Sweet’n’Spicy Boozy Quickles

Bread & Butter Pickles (which are actually gluten and dairy-free) have been the outstanding favourite of all the preserves we make for over 15 years. But sometimes I just don’t have it in me to go through the whole sterilising process for lots of jars, or I only have a few cucumbers, or I just want a stiff drink and a quick pickle fix.

This quickle (short for ‘quick pickle’) recipe is great for times like that, and can be adapted in many ways to suit the produce (or booze) you have on hand. See Notes down the bottom for ways to change this recipe up, including a booze-free option.

You can use any cucumbers you like for this quickle, but be aware that the juicier they are – ie if they have lots of seeds down the middle – the less crunchy they’ll turn out. Gherkins are brilliant if you can get them, but my favourite cukes to use are the curly, wonky Continental cucumbers (also called Long or English) you can often pick up cheap from greengrocers (they’re considered ‘less than perfect’ because they’re not straight).

Honestly though, just use what you’ve got cos the texture and water content isn’t as important in a quickle as it is when you’re putting up jars for longer term storage.

A NOTE ON MEASUREMENTS:

I’m an Autie, and I don’t like being told what to do, which *can* be a bit of an issue when it comes to writing & following recipes. I figure other folks out there might also like finding their own way of doing things to suit their personal capacity, so my recipes are often super flexible. Because to me it makes sense to base your measurements on what size jar you have, or how much produce you’re working with.

And bear in mind that aside from the vinegar, water & cucumbers, everything else in this recipe is purely about flavour, and will have no negative effect on the food-safety of the resulting quickles if you adjust the quantities. So tweak away based on what you’ve got and what you like, baby!

To that end, here’s a list of all the ingredients I like to use when making this quickle, and below it I’ve listed off roughly how much of each is needed to fill one big jar (around 1L or 32oz).

You can scale it up from there if you want, but these will only keep for a month in the fridge, so don’t go too crazy unless you’re giving some away (or you eat a LOT of pickles!).

INGREDIENTS:

• Fresh garlic to taste
• A bit of fresh onion. I like purple/red
• A sprinkle of pickling spice OR
• Whole allspice berries, whole black peppercorns, dill seeds, yellow mustard seeds. Optional chilli/red pepper flakes
• A sprig per jar of fresh dill
• Cucumbers enough to almost fill a jar
• (Optional) Jalapeño to taste
• Bourbon to taste. Avoid super cheap
• Maple syrup or raw honey to taste
• Equal amounts of hot water (boiled tap is fine) and Apple cider vinegar

To make approx 1x 1L or 32oz jar’s worth:

• 4-6 garlic cloves
• 1/2 cup fresh chopped onion
• 2 heaped teaspoons pickling spice OR
• 1/2 tsp each of whole allspice berries, whole black peppercorns, dill seeds, yellow mustard seeds. Optional chilli/red pepper flakes
• 1 medium fresh dill plant (which kinda equals 5-6 separate stalks with their fronds on)
• 1 long Continental/English cucumber
• 1 Jalapeño
• 1/2 cup bourbon
• 1/3 cup maple syrup/honey
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 cup hot water

METHOD:

1. Get your jar & lid nice & clean. Also pop the kettle on then set aside some boiled water to cool off a tad.
2. Finely chop garlic. Chuck in the jar.
3. Slice or dice onion into a size that pleases you. Pop in the jar.
4. Throw spices into the jar.
5. Wash dill. Twirl it up and shove it in the jar.
6. Wash & slice cucumber into 1-2cm thick rounds. Ditto jalapeño if using. Bung in the jar & push’em down so it’s almost full.
7. Drizzle the syrup, bourbon & vinegar all up in that jar.
8. Pour in the hot water til the jar is full.
9. Wipe off jar rim, seal, shake well to combine everything, then toss it in the fridge.

Ready to eat straight away, but it’s definitely worth leaving for at least a couple of hours so the flavours can get familiar with each other. Keep refrigerated, and use within a month.

NOTES:

• If you prefer pickle sticks to rounds, cut cucumbers to be 2-3cm shorter than the jar, then slice into quarters lengthways. For quickles like this, the cukes do need to be cut somehow to let the vinegar seep in and preserve the flesh, so sadly, whole baby cucumbers aren’t really an option.
• If you want extra crunchy quickles, slice your cukes, then sprinkle them with some salt and leave them alone for a few hours. Drain off the liquid, give’em a rinse, then drain again and dry off cukes with a clean kitchen towel. Then proceed with recipe.
• If you’re making a big batch with many jars (remember they need to be eaten within a month!), you can slice your cukes, jalapeno, garlic, and onion into a bowl, then add the spices and toss them all together so everything is combined well. Then, just shove some dill in each jar before filling with this mixture. Premix the liquids and then pour that mixture into the cuke-filled jars.
• Make sure to wipe the rims of your jars before sealing. We use a clean cloth dipped in the boiling water. Any chunks left on the rim will prevent your jar from sealing properly, and can corrode the lid, leading to contamination from rust.
• Try it with other boozy spirits too! Gin works well, and so does vodka. If you want a booze-free version, just leave it out. It doesn’t need to be replaced with anything, as it’s just an added preservative and flavouring in one: the vinegar & water will be enough to quickle the veg.

Permaculture Principle 2: Catch & store energy; 6: Produce no waste