Quick Pickled Vegetables

Five years ago, if you told me I'd be obsessed today with pickling allthethings, I'd tell you you're crazy.

I've always loved pickled cucumbers, but pickled...well, ANYTHING else? Gross.

I'm not exactly sure where the transformation happened, but all I know is somewhere along the way, I became the opposite of my old I-hate-anything-besides-pickled-cucumbers self. And now: enter my latest obsession.

Z and I vowed last week to experiment with pickling more things at home (we've only dabbled in this before), and I'm happy to say, our first big batch of pickled goodness turned out awesome. Oh, and the whole process is super freakin' easy.

Here's how to make bomb dot com [and quick] pickled vegetables.

Quick Pickled Vegetables
Yields: About 1.5 Liters of pickles
-Your choice of vegetables - we used 1 bunch of radishes, sliced thinly; 2 large carrots, peeled and cut into coins; 1 jalapeno, sliced; 1 bunch asparagus, fibrous parts removed and stalks cut in half, just so they fit in my container; 1/2 yellow onion, sliced. (This amount of vegetables was just about perfect for the amount of vinegar, etc. below).
-2 cups water
-1 cup granulated sugar
-1 1/2 cups white wine vinegar*
-1 1/2 cups lite rice vinegar
-3 tablespoons salt
-3 large cloves garlic, sliced thinly lengthwise
-2 tablespoons dill weed

*Note: I only used the rice vinegar because I ran out of white wine vinegar. The rice vinegar made our pickles a bit sweeter, which we actually liked, especially because of the jalapeno. But, if you'd rather have a less sweet pickle, use 3 cups white wine vinegar.

Directions:
1.) Place all of your prepped vegetables in jars or containers with tight-fitting lids (lids can go on later). We put the asparagus and onion in one container; the remaining vegetables in the other, but you can mix it up however you wish!
2.) In a pot, mix together water, sugar, vinegars, salt, garlic, and dill weed. Bring the mixture to a boil. Once boiling, pour the hot liquid evenly over the prepped vegetables. (If you're using plastic containers like I did, place your prepped veggies in a heat-friendly bowl first, so the boiling liquid doesn't melt your container). Let the vegetables come to room temperature, then place in the fridge with lids tightly on. Your pickles should be ready to go within 24-48 hours, and will stay in the fridge for several weeks

So far, we've enjoyed the pickled radishes and carrots on Spicy Seitan Tacos, and plan to use them on a cheese board this weekend. The pickled asparagus? That's going into homemade Bloody Marys on Saturday morning!

But really...pickled vegetables are so damn versatile. Dress up sandwiches, burgers, nachos, salads, etc. (I could go on forever). Or, do like I've done all morning and just pop those tasty suckers in your mouth, all by their lonesome. The possibilities are endless, people.

What's your favorite pickled vegetable/fruit/ingredient? Our next adventure is to pickle grapes!