Here is a quick way to get pickled vegetables for free!
The next time that you finish off a jar of pickles, save the jar and the brine. You can use it to make your own pickled vegetables! Just add sliced vegetables to the jar, making sure that the brine covers the vegetables. Replace the cap and return the jar to the refrigerator.
You can do this with soft or hard vegetables. Soft vegetables, such as onions, peppers, cabbage, etc., will take only two days to brine. Harder vegetables, such as carrots, cauliflower and radishes will take longer, about five days, before they are ready to eat. They will last in your refrigerator for about a month.
Isn’t this a cool way to recycle and get some free pickled vegetables? It is so fast, too.
In Pennsylvania, Lancaster County, pickled veggies are a big thing. Known as Chow Chow, it is a speciality of the Amish, and all of the tourist love to snap up the jars left and right. It is served with practically every meal because it is economical, tasty and can be canned for stockpiling and to take advantage of summer produce. If you want to make your own instant version of chow chow, you’ll want to choose the following vegetables to add to your pickle jar brine.
To your brine, add green beans, cauliflower, lima beans, corn, onions, bell peppers, and green tomatoes. You’ll want to cook the vegetables first by boiling before adding them to the pickle jar. This will make them soft, and they will be ready in just two days.
Otherwise, you can make your own brine by heating vinegar in a saucepan until it boils, and then stirring in some sugar, salt, celery seed, mustard seed, ground mustard, and ground turmeric. Enjoy!
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