Here is an old-school recipe from my retired blog for pickles that are ready in less than 10 minutes. http://fivefingerfeast.wordpress.com/2008/02/01/26/
if you're looking to pick up cookbooks with recipes for pickling, the mennonite community cookbook has many tried and true recipes. of the more modern books, i really like preserving the harvest.
I had never made pickles until I realized how easy it was... here's the recipe I use, based on a recipe from my farm share.
Ingredients: (all ingredients are to taste)
2-3 good sized cukes
several cloves of garlic
fistful of fresh dill
2 cups water
1 cup white vinegar
3 TBS salt
Chunky-slice the garlic cloves, and cut the dill a few times. Combine the vinegar, water, salt, garlic and dill.
Slice cucumbers in your preferred format (I do spears). Pack as much as you can into a quart Ball jar, pouring the brine in after the cucumbers. Let it sit in the fridge for 3-4 days before eating; keeps for at least a couple weeks (if they last that long). I make batches of these consistently in the summer and bring them to bbqs at friends' houses. People are impressed and then I tell them how easy it is.
There is a dish in the gulf coast "West Indies Salad".
http://www.food.com/recipe/mr-bayleys-west-indies-salad-30415
I make that with english cucumber as an addition. (and omit or lesson the onion, unless it's summer and sweet onions are in season).
http://www.food.com/recipe/mr-bayleys-west-indies-salad-30415
Very similar to a Japaneese sunomono salad. Which goes to show how food travels across the world--as the dish in the gulf coast appeared in the late 40's..most likely from servicemen stationed in occupied japan.
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Ingredients: (all ingredients are to taste)
2-3 good sized cukes
several cloves of garlic
fistful of fresh dill
2 cups water
1 cup white vinegar
3 TBS salt
Chunky-slice the garlic cloves, and cut the dill a few times. Combine the vinegar, water, salt, garlic and dill.
Slice cucumbers in your preferred format (I do spears). Pack as much as you can into a quart Ball jar, pouring the brine in after the cucumbers. Let it sit in the fridge for 3-4 days before eating; keeps for at least a couple weeks (if they last that long). I make batches of these consistently in the summer and bring them to bbqs at friends' houses. People are impressed and then I tell them how easy it is.
http://www.food.com/recipe/mr-bayleys-west-indies-salad-30415
I make that with english cucumber as an addition. (and omit or lesson the onion, unless it's summer and sweet onions are in season).
http://www.food.com/recipe/mr-bayleys-west-indies-salad-30415
Very similar to a Japaneese sunomono salad. Which goes to show how food travels across the world--as the dish in the gulf coast appeared in the late 40's..most likely from servicemen stationed in occupied japan.