how to pickle your own veggies

[kyst]

via~foodmattersnow

RACHEL MORROW~

A great way to use up veggie's that are hanging out in the bottom draws of your fridge! 

The idea of pickling is to create an environment in which vegetables can be preserved and saved from decaying. This can usually be done with a combination of salt, acid and fermentation with bacteria. The benefits of pickling in a traditional way is that lactic acid fermentation is allowed to happen. 

Traditional pickling methods have been an essential part of healthy human diets for thousands of years. Commercial products can be questionable about the methods used as to whether they still offer any nutritional benefits. 

Vitamins, minerals and the fiber content of vegetables are still retained when pickling. 

INGREDIENTS

• any vegetables you like (we used cucumbers, cauliflower, onion and radishes)
• fresh or dried spices (we used peppercorns, cumin, coriander, mustard seeds, & caraway)
• 1 cup any kind of vinegar (I used white wine vinegar)
• 1 cup filtered water
• 1 tablespoon kosher or any non-iodized salt
• optional: 1 teaspoon sugar

WHAT TO DO 

1. Wash and cut up your vegetables and pack them into a clean jar.
2. Add between ¼ - ½ teaspoon of whole dried spices.
3. Combine vinegar, filtered water and salt in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil.
4. Put your just boiled brine over the vegetables in the jar and put on the lid.
5. Hide the jar in the back of the fridge for at least a week. Two weeks is better, three is best.
6. Keep them in the fridge for up to 6 months.