From our Camp Kitchen:

Bread and Butter Quick Pickles

By Chef Jason

Hello everyone!

The following recipe is for the Bread and Butter Quick Pickles that were demonstrated in a video on our Facebook page featuring yours truly!

My recipe makes quite a bit of pickles so you can feel free to halve the recipe if needed… but if you’re a fan of Bread and Butter Pickles and have the storage space, go for the whole thing! And remember, these are not intended to be jarred in the traditional sense, in a mason jar, and stored on a shelf. These are meant to be stored in the fridge and enjoyed!

 

Bread and Butter Quick Pickles

Ingredients:

4 large cucumbers, sliced in ½ moons as demonstrated in the video

½ of a large white (or yellow) onion, sliced

3 tablespoons kosher salt

4 cups apple cider vinegar

½ cup water

4 Cups granulated sugar

4 cloves garlic, sliced or chopped garlic

2 tablespoons mustard seed

2 teaspoon celery seed

2 teaspoon black peppercorns

1 teaspoon turmeric

 

Directions:

Combine sliced cucumbers and onions in a colander. Sprinkle the kosher salt over the cucumbers and onions and toss gently. Cover the colander with plastic wrap, place the it on a tray big enough to hold the colander and also deep enough to collect a small amount of liquid. Place this into a refrigerator and let sit for 2 hours. This part of the process helps extract some of the natural water from the cucumbers and onions, allowing more if the pickling brine and flavors to be absorbed.

After the cucumbers and onions sit for the designated amount of time, carefully remove the tray and colander from the refrigerator. There will be liquid in the tray so use a steady hand! Discard the liquid.

Combine the apple cider vinegar and water into a NON-REACTIVE pot large enough to hold the liquid, the seasonings and the cucumbers. For the full-size recipe something like a 6-quart pot should do. Turn on high and bring to a boil.

(Chef’s note: A “non-reactive” pot would be one made from a metal that would not react to foods being cooked in them. Highly acidic and highly alkaline foods can react poorly to certain metals. Some food products can pick up a “metallic” taste from the metal. The metallic taste is actually micro particles of the metal that get dissolved enter the food!! Yuck!! The best way to go is good old Stainless Steel or enamel coated. Aluminum is among the worst and studies show it’s not great for your body, especially your brain! Copper, Steel and Iron all fall into the “Reactive” category too.)

While the liquid is heating up, combine the rest of the ingredients in a bowl and toss together well then add to the liquid in the pot.

Once the mixture comes to a boil add in the cucumber and onions. Stir occasionally and gently.

Bring the mixture back to a boil and turn off the heat. Remove from the heat and cover the pot for about 3 minutes.

Remove the cover and let the mixture cool for about 20 minutes so it’s not scalding hot. Once they are a bit cooler, transfer the pickles, liquid and all, into a container that can be sealed air tight (or multiple smaller containers). I do not recommend glass containers because glass can shatter in the next step. A BPA Free plastic container with a tight locking lid would be ideal… and BE CAREFUL… the liquid may still be pretty hot.

Place the container(s) in an ice water bath (a pan/pot/bucket deep enough to hold ice water and the containers with the pickles, filled so the ice water is just below the rim of the pickle container(s)). Stir occasionally and gently and allow the pickles to continue to cool this way until they are about room temperature. Cover the container(s) and place them in the fridge where they can be stored for up to 2 weeks.

There we have it! A simple Bread and Butter Quick Pickle recipe!

Enjoy!

Chef Jason

@summercampchef on IG