8.17.09 Killer Pickled Okra
My friend Carolyn’s old girlfriend Mimi, a Jew from Texas, first turned me on to pickled okra with this very brand. After encountering a beautiful crop at Juno's Farm in the Union Square farmers' market, I was inspired to replicate them. I wish I could say I grew my own but the truth is that one lone okra plant is all that survived this year's torrents. It did produce some gorgeous creamy flowers and a few long, elegant pods but not enough to put up.
These pickles are crunchy and spicy, without any of the sliminess that people often associate with okra. They make a delicious nosh and, like most pickles, are very low in calories. Pickles are great to serve with fatty foods, as the acid helps to cut through the grease and really aids digestion. Raw-fermented pickles (also known as lacto-fermented) are actually the most healthful, as they build up the good bacteria that gets lost through pasteurization, but these have their charms.
Pickled Okra
Makes 4 pints
Please read carefully and follow the instructions for water-bath canning
http://www.freshpreserving.com/
Please read carefully and follow the instructions for water-bath canning
http://www.freshpreserving.com/
- — 2 cups organic apple cider vinegar
- — 1/4 cup kosher salt
- — 1 teaspoon whole peppercorns
- — 2 teaspoons dill seeds
- — 4 cloves garlic, peeled and left whole
- — 2 teaspoons mustard seeds
- — 4 small dried chiles (I like chile de arbol)
- — 2 pounds young, small-to-medium okra pods
- — 2 cups water
Wash the okra and trim the stems to ½”.
Place 1 chile, ½ teaspoon mustard seeds, ½ teaspoon dill seeds, 1 clove of garlic and ¼ teaspoon peppercorns in the bottom of each of 4 sterilized pint canning jars. Divide the okra evenly among the 4 jars, standing them up vertically, alternating stems up and down.
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, bring the salt, vinegar and water to a boil. Once boiling, pour this mixture over the okra in the jars, leaving space between the top of the liquid and the lid. Seal the lids. Follow canning instructions (see link above).
Let these sit for a couple of weeks before you break them out. I like them cold, so refrigerate first if you do, too.
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