FIJ Mastery Challenge: Quick Pickles
Quick Pickled Mandarin Sections
related: Mandarin Shrub, Salted Whole Mandarins, Dried Mandarin Peel, Mandarin Peel/Vodka Infusion, Frozen Mandarin Sections
in part for the Food In Jars food preservation challenge: April Quick Pickles
I wasn't sure what to make for this one. If I'm going to make something I can can, I usually can it. But okay, I don't have to go through the canning process. I'll just make a small batch and fridge it. Wait, am I capable of making a small batch of anything? The recent 18 jars of fermented mustard and 23 jars of pomegranate jelly suggest not. But then I only made three jars of pickled mushrooms. That no one is eating. Hm.
What to make? What to make? Pickled eggs & sausage? I've read five different recipes so far just for the sausage. I'm intrigued. Maybe another time. Maybe the eggs. Beet & turmeric eggs are so colorful! Didn't get them done in time for Easter. Maybe next year. Oo - oranges? grapes? I can do those without any special trips for anything! Maybe a bit of each?
Due to a variety of medical issues, weather related postponements and cancellations of events, and such constantly changing the household schedules, I settled upon Pickled Mandarin sections. It was easy to put "bag of mandarins" on the grocery list for someone else doing the shopping, and not worry about getting the best-looking produce or the right variety of whatever else.
I figured since the pickled blueberries have gone over well, that suggests good things for pickled mandarins.
I referred to the pickled orange recipes in both Linda Ziedrich's "The Joy of Pickling" and "Perfect Preserves" by Hilaire Walden. I also knew that because I was quick-pickling, I didn't have to worry too much about ratios or ingredients like I do with water-bath or pressure canning.
I started out with one whole bag of "cuties", plus a few leftover mandarins and a Cara Cara orange from last week's shopping, and a few more mandarins leftover from a staff meeting.
I saved a handful to have fresh fruit at work, plus three more for salting.
I learned a new-to-me way to peel citrus.
*so* much easier than using my hands! Especially for a bag and a half of the little buggers!
I also saved out a few mandarins and our one leftover Cara Cara orange to freeze for smoothies.
The mandarin sections had to simmer a while in water, and then again in the sugar/vinegar brine. I had a ton of peels left. Didn't want them to go to waste, so I dried most of them.
And put slivers of a few more into a small jar of vodka to pull out the citrus oil. After it's sat a few weeks, I'll put it in a nice bottle and give it to my MIL as bath oil.
Finally - the pickled mandarin sections! I used cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, whole cardamom seeds, and pieces of dried ginger as well as the sugar and white vinegar. I think next time I might try some 5-spice or allspice, maybe coriander, just to see what happens.
Even using a whole bag, it didn't come out to nearly as much pickled fruit as the recipes assumed, as they both called for full-sized oranges. I'd started to adjust the amount of brine to be more appropriate for the amount of fruit I had, but then it hit me: THE BRINE IS A SHRUB! We love us some ginger blueberry shrub, so I made sure to make the full-recipe of brine for the mandarins.
I was kind of disappointed by how little pickled fruit there was at the end - only four 4-oz jars, and that was with a relatively generous amount of brine in each. On the other hand, this is a quick pickle and not shelf-stable, so it's just as well. Plus, hey, a couple of larger jars of spiced mandarin shrub.
I've been working harder on the no-waste approach, using up everything I can of my ingredients. I only threw out the hard stem end and most of the pith (and even those went into the compost bin).
We're definitely more open to pickled fruit now, between the blueberries and mandarins. Maybe cranberries next?
As for quick pickling? I get why you would do it. You don't have to deal with the giant canning pot or making sure your sugar/vinegar/everything else ratios are precise - quick pickling lets you play around more. But honestly, I'd just as soon have shelf-stable jars for keeping and for sharing, and not clog up the fridge. Next time I make these - and there will be a next time - I'll stick with water-bath canning.
