Sara Sarver

I love pickles.  Sweet.  Garlicky.  Spicy.  Dill.  You name it, I probably like it.  And, contrary to popular belief, pickles are not limited only to cucumbers.  No, there’s lots of veggies (and even fruits, as I’ve come to learn living in Asia… though I’ve not yet ventured into eating them) that can be subjected to this form of processing and come out quite delicious in the end.  Ever had Italian Giardiniera?  If not, you must go buy some right now.  Seriously.

The trouble is, pickles (in their cucumber form) are quite difficult to find around here.  Sure, you can buy small jars of dill spears, sweet-spiced midgees, or even relish in Bangkok… but not in Lopburi or anywhere else nearby.  This has lead me to my newest adventure in my sad little “kitchen” – making my own pickles!  After all, cucumbers are used a lot in Thai food; if not in the dish, at least served on the side.  They’re cheap, easy to find, and can be brought home after a short 20 minute walk to-and-from the local market.  I mean, come on – I got a bag of 12 small to medium cukes, 7 plum tomatoes for supper, and a giant carrot (also for pickling) for about $1.10US.  I would be nuts not to be making my own preserved veggies.

So, here’s my cucumber pickles.  They’re dill, but with an extra little kick.  Instead of doing a straight dill recipe (containing only onion, garlic, peppercorns, and mustard seed as the seasoning), I chose to use about a teaspoon of this pre-assembled pickling spice that my mom mailed to me last week.  It’s got a unique mix of flavors that I hope will make these tasty delights all the better.  Of course, I put in some minced onion and garlic, with a pinch of dried dill, too.  After all, I did say these were dill pickles.

.

Originally, I was just going to dice up my giant carrot and throw it right in with the cucumbers, but I guess I picked just the right number of cukes to fit in my jar.  Thus, the carrots were cut into sticks and placed in an old (now very clean) salsa jar.  Again, the amount of sticks fit just right.  I just used the leftover brine to fill this jar up, and added a pinch of dried chili flakes to give the carrots some kick.  Oh, how wonderful everything smelled!

Now, the absolute worst part of this entire project is that fact that now I have to wait.  I don’t like waiting.  Especially when it comes to my food.  Seeing as I am utterly void of will power, I have already snuk a few tastes of my dear little pickled veggies… and they already taste good.  If it’s true that they won’t get their full flavor until they’ve mulled for a few days, then boy am I in for a treat!

Here they are, in all their glory.  Let’s just hope I don’t eat every last one of them before they’re actually ready!

.

.

.

.

.

.