pickle bucket!!

crying at the farmers market and abbondanza baby

It’s officially spring!!!!! We did it!!! I could cry, and honestly, I probably will at some point. But not right now! Right now, I am too busy frolicking in the sun. I am too busy smiling at strangers on the street and eating really good strawberries. I love spring. I love the flowers blooming across the city and the birds that are outside my window every morning. Once I’ve had a taste of it, I just need more. But we know this. 

My struggles with self-control are well documented in the public forum. In this essay I wrote a few years ago, I said, “I’ve always been bad at moderation. I eat too much and I drink too much because I want to be so full of every good thing.” Outside of the drinking (going on three months no booze!), not much has changed. I just want to be full of the good stuff. 

On ATK, one of the producers yelled at me (kindly) for cooking too much food. “You only need to make three servings! You’re stressing yourself out. Just make less!” I wish I knew how!! I yelled (kindly) back. Even when cooking for one (hello chicken for one-ish), I do a little too much. My philosophy is if you’re already making something good, why not just make more of it?

That’s where this recipe comes in. (Plus a little video right here for all my visual learners!)

This is a recipe for when you want all of the good stuff and you don’t want to wait. It’s for when you go to the farmers market for the first time this season and the sun is on your face and there’s a hot guy selling lettuces and you can smell jasmine in the air and every time you see a new kind of radish you can’t help but yell ‘Oh my god!’ 

It’s for when you can’t decide between verdant little peas and big fat asparagus and the cutest carrots you’ve ever seen. Get them all! 

Pickling is a technique for preserving peak produce so that you can have it when it’s out of season. That’s not what we’re doing. We’re taking peak produce and making it even better to eat right now. All at once. More!!!! As Elle Simone might say, abbondanza baby! 

Here’s a playlist to listen to while you make your pickles, and here are some notes to set you up for success. 

the vessel: 

I used a 4-quart cambro. You don’t need to use that! Use a big tupperware or a few smaller ones that get you close. If you don’t have something that big, cut the recipe down and make less?? 

I don’t put a weight or anything on top of the vegetables to hold them down below the brine because I’m in and out of that bucket so frequently that the mess doesn’t feel worth it. If you’re a Proper Pickler, go for it. 

Speaking of Proper Pickling, this recipe is not that. We’re not boiling or sealing jars or waiting very long at all. They’ll still last you a couple of weeks in the refrigerator (if they make it that long), but this is more like Advanced Quick Pickling than anything else.  

brine: 

This brine is 1 to 1 water to vinegar and 1 part each of salt and sugar to 32 parts liquid. I’m terrible at math, and that feels very confusing, but basically, that means for every eight cups of liquid, you need a quarter cup each of sugar and salt. So, if you cut it in half and do four cups of liquid instead of eight, do two tablespoons of each (two tablespoons is an eighth of a cup). Just google it! 

seasonings: 

This recipe uses coriander seeds, caraway seeds, and whole black peppercorns. You toast them until they start to pop, and then they steep in boiling water before going into the bucket. If you prefer mustard seeds to coriander, switch it out. If you like both, use both! Add some dried chilis. It's up to you! But! I would advise you to definitely one hundred percent absolutely eat whatever is in there. Pickling softens the seeds, and I LOVE crunching into a peppercorn or coriander seed. You’ll see! 

Also, obviously, I’m an SFD (slut for dill), so there’s dill in here. Use it. Omit it. Add fresh oregano or mint or basil or markut lime leaves instead—whatever makes you happy. 

Finally! I think of the garlic, shallots, and fresno peppers in here as a seasoning, in addition to things to eat once they’re pickled. If you don’t love garlic, skip it. But if you like garlic, you’re really in for a treat. (Also, the garlic might turn blue. That’s good and cool and normal!) You can use red onions instead of shallots or serranos or jalapenos instead of fresnos, or, again, leave it out. Choose your own flavor journey! 

vegetables: 

This recipe uses some of my favorite vegetables. You might have different ones. That’s ok! If you don’t love radishes, you can double the amount of carrots. If you can’t find baby carrots, just slice big ones smaller! Don’t want bell pepper? Throw in cauliflower. Definitely add whole cherry tomatoes (just poke a little hole in them if you do). 

The important part is that they’re roughly the same thickness—don’t worry too much about the length. Once again, have fun! Slice asparagus on a big dramatic bias. If some of the carrots are really tiny, don’t cut them in half. It doesn’t need to be totally uniform, just get close. 

Alright, enough tips! Here you go!!!!!

pickle bucket: ingredients

• 1 bunch asparagus, halved, woody stalks removed

• 1 bunch baby carrots (NOT the “baby-cut” carrots, but tiny-looking normal carrots!), halved, greens removed

• 1 bunch radishes, halved, greens removed (save the carrot and radish greens if you want and throw them in a salad!)

• 2 bell peppers, sliced, seeds and ribs removed

• 4 persian cucumbers, quartered 

• 2 watermelon radishes, peeled and quartered

• 10 large cloves of garlic, smashed and peeled 

• 3 fresno peppers, stemmed and quartered (you can remove the seeds and ribs if you want less spice) 

• 3 shallots, peeled and quartered

• 1 bunch dill

• 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns 

• 1 tablespoon dried caraway seeds 

• 1 tablespoon dried coriander seeds

• 4 cups water

• 4 cups white distilled vinegar

• ¼ cup kosher salt (I use Diamon Crystal—other kosher salts have different saltiness levels. Here’s a good conversion chart if you need it)

• ¼ cup granulated sugar 

pickle bucket: method

1. Start by washing your vegetables well! Peel what needs to be peeled and cut everything to roughly the same size. (I don’t peel the baby carrots, but I do peel the watermelon radishes. You do you.)

2. Pack your bucket! This step is important because even though it’s all going in one bucket, you want to layer flavors here. Start with a layer of veggies, then some of the garlic, onions, spicy peppers, and herbs. More veggies. More seasoning. I usually do it in thirds! Set it aside. 

3. Make your brine! Start by toasting your spices in a large pot over medium heat. Once you start to hear them pop, let them go for another minute or so. Then add your water, vinegar, sugar, and salt, and bring to a rolling boil. 

4. Once boiling, remove from the heat and carefully pour the brine over the vegetables, making sure they’re covered entirely. Use a spoon to move things around so the spices aren’t all sitting on top. Let it cool uncovered on the countertop until it’s room temperature. Once it’s room temperature, cover and refrigerate for at least 24 hours. 

5. Eat! Share! Enjoy! They’re perfect on their own, but they’re also great sliced up on toasts or in tacos—anywhere you want a little brine and crunch, baby! 

And that’s it! Enjoy the good stuff. Have as much of it as possible and share it with as many people as you can. 

<3
Garrett