Pickled Pepper Okra
Oh how I love pickled okra! Salad bars that include these get cleaned out when I come around. This recipe resulted from a big, farm-fresh bunch I received, which barely fit into a one-quart mason jar. The addition of a jalapeño and spicy pepper sauce to the brine gives the final product a nice tang and a big kick.
Pickled Pepper Okra
Yield: One (1-quart) jar
Cook Time: 20 minutes, plus a week to pickle
Ingredients:
- 1 quart fresh okra (about 1 ½ pounds)
- 2 cups water
- ¼ cup pepper sauce (like Tabasco)
- 2 tablespoons sea salt
- 1 large or 2 small cloves garlic
- 1 whole jalapeño
Directions:
- Wash and dry okra, trimming away the ends of each stem and cutting away any brown or bruised spots. Pack into a one-quart mason jar (the easiest way to do this is to stack them vertically, standing on their ends.)
- Combine water, pepper sauce, salt, garlic, and jalapeño in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring until all salt is dissolved. Allow to steep about 10 minutes. Remove garlic and jalapeño with a skimmer or tongs, and pack into the jar.
- Carefully pour hot brining liquid over okra to fill the jar, leaving a couple centimeters of headspace but covering the okra entirely. If you plan to store the jar, cover with sterilized caps, and process in a boiling pot of water for 10 minutes. If you plan to eat the okra as soon as it’s pickled, you may simply screw the lid on and store in the fridge.
- Okra takes about a week or two to pickle completely.