Autumn is pickling season, and it’s a great way of making use of any vegetables you have in excess. Once you’ve made these you’ll never buy a jar of pickles again!
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 Mason jars, sterilised
- 2 cucumbers, thickly sliced
- 1 shallot, peeled and sliced
- 2 teaspoons sea salt flakes
- 200g brown sugar
- 200g white wine vinegar
- ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
METHOD:
- Wash and slice cucumbers. Place in a colander with the shallots, and sprinkle with salt flakes.
- Cover and leave for 45 minutes.
- Wash well.
- Combine sugar, white wine vinegar and mustard seeds in a pan and bring to the boil. Stir until the sugar dissolves and leave to cool (add a couple of ice cubes to speed up the process but not too many or you’ll dilute your pickle).
- Divide cucumbers and shallots evenly between the two Mason jars, ensuring they are tightly packed.
- Pour over the liquid, seal jar and leave for 24 hours.
Pickles will last up to three months in the refrigerator.
Hot Tip:
Try this pickling solution with whatever vegetables you have – it works well with chillis, pickling onions and courgettes too. If you like a bit of heat, add a sprinkle of chilli flakes to your pickling solution.
