I’m clearly scrambling for pickling ideas here but this last-minute pickled rutabaga recipe was a pleasant surprise. Not sure how necessary the salting prep work is for making these (recommended here) but they definitely resulted in a pleasingly crunchy pickle so probably worth the extra time. Reminiscent of pickled turnips, you could go in a lot of different directions with the spices as the rutabagas and relatively mild and conducive to many flavor combos. Personally I will be trying a more garlicky version next time around but these packed their own delicious punch with honey and lemon in the brine, and the mustard flavor from the seeds really seemed to shine more than usual.
One more pickle to go for the year…happy holidays and tune in next week for the final (and hopefully interesting slash surprising) pickle on my list!
Pickled Rutabaga Recipe
Makes 3 pints
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 1 tbs kosher salt
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp cayenne
- 1 1/2 tsp cumin seeds (1/2 tsp per pint)
- 1 1/2 tsp mustard seeds (1/2 tsp per pint)
- 3 to 4 rutabagas (about 3 lbs)
- Water (about 4 cups) and 1/4 cup kosher salt
- Peel rutabagas and cut into slices, then matchsticks. Basically, make them look like french fries.
- Add rutabaga pieces to a bowl and add 1/4 cup salt and enough water to submerge all pieces (about 4 cups).
- Let sit for at least 2 hours.
- While rutabaga pieces are soaking, bring water, vinegar, honey, lemon juice, salt, paprika and cayenne to a boil until salt is fully dissolved. Add cumin and mustard seeds to jars (1/2 tsp per pint).
- After a few hours, drain rutabaga and add to jars.
- Once jars are filled, give the brine a final stir (the paprika and cayenne might have separated slightly).
- Cover contents of jars with brine. Add lids and give a shake to distribute spices.
- Recommended use: Because these maintain such a crunch, I will definitely be using them in salads. I would also consider prepping the pieces as thin discs next time for sandwich additions.
