Pickled Food Recipes & Ideas

It's a Southern treat that can be enjoyed so many ways.

It's a great way to enjoy a taste of summer any time of year.

They're good on just about anything.

Whether you make your own or start with store-bought, there are lots of ways to eat more fermented foods.

It's the internet's new favorite snack.

Basically, it's all the things.

You can adapt this simple formula for any fresh vegetables; try a mixture of vinegars and spices for a truly custom pickle pleasure.

They take about 10 minutes to assemble and last for weeks in the refrigerator.

Even the potatoes are boiled in pickle juice.

If it’s not already, fermented salsa should be on your radar for next-level summer eats. It has a distinct, tangy flavor and faint effervescence that sets it apart from a fresh chopped pico de gallo or cooked salsa. It’s also not so loud that it tastes overly sour — that is, unless you like it that way! As with any fermented item you make at home, the control is in your hands.

To the uninitiated, lacto-fermentation often sounds at best confusing and at worst frightening. Before I got elbow-deep into the world of kimchi, sauerkraut, and other fermented foods, I had vague notions of lacto-fermentation involving milk, bacteria, and jars of mysterious contents bubbling away in dark cupboards. Some of this is true, some of it isn’t, and I’ll get to that in a minute.

When friends ask how to ferment deli-style pickles, I recommend that they start by practicing with asparagus spears. By practicing with asparagus you’ll learn all you need to know by the time cucumber season arrives. Thankfully this isn’t all about learning; asparagus makes for great pickles and is a welcome accompaniment to spring grilling. Preserving has taught me to look at ingredients differently than I used to; each part of a fruit or vegetable can be prepared in different ways.

It's the best thing you can do this weekend.

They're tangy, salty, and crispy all at once.

And they make a great Bloody Mary stirrer, too.

Nik Sharma says this recipe represents California due to the bounty of gorgeous citrus in the Golden State, and the recipe’s celebration of the state’s ever-growing immigrant cuisine.

It’s a cruel joke that canning homemade pickles comes right in the middle of summer, when the last thing you want to do is stand over the stove. That’s why smart pickle-lovers take a shortcut and start with a jar of dill pickles — no steam bath required. Thanks to a cup of sugar and fiery heat from jalapeños, the simple pickles transform into a sweet-and-spicy Texas-style snack.

Maybe your only knowledge of pickled beets are the ones grandma served, but we’re here to tell you quick-pickling thick wedges of sweet beets could not be simpler — or more delicious. These easy refrigerator pickles are as vibrantly flavored as they are colored, seasoned with freshly squeezed orange juice and a hint of bitterness from citrus rind. Here’s how to pull them off and use them on everything from salads to sandwiches.

Tangy, creamy deviled eggs for your holiday get-together.

Meet the spicy pickled carrots that are about to forever change your Taco Tuesday or even just your snack-dinner Wednesday. These crunchy, spicy, tangy pickles are made for serving with (or on top of) Mexican staples like tacos and enchiladas, or even just alongside a cold beer. And because these carrot pickles are made just like our favorite quick refrigerator pickles, they are as easy to make as they are to eat.

Can you slice vegetables and boil brine? Then you can make refrigerator pickles.

This fresh and tangy meal takes its cue from the powerhouse couple that transforms tacos and makes burgers better. Stuffed inside a warm baked potato, creamy guacamole and tangy pickled red onions go from finishing touch to star of the plate. Before you can stuff your potato with this glorious filling, you’ve got to cook it. There are options aplenty, so choose what works best for you. How To Bake a Potato in the Microwave: If you’re in a hurry, take to the microwave.

If you're looking for a quick way to preserve a bunch of cherry tomatoes, pickling is a unique way to put them to good use.

Pretty pink ginger (and the color is all-natural)!

Ready in 2 days.

Here's what to do with those underripe avocados!

This roasted delicata squash salad is a superfood extravaganza! I’ve tossed it together with walnuts, apple, cabbage, and quick-pickled red onion dressing. (Yeah, I’m a total rebel and made the dressing in the microwave.) After all the holidays, parties, lack of sleep, dozens of cocktail-sized meatballs on toothpicks, and one-too-many Champagne toasts, I often get a little wacked out and start craving beet juice and kombucha in an attempt to get myself back on track.

This time of year there’s a quiet bounce that’s heard throughout gardens and groceries — it’s the soft thunder of zucchini rolling off vines by the dozen. Zucchini bread and zucchini noodles can only take you so far. It’s time to push your squash savvy to new heights, and we have five fresh recipes this week to help take you there. Let’s start by going the happy route, all the way to pickles.

When Faith floated the idea of having the gang from The Kitchn gather at my house in Oakland to celebrate and shoot the 2014 Thanksgiving spread, I was thrilled. They would take care of everything, she promised, except maybe could I do a modern interpretation of the old-fashioned relish tray as appetizers? Absolutely! We ended up deciding on three trays: pickles, spreads, and cheese and fruit. Let’s start with my favorite: the pickle tray.

There are lots of ways to heat up your drinks, from fresh cracked peppercorns to wasabi and my personal fave — freshly grated horseradish. Add the endless array of fresh peppers (habañeros, serranos, thai bird chilies, etc.) and the even wider variety of hot sauces out there, and you’re choices are endless. Flavored and infused spirits are in the spice game, too, from vodka to tequila.

We have reached the tipping point of summer when we stop longing for our favorite fruits and vegetables to finally arrive and start wondering what the heck we’re going to do with it all. Those of you with CSAs definitely know what I’m talking about! If you’re new to the canning and preserving party, never fear: We have ten fantastic recipes that teach you the ropes — and help you take care of all that fresh produce.

We’ve all encountered, and possibly even served, a boring crudité platter. As a vegetarian and gluten-free guest and host, I’ve had my fair share of raw broccoli and carrot sticks while other party guests indulged in more interesting hors d’oeuvres. But these pickled baby carrots? These ones with the zingy bite that will be ready in just a couple of hours? You might want to double the recipe.

Do you love picked ginger but aren’t so interested in the red dye and white sugar many commercial brands use to sweeten and color the pickles? Or maybe you’re curious about how to switch things up if you used a different vinegar/sweetener combination? Breakaway chef Eric Gower has been experimenting with pickled ginger for years, and he’s found that you can step way out of the box with this delicious, palate cleansing condiment. How Does Pickled Ginger Become Pink?