Check out the Food In Jars tag for the other 11 months of the FIJ Mastery Challenge 2017.
related: Mandarin Shrub, Salted Whole Mandarins, Dried Mandarin Peel, Mandarin Peel/Vodka Infusion, Frozen Mandarin Sections
in part for the Food In Jars food preservation challenge: April Quick Pickles
I wasn't sure what to make for this one. If I'm going to make something I can can, I usually can it. But okay, I don't have to go through the canning process. I'll just make a small batch and fridge it. Wait, am I capable of making a small batch of anything? The recent 18 jars of fermented mustard and 23 jars of pomegranate jelly suggest not. But then I only made three jars of pickled mushrooms. That no one is eating. Hm.
What to make? What to make? Pickled eggs & sausage? I've read five different recipes so far just for the sausage. I'm intrigued. Maybe another time. Maybe the eggs. Beet & turmeric eggs are so colorful! Didn't get them done in time for Easter. Maybe next year. Oo - oranges? grapes? I can do those without any special trips for anything! Maybe a bit of each?
Due to a variety of medical issues, weather related postponements and cancellations of events, and such constantly changing the household schedules, I settled upon Pickled Mandarin sections. It was easy to put "bag of mandarins" on the grocery list for someone else doing the shopping, and not worry about getting the best-looking produce or the right variety of whatever else.
I figured since the pickled blueberries have gone over well, that suggests good things for pickled mandarins.
I referred to the pickled orange recipes in both Linda Ziedrich's "The Joy of Pickling" and "Perfect Preserves" by Hilaire Walden. I also knew that because I was quick-pickling, I didn't have to worry too much about ratios or ingredients like I do with water-bath or pressure canning.
I started out with one whole bag of "cuties", plus a few leftover mandarins and a Cara Cara orange from last week's shopping, and a few more mandarins leftover from a staff meeting.
I saved a handful to have fresh fruit at work, plus three more for salting.
I learned a new-to-me way to peel citrus.
*so* much easier than using my hands! Especially for a bag and a half of the little buggers!
I also saved out a few mandarins and our one leftover Cara Cara orange to freeze for smoothies.
The mandarin sections had to simmer a while in water, and then again in the sugar/vinegar brine. I had a ton of peels left. Didn't want them to go to waste, so I dried most of them.
And put slivers of a few more into a small jar of vodka to pull out the citrus oil. After it's sat a few weeks, I'll put it in a nice bottle and give it to my MIL as bath oil.
Finally - the pickled mandarin sections! I used cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, whole cardamom seeds, and pieces of dried ginger as well as the sugar and white vinegar. I think next time I might try some 5-spice or allspice, maybe coriander, just to see what happens.
Even using a whole bag, it didn't come out to nearly as much pickled fruit as the recipes assumed, as they both called for full-sized oranges. I'd started to adjust the amount of brine to be more appropriate for the amount of fruit I had, but then it hit me: THE BRINE IS A SHRUB! We love us some ginger blueberry shrub, so I made sure to make the full-recipe of brine for the mandarins.
I was kind of disappointed by how little pickled fruit there was at the end - only four 4-oz jars, and that was with a relatively generous amount of brine in each. On the other hand, this is a quick pickle and not shelf-stable, so it's just as well. Plus, hey, a couple of larger jars of spiced mandarin shrub.
I've been working harder on the no-waste approach, using up everything I can of my ingredients. I only threw out the hard stem end and most of the pith (and even those went into the compost bin).
We're definitely more open to pickled fruit now, between the blueberries and mandarins. Maybe cranberries next?
As for quick pickling? I get why you would do it. You don't have to deal with the giant canning pot or making sure your sugar/vinegar/everything else ratios are precise - quick pickling lets you play around more. But honestly, I'd just as soon have shelf-stable jars for keeping and for sharing, and not clog up the fridge. Next time I make these - and there will be a next time - I'll stick with water-bath canning.
Check out the Food In Jars tag for the other 11 months of the FIJ Mastery Challenge 2017.