Pickling & Fermentation
Add some zip to your meals with pickled foods! Pickling combines spices, sugar and vinegar with fruits and vegetables to create a unique sweet-sour flavor yet retain a crisp, firm texture. Firming agents are optional.
Choosing Vinegar
Always read the label to be sure you use vinegar with 5% acidity. There are many that are not at the 5% level.
- Advice from the National Center for Home Food Preservation - University of Georgia
Brined or Fermented Pickles - This curing process involves soaking the food in a brine for several weeks. Curing changes the color, flavor, and texture of the food. Fermentation produces lactic acid to help preserve the food. Some foods are brined, but not cured. These will have vinegar added to them for preservation.
Fresh Pack or Quick Process Pickles - This method involves a boiling hot pickling mixture of vinegar, spices, and seasonings. The food may be brined prior to adding the pickling liquid. The end result is an easy to prepare pickle with a tart flavor. Allow them to stand several weeks after heat processing to improve the flavor.
Fruit Pickles - Whole or sliced fruits are simmered in a spicy, sweet-sour syrup made with vinegar or lemon juice prior to canning.
Relishes - Chopped fruits and vegetables are cooked in a spicy vinegar solution to the desired consistency prior to canning.
Pickling Cucumbers
- Preserving Cucumbers - Kansas State University
- Conservas Frescas, Conservas Seguras, Pepinos - Kansas State University
- Pickled Products - University of Georgia
- Homemade Pickles and Relishes - University of Wisconsin
Pickling Other Foods
- Preserving Peppers - Kansas State University
- Conservas Frescas, Conservas Seguras, Los Chiles - Kansas State University
- Making Pickled Peppers - Colorado State University
- Pickling Vegetables - Pacific Northwest Extension
- Pickling Fish and Other Aquatic Foods - Pacific Northwest Extension
- Peppers: Safe Methods to Store, Preserve, and Enjoy - University of California-Davis
- Pickled Asparagus - University of Georgia
- Chutneys - University of Georgia
- Pickled Eggs - University of Georgia
- Fruit Pickles - University of Georgia
- Pickled Horseradish Sauce - University of Georgia
- Preserving Horseradish - Oregon State University
Fermented Foods
- Taking a New Look at Fermented Foods - Kansas State University
- Understanding and Making Kimchi - Colorado State University
- Understanding and Making Kombucha - Colorado State University
- Dill Pickles - University of Georgia
- Sauerkraut - University of Georgia
- Suitable Containers, Covers and Weights for Fermenting Foods - University of Georgia
