Quick pickles...or what to do with all those beans.

Veggies cut up to make Achar Segar - and Indonesian quick pickle

So....I love beans, and I harvest a lot of them - especially the purple-spotted dragon beans I love.   I also have a bean teepee that's in full effect right now.   But the problem with beans is that you need to pick them almost every day - they are best when they are just a few inches long - in just a few days they can grow to 7" monsters that while still might be crunchy and sweet, can also be a little tough.

So what to do with all these beans?   Well...rinse them, cut off the tips and tails, and throw them out for hungry dinner guests while waiting for the rest of the food to finish.   Or steam them for 3-4 minutes and cover them with a little salt and butter.

Preserving beans?   Well, I've tried just throwing them into a plastic freezer bag and into the chest freezer - and the result is ok - defrost, saute and serve - but still a little squishy.



So I discovered some of my favorite pickles - a southern american favorite called "Dilly Beans!"  - vinegar-pickled beans with dill, garlic, dried pepper and salt.   I found the recipes in canning books, and made batches of them for the last couple of years, to rave reviews.   This year I discovered something mind-bendingly simple:  I don't have to can all the pickles I make - even if the recipes (and quantities) come from canning books.   Revolutionary!

Because I don't always harvest large enough amounts of produce to justify a big canning operation (which is, despite what books say, a hot, sweaty project), but I often have more than we want to eat all at once (otherwise we'd have to be shoveling beans in at every meal), making little batches of refrigerator pickles is a nice solution.  It also allows you to pack the veggies in cool liquid, helping them remain crisp (especially the cukes).   Here's Liana Krissoff's recipe for Dilly Beans! (in this book)  - but I've found that I can use the same pickling brine over sliced carrots, cucumbers (unpeeled), beets or onions.   These will all get progressively "picklier" over the course of hours (if thinly sliced) or days (cut thick).


In terms of quantity - the trick with fridge pickles is that you just need to pack them into jars (not super tight) and then add enough brine to cover - leaving maybe 1/2" headspace in case the produce swells a little.  So feel free to divide the recipe.
To make 5 pint jars of dilly beans:
4 cups cider vinegar (5% acidity)
3 tablespoons pure kosher salt
5 sprigs fresh dill
5 cloves garlic, peeled but whole.
5-10 dried hot red chilies
2 1/2 - 5 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
2 lbs. crisp green beans, ends trimmed, 4 1/2 " long.
(Abby's addition: add a pinch to a 1/2 teaspoon of sugar - it helps mellow out the harshness of the vinegar).

In a big saucepan (stainless steel please) combine vinegar, 4 cups water and the salt.  Bring just to a boil, stirring to dissolve the salt (and possibly sugar).   Let it cool!

You can use this time to trim the beans or prep the garlic (or run down to your garden to get the dill if you're me).   Put a sprig of dill, a clove of garlic, 1-2 dried peppers and 1/2 - 1 tsp. red pepper flakes (if using) in each jar.  Pack the beans in, upright.   Ladle the vinegar mixture over the produce, seal and put in the fridge!   Try them tonight, or after a few days - put them out as appetizers, try them on top of a sandwich (amazing on tunafish) or as a side for bbq'd meat, or just hot dogs and hamburgers.  I want to try to put them in potato salad.  Tonight I followed Lianna Krissoff's recipe for Indonesian quick pickles and had them along with Nasi Goreng (Indonesian fried rice).   In general her preservation recipes are simple, her style conversational, and she gives recipes that actually tell you how to use the preserves.  Who knew pickles would be good with fried rice!?  

My fridge packed with scary-looking pickles!