These colors look amazingly delicious … and I’ll let you in on a little known secret — this slaw