Today’s guest post was written by B. Ruth.
Did you know you should never peel a cucumber from the blossom end…It will make it bitter. Well, sometimes they are bitter due to hot weather..but I dare not chance it anyhow..here is a Red Wine Vinegar instant pickle recipe…I got this from my Mother, and we have eaten them this way for years.
RED WINE VINEGAR INSTANT PICKLES
Small to medium cucumbers…washed, do not peel..
Pint jar..or any container
Red Wine Vinegar
Salt to taste
Ice and touch of water
Take a good sharp fork…hold cucumber well, and pull fork down cucumber from the stem end to the bloom end…Do this all the way around cucumber, pulling bits of green, out as you go…I usually wipe mine off with paper towel.
Turn on side and slice 1/8 to ¼ inch thick from stem end down to blossom end…Place cucumber slices in ice water as you slice them. So they stay good and crisp.
Make a mixture of Red Wine vinegar and water to taste, I use it full strength, most of the time. Salt will pull out the liquid and water them down some…Drain slices, salt them and drop in Red Wine vinegar mixture.
Give them a shake, and let sit in pint jar in refrigerator a while to chill longer…or eat right them right away. I usually add cucumber slices along for a day or two until the vinegar starts disappearing. LOL
Makes pretty wagon wheel-like notched slices. We eat them with sandwiches, potato salad, any good summer cookout works with these instant pickles…Yummm. I think I’ll make a jar to go with my butter beans and cornbread tonight…hope you like these…
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As you can see from the photos-me and Chatter made a small jar of B. Ruth’s Red Wine Vinegar Instant Pickles. The Deer Hunter loved them! He loves anything that has what he calls a whang to it. I liked them too-but I might water down the red vinegar next time I make them. They would for sure be good on a sandwich or straight out of the jar if you needed a little whang.
Tipper
Thanks for the recipe, Ms. Ruth! I’ll be trying this one, too.
Oh my goodness those look so delicious..Thank you so much for the recipe..
Wow! That was simple! The recipe sounds great and the love of fresh cucumbers is always wonderful. Thanks! It’s a gotta try recipe.
Had these as a child and still make them. We always added sliced onions to the mix. Pickled onions Yum Good!
Tipper, I made the Bread and Butter Pickles using your new recipe. They are very good….just like you and Granny said they are!
Tipper, it’s so nice that you create this opportunity for folks to share. My mouth is watering for pickles now, with or without “whang” – LOL! Never noticed which end of a cucumber I cut first, but now I sure will. Thank you for sharing your recipe, B. Ruth!
And thank you elithea for letting us all know about that free download. I don’t have a kindle, but I already have the (also free) Kindle for PC program downloaded from Amazon, and it works fine. Now I’ve got a new book to read while I eat pickles!
(But first I’ve got to finish building a small pen inside the goat barn. Vet’s coming this afternoon to separate two cashmere bucklings from their reproductive equipment. Actually, I may need something stronger than pickles before this day is over.)
Tipper,
I like those simple steps Beverly
did with those red wine vinegar
pickles. I’m afraid I might discard most of the pickles and
go right for the juice. Those
streaks with a sharp fork make
them look storebought…Ken
Tipper–Since the Deer Hunter loves stuff with a “whang,” I’ll share an offering for him which will provide a whang to the nth degree. It comes straight from my Grandpa Joe.
He would dry hot peppers (and the ones he raised had such a high capsacin count they would burn your lips when you touched them) each year. They were used in various ways such as a seasoning for October beans and the like, but his favorite thing was to take a few dry pods in the winter, parch them in the stove, and then steep them to make “pepper tea.” He would “sasser” it when so hot it was almost boiling and slurp to his heart’s content, smacking his lips with every swallow. Seat would pop out on his brow but he would say “that’s mighty fine.” I’ll eschew such liquid delights, but Grandpa had an iron stomach and was a great trencherman. If Matt has the courage to try this, I’d love to know the results.
Jim Casada
http://www.jimcasadaoutdoors.com
I LOVE to make instant pickles! I will use whatever type of vinegar that I happen to have on hand. Sometimes, I add just a touch of sugar too. I eat them on my salad everyday!
Interestingly enough, guess what my blog post was about today? PICKLES! LOL!!!
I make pickles every year just to keep from wasting my cucumbers, not because my family likes them. I like them occasionally and B. Ruth’s recipe is just what I need to make small batches. I have taken many jars to work and watch them disappear in no time. I used to make fridge pickles, like Clussens and watch one of our instructors eat them straight out of the jar…for breakfast…yuk!
I raised burpless cucumbers this year. They are extremely bitter. Maybe it’s the weather or the way I peel them? I never heard that heat or the way they were peeled would make them bitter.
Tipper,
Tell the readers these pickles are to be eaten in a few days, left in the fridge…They are not designed to be stored like regular pickles…Thanks
I was afraid you would not like them full strengh..LOL…I guess it takes getting used to…LOL
The longer they sit in the fridgerator the more they asorb the salt and red wine vinegar..so watering vinegar down and let them sit longer will taste as well..Since many a time I have been nearly out of vinegar and done this…
You know that old folks would take vinegar as a tonic of sorts..
It is very good for you..
Of course, it makes you a little side-wagled like me if you take in too much Red Wine vinegar…LOL
Thanks Tipper, Hope everyone will like them…with the summer cookout!
Now this sounds like something I could and would do! I will try this for sure….
tipper, forgive me for messaging you everywhere, but i wanted to make sure everybody doesn’t miss this book, which is a free download from amazon, at least today!
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006359KSY/ref=tsm_1_fb_lk
(you can also download free an app to read it, if you need to, kindle for pc, or mac, whatever.)
i think you’ll like this. đŸ™‚
I have a similar recipe sitting in my fridge as we speak : )
My wife will love them. She too loves stuff with a whang to it. She has been known to drink pickle juice after the pickles are gone. I ain’t that tough!
Thank you B Ruth! That’s a great idea. I’ve got some fresh picked cucumbers, I’m gonna try it today.
My dad used to do something similar. At dinner time when the fresh cucumbers were in he would slice some in a bowl even sometimes adding a little sliced onion. Then he added salt, pepper, ice and vinegar. Let them sit a little and eat them with our meal. Mighty fine eatin’!
Tipper, the Deer Hunter has always liked things with a whang. When he was just a pup I had a bottle of lemon juice I kept in the door in the fridge. He would catch me with my back turned and get that bottle and squirt the tart juice straight into his mouth. Now I like tart things too, but not enough to drink straight lemon juice. LOL
never heard that about going from stem to blossom before. I will have to try that!
I never knew pickles could be made without all the canning rigamarole. I will have to give this a try!