Pickled broccoli spears recipe?

11 years ago

Hey All,

I was wondering if anyone here has or knows of a recipe for pickled broccoli spears/stalk? Several years ago a neighbor of mine used to make some spicy and delicious spears, and I've thought about trying it myself since I'm starting to get into canning (at least cucumber and okra pickles, so far). I don't know if she ever prepped it for long term storage or not, but they never lasted that long in our house and I hadn't thought about canning back then, either.

I've seen broccoli florets in several mixed pickle recipes (My library at the moment consists of the BBB, Joy of Pickling, and You Can Can), and some initial searches shows it's low-acid like cucumbers, but I hesitate to think that substituting the broccoli for cucumbers in a pickle recipe would be safe (or safe enough if we can't finish a jar/batch in a couple months). Any thoughts on the matter would be much appreciated!

Thanks,

- Mike

Comments (4)

digdirt2
11 years ago
If you use a straight vinegar recipe there is no issue. If you use a diluted vinegar issue it does become an issue and requires careful recipe selection. Nothing less than a 1:1 water to vinegar dilution and more vinegar than water is better.

Some have reported good results using the NCHFP Dilly Beans recipe. It is 1:1.

There is also the Pickled Mixed Vegetables recipe that is a straight vinegar recipe and can be made using only broccoli.

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: NCHFP - Pickling Vegetables
timbersmith
Original Author
11 years ago
So using the Sweet and Spicy Dill Pickle recipe from You Can Can (page 90) could work as a start? I recently made a batch of these (using green habaneros) and it was very tasty.

For 6 pints:
3 lbs 4" pickling cucumbers
3 cups water
3 cups cider vinegar
1/4 cup pickling salt
1/4 cup sugar
2 hot peppers - seeded, minced and added to vinegar mix during boiling

Per jar:
1 tablespoon dill seed
1/2 tablespoon mustard seed
1/2 tablespoon black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
1 garlic clove

Process 10 minutes in BWB.
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digdirt2
11 years ago
Yes, it meets the MINIMUM safety requirement for untested recipes and we don't know who or what did the testing on that particular book.

Personally I would be more comfortable with more vinegar because of all the water that is in cukes that dilutes the vinegar even further. But since broccoli has much less water in it this one as written would be ok.

The underlying issue is that pH doesn't remain stable on the shelf over time so if these are consumed relatively quickly, no problem. But if they were to be a long term shelf stored item the more vinegar the better.

Dave
readinglady
11 years ago
That's the BH&G canning book and we still don't have a definitive answer on how their recipes were developed and tested (if they were).

For that reason I'm personally steering away from anything in it other than the clearly high-acid recipes or recipes which are easily comparable with tested recipes from reliable sources.

The only broccoli pickles I've seen have been refrigerated. (Martha Rose Shulman developed a popular one printed in the NY Times.)

Broccoli tends to turn bitter with heat and to change color to an unappealing olive drab. I can more easily see it as an occasional ingredient in a Jardiniere or something than as the sole ingredient.

But of course I may be wrong and there may be something out there I just haven't spotted yet.

Carol