Pickled Nasturtium Pods
I’ve heard of pickled nasturtium pods (which are the seeds) before, but I’ve never had them. Since I have quite a large crop of nasturtiums this year, I decided it was the perfect time to make a batch to see if I like them.
PICKLED NASTURTIUM PODS
(from The Joy of Pickling)
4 1/2 Tablespoons pickling salt
3 cups water
1 pint fresh, green, plump nasturtium pods
4 whole cloves
1 inch blade of mace (unground)
1/4 nutmeg kernel
1 slice horseradish (about 1 1/2 inches in diameter x 3/16th inch), cut into strips
1 shallot
about 1 cup white wine vinegar
Dissolve 1 1/2 Tablespoons of salt in 1 cup of water, and pour this bring over the nasturtium pods. Let stand at room temperature for 24 hours.
Drain the nasturtium pods, make fresh brine the same way as before, and pour over pods again. Again, let them stand overnight and do the same on the third day.
On the fourth day, drain the pods, put them into a jar with the cloves, mace, nutmeg, horseradish, and shallot, and cover all well with vinegar. Cover jar tightly and let it stand at room temperature for at least 1 week. After opening the jar, store it in the refrigerator.
I hear they are like capers, we shall see. I’ll let you know in a few weeks when they are ready.
What interesting things are you making this week?
Filed under Cooking, Preservation | Comments (3)
Susy, pickled Nasturtium Pods? I’ve never heard of that. You are really living in the wild up there in Maine. The best I can do this year is pickle some cucumbers. I soaked them in brine for a week and then pickled them with Mrs. Wages Dill Pickle mix. I tried pickling last year but the pickles were a bit wimpy. I am looking for nice crisp pickles. I might have to resort to Alum. I’m not sure how those store bought pickles stay so crisp.
I’m not so much an interesting creative guy. That’s why I like reading your posts so much. It inspires me to think out of the Nebraska Farmer box.
Have a great pickling Nasturtium pods day.
to Nebraska Dave's comment
I’ve made this recipe, they turned out great! I think I read in another book to beware of a sulfur smell at one point–it was a good tip because partway through the process I was grateful to know that was normal, ha!
I think Linda Z. has an simpler version in the new JOP edition which I might try–I don’t get a lot (if any) buds all at once, and she had a method where she just adds them to the brine as she harvests. Here’s hoping my flowers make enough seeds this year–I think my season is just a little short for them, and also right now the mosquitoes are keeping me from poking around the leaves regularly :)
to Sara's comment
The smell was terrible, we were laughing about it. For the first day I was trying to figure out where it was coming from. Then I noticed it was from the brining nasturtium pods.
to Susy's comment