Reading Linda Ziedrich's personal account of putting together the puzzle that pickling once represented to her, one realizes what a gift this book is. Ziedrich waded through old, often out-of-print cookbooks, ethnic cookbooks, even gathered scraps of information carried home by travelers to assemble a world-wide jigsaw puzzle. With the puzzle put together by one so dedicated and talented, we learn that pickling is not so difficult or mysterious. The Joy of Pickling is a completed puzzle, packed with 250 recipes, many from traditions around the world, and many for our favorite pickle made from the cucumber. Loaded with information to guarantee success, the recipes are destined to provide a wide variety of pickles for the table. Needless to say, pickling is as economical, but what we love most is that it preserves the taste of garden-fresh foods in season whether from your own back yard or the local green market that is offering seasonal delights.
Celebrated by chefs from east to west, such as Charlie Trotter and Martin Yan, The Joy of Pickling is a pickling bible. Ziedrich starts with a "pickling primer" that includes:
Pickling Principles
Salts
Vinegars
Water
Aromatics
Firming Agents
Weighing Produce
Bowls and Pots
Canning Your Pickles
Boiling-Water Processing
Low-Temperature Pasteurization
Open-Kettle Method
Storing Pickles
Lest this seem like a lot to absorb, Ziedrich's writing is clear and simple, her intention to demystify, not make pickling more difficult. Once she has given the basics she moves on to prove that all is not cucumber in the vast territory of pickles. You will find chapters for Fermented Pickles; Fresh Pickles (from artichoke to zucchini); Sauerkraut, Kimchi, and Other Cabbage Pickles; Rice-Bran, Miso, and Soy-sauce Pickles; Sweet Pickles (from the fruits of the orchard, vineyard, and berry patch): Quick Pickles (enjoy in two days or less): Freezer Pickles: Chutneys, Salsas, and Other Relishes: Pickled Meat, Fish, and Eggs (from corned beef to pigs feet to scarlet eggs). The chapters are laced with sidebars that contain interesting stories, tips, further information on a particular foodstuff.
You will find recipes that range from Half-Sours to Turkish Mixed Pickles, Pickled Beets, Kimchi and Curtido, Russian Pickled Cherries, Pickled Apricots, Moroccan Pickled Beets, Quick Pickled Jicama, Daikon Pickles in Sweet Miso, Basic Pickled Onion Rings, Quick Green Tomato Pickle, Quick-Pickled Baby Corn, Malaysian Acar, Pineapple Sambol, Quick Mango and Shredded Ginger Achar. The list is long, it is glorious, and it will enliven your table with tangy new tastes or familiar favorites that far surpass store-bought.
Twenty-five of the recipes are brand new, and the indispensable pickling primer has been fully updated with the latest in equipment, ingredients, and techniques.
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