Persian cukes year
Did u process in boiling wTer bath?
 
JulieS
JulieS June 12, 2015
My mother always gets Kirby's in NY, but I can't find them here in the suburbs in MA. Whole Foods has hothouse English cukes and sometimes pickling cukes - which don't really look like Kirby's.
 

Voted the Best Reply!

cookbookchick
cookbookchick June 11, 2015
Kirby cucumbers are best for pickling, in my opinion. They are the variety commonly used for the typical dill pickle. They're often found fresh in summertime. I see them occasionally at supermarkets, but make sure you by very firm, unblemished Kirbys and pickle them soon after purchase. I have found that they don't keep well.
 
cookbookchick
cookbookchick June 11, 2015
I like them best for salads, too -- they're very crisp and tasty.
 
ChefJune
ChefJune June 12, 2015
Kirby cukes are the best that are widely available. I amde some cornichons from tiny Persian cukes last summer, but I wouldn't have known of them or how to source them except for the farmer at the Greenmarket who grows them.
 
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