Another day, another pickled berry in keeping with the recent 4th of July theme. Pros and cons of this recipe: pro is that they taste awesome – definitely the right combo of white balsamic, basil and strawberries. Con is the texture is a little weird…still firm-ish on the outside but too mushy on the inside. Next time I will be trying with green strawberries (anyone seen these at farmers markets?) as they’re firmer and more prone to being pickled.
A ton of room for variation on these – for example, you could try with white wine, red wine OR dark balsamic or vinegar – I think all could be good. Another herb option could be rosemary (I saw a few recipes, like this one, calling for such a sprig) but I thought the strawberry, white balsamic and basil combo seemed like a natural fit.
Pickled Strawberry Recipe
Makes 2 quarts
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 1/2 cups white balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup kosher salt
- 1 tsp black peppercorns per pint (optional)
- a few sprigs basil (or other fresh herb)
- 2 lbs. strawberries (or 2 of the 16 oz. containers standard at grocery stores)
Instructions:
- Bring the water, vinegar, sugar and salt to a boil until salt and sugar are fully dissolved. Set aside to cool.
- Rinse and drain strawberries. Pick out any particularly mushy-looking ones and remove deteriorating leaves.
- Add basil and peppercorns to jars as desired. I added a few sprigs of basil to each jar, and 1 tsp black peppercorns to one of the pint jars.
- Add strawberries to jars. Don’t be afraid to stuff them in – they’re resilient!
- Cover jars with cooled brine.
- Recommended use: refrigerate jars; these are great chilled. Should be ready within a day or two.
Thank you for the recipe. How long can you keep the strawberries once pickled?