Spicy Pickled Rhubarb

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Gluten-Free/Dairy-Free/Nut-Free/Vegan

Skill level: Beginner

Yield: About 1 1/2 quarts of pickles

Prep Time: 10-15 minutes

Cook Time: 5-10 minutes

Equipment Needed:

• Cutting board

• Chef's knife

• Medium saucepan

• 1-quart Mason jar or glass container with lid

The Recipe:

Recipe adapted from the website Bacon is Magic

Ingredients:

• 1 pound rhubarb, cut into 1-2 inch pieces (about 4 cups)

• 1 cup water

• 1 cup red wine vinegar

• 1 cup brown sugar

• 4 (1-inch) pieces of orange zest

• 2 bay leaves

• 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns

• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt

• 1-inch piece of ginger, peeled

• 1 sprig fresh thyme

• 3 dried chile peppers

• 2 tablespoons crushed red pepper

• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds

Procedure:

1. Place rhubarb pieces into 1-2 jars (depending on size used) or glass storage container(s).

2. In a medium saucepan, combine water and red wine vinegar.

3. Place over medium heat and add all remaining ingredients EXCEPT the rhubarb.

4. Bring to a boil, then immediately reduce heat to low and simmer for 3-4 minutes, until sugar has dissolved, whisking occasionally.

5. While mixture is still hot, pour over the rhubarb, making sure the rhubarb is completely covered with the liquid.

6. Allow jar(s) to cool, then cover and put in fridge. Wait at least a day before giving your rhubarb pickles a taste.

To Serve: I ate a few of these plain paired with a crisp, dry glass of sauvignon blanc, but I would love to add these to a charcuterie board as one of my pickled elements.

Tips:

• If you have any interest in growing rhubarb in your yard, you should! It doesn't require much aside from a spot that will get lots of good sun, and it comes back every year.

• If this is your first time working with rhubarb, be sure to remove and discard the leaf at the end of the stalk and rinse/rub your stalks with water to remove any dirt. I usually chop off the root end and discard that as well.

• I used a bias cut to cut my rhubarb pieces, which simply means I cut them at an angle. You wouldn't have to do this, but I do think it makes them look a little prettier.

• I used a kitchen scale to actually weigh my rhubarb, but if you don't have a kitchen scale you could definitely just start slicing your stalks and measure out about 4 cups.

• If you haven't worked with fresh ginger a ton (you will find this in the produce section of your grocery store, btw), I actually don't recommend removing the peel with a traditional vegetable peeler since there's usually lots of knobs and stuff to get in your way and make your hand slip, peeling your finger (ouch). Using the edge of a spoon is a super easy way to do this and not lose too much of the ginger. You can also simply use a chef's knife to take off the sides, but you will probably use a bit of the ginger if it's a piece with a lot of nubs.

• I used dark brown sugar but I'm certain light brown would taste great, too. The original recipe actually called for turbinado sugar, which is just a less refined version of brown sugar; if you happen to have turbinado sugar in your pantry you could use that as well.

• These do pack a bit of a spicy punch, so if you're looking to bring down the spice level a bit you could reduce the amount of crushed red pepper and/or omit 1 or more of the dried chiles.

• I haven't tried making these with a different type of vinegar yet, but if you don't have red wine vinegar I think you could try using cider vinegar or seasoned rice vinegar (and if you do try that, I'd love to know how it went).

• I packed as many pieces into a 1-quart mason jar that I could, but they didn't all fit. I ended up filling a pint jar about 3/4 full as well. If you use two jars/containers, just make sure you try to split the larger solid spices between the two (chiles, bay leaves, etc.).

The Story:

If you checked out my post on Rhubarb BBQ Sauce (real game-changer, folks), you know the story already: my husband asked me to trim back my massive rhubarb patch, which I did, and then I had to figure out what to do with a ton of rhubarb that ideally wasn't a bunch of muffins, cakes or pies.

Tell me that ain't the prettiest dang thing you've seen this side of the Mississip.

I had actually had the thought of trying to pickle rhubarb (I LOVE anything pickled), so when I ran across this recipe for Spicy Pickled Rhubarb, I knew I had to try it. As an added bonus, I had some dried Thai chiles that a friend's parents had brought back from Thailand last winter and generously shared with me, so I was pumped to see those in the recipe so I could put a few of those babies to good use.

Most of my spices; amazing colors.

I think part of the reason I love pickling things is that it's SO dang easy, and a lot of dishes can benefit from a little kick of acid. I always have a jar of pickled red onions in my fridge because I love to use them on tacos, sandwiches, salads, etc. I also got really into canning for a hot second, so I have quite a stash of mason jars in varying sizes, which work great to store anything I want to pickle.

You can pack these jars pretty tightly; the liquid will just flow around the solids and everything shrinks a little bit when it's pickled.

Although it's totally not my style, I did wait the suggested day before I sampled the fruits of my pickling. Crunchy, super tart, spicy...these bad boys have it all. I sat on our deck and enjoyed munching on these while I sipped a glass of Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc; the contrast of the spicy pickles with the crisp, cold wine was really delightful. My husband and I both agreed that these would be phenomenal alongside a few meats, cheeses and crackers on a charcuterie board (I LOVE putting olives and/or something pickled on my cheese boards).

Happy tasting!