You know we love to experiment in the kitchen and we wanted to share one of our favorite techniques: pickling! Pickled vegetables are staples in our refrigerators—onions, hardboiled eggs, beets—you name it, you can pickle it. Recently, we experimented with pickled asparagus and fell in love with the kick the vinegar and spice mixture adds to an already flavorful vegetable. Here’s our pickled asparagus recipe plus an extra one to spice up your Sunday brunch cocktail.
Pickled Asparagus:
Directions:
- 1 bunch asparagus, rinsed and trimmed
- 1 C white wine vinegar or basic white vinegar
- 2 T kosher salt
- 1 T sugar
- 5 (or more!) garlic cloves – sliced or whole
- 1 T mustard seeds
- 1 T whole black peppercorns
- ½ t crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 C water
Directions:
- Place your rinsed and trimmed asparagus in a large, clean mason jar and set aside.
- In a saucepan over medium heat, combine remaining ingredients.
- Bring mixture to a boil for 1 minute.
- Immediately remove from heat and pour mixture into the mason jar over the asparagus.
- Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Now, you might be wondering what the heck you’re supposed to do with Pickled Asparagus. Well, the answer is ANYTHING! Pickling is so easy and adds a really good tangy, spicy flavor to any vegetable. You can pickle any leftover veggies in your kitchen, extending their shelf life and giving you new and fun ways to use them in your dishes. Also, a couple pickled asparagus spears is a great post-workout snack. Studies show that pickle juice helps to quickly replenish electrolytes, alleviate muscle cramping and rehydrate after a sweaty POUND class.
Our favorite ways to use pickled veggies is on salads, on charcuterie plates at parties, and in our Bloody Mary at Sunday brunch! Guys, we’re not kidding, this is probably our favorite drink concoction to date! Grab our Bloody Mary recipe below and try it out. Show us your pics using #balancedeats!
Bloody Mary with Pickled Asparagus:
Ingredients:
- 4 oz fresh tomato juice
- 2 oz fresh carrot juice
- 2 T lime juice
- ½ T cracked black pepper
- 1 t turmeric, to taste
- 1 t cajun spice
- 1 T Worcestershire sauce
- Lime, sea salt (or celery salt) and black pepper to rim the glass
- pickled asparagus spears
- 2 oz vodka (classic) or Bourbon (our preferred choice!)
Directions:
To salt the rim of your glass, circle a lime wedge around the rim then roll in a sea salt + black pepper mixture. Add all liquid ingredients then spices. Top with a lemon wedge, a lime wedge, and (of course) pickled asparagus!
