Week 8: Spicy Pickled Broccoli & Dill Pickled Broccoli

Pickled Broccoli Recipe

Makes 5 pints

Ingredients:

• 4 cups water
• 4 cups white vinegar
• 1/4 cup pickling salt
• 10 garlic cloves
• 3 tbsp red pepper flakes (for 2-3 jars of the spicy version)
• Fresh dill and/OR
• ~6 pepper(s) of choice*
• 4 stalks of broccoli (or about 2 lbs. if that’s your measurement jam)

*I used Anaheim (mild) but this is the best guide to different kinds of peppers I’ve found so go wild

Instructions:

• Bring the water, vinegar and salt to a boil until salt is fully dissolved. Rather than let this cool as usual, I actually poured hot brine over the broccoli (final step – don’t do this now) to cook it a bit.
• Fill each jar with 1 garlic clove halved length-wise.

• Fill jars with whatever mixture of dill, red pepper and fresh peppers your heart desires. This was the breakdown I did:
  • 2 sprigs of dill each in 2 pint jars
  • 1 tbsp red pepper and 1 pepper in different pint jar; 2 tbsp red pepper and 2 peppers in quart jar

• Cut up broccoli into small florets; at this point you could blanche for a slightly softer texture…or do the hot brine trick above.
• Fill jars with broccoli florets. Save those stumps for something else if you’re thrifty like that.

• After jars are packed with produce, add another halved garlic clove to each. Then top with whatever mixture of other add-ons that you want. I did the same as above:
  • 2 sprigs of dill each in 2 pint jars
  • 1 tbsp red pepper and 1 pepper in different pint jar; 2 tbsp red pepper and 2 peppers in quart jar

• Top each mixture with the brine and let cool. Refrigerate after opening.

• Recommended use: I would give these a few days since broccoli is tough and could use a little saturation from the brine and add-ons.