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Cucumber or Armenian Cucumber Pickle

A plain cucumber brine pickle, with the option to slip in hot peppers, garlic, or green fennel for a stronger table jar. The note about beet for cauliflower shows how these pantry methods branch from one vegetable to the next.
Prep 20 min · Cook 0 min · Total 20 min · Difficulty: easy
Cucumber or Armenian Cucumber Pickle
Servings
14

Ingredients

3 kg
small cucumbers or Armenian cucumbers
grape leaves — a few for the top 
salt — enough to make a strong brine 
water — for the brine 
small hot peppers — optional 
garlic cloves — optional, unpeeled 
green fennel sprigs — optional 

Method

1
Choose small, slender cucumbers or faqous, wash them well, and pack them into a jar. Cover the top with a few grape leaves.
2
Make a strong brine the old way, by adding salt until an egg will float, then pour it over the vegetables. Slip in hot peppers, unpeeled garlic, or green fennel if you want a bolder jar.
3
Leave the jar in the sun and begin tasting after about eight days. The page also notes that a little sugar helps when the pickle is sealed for longer storage.
Notes
The original recipe folds in a side note for cauliflower: add a small raw beet if you use the same brine for pickled cauliflower.
كيتي كتن (Kitty Katan) — الكتاب الحديث لعمل الحلويات وفن الطهي
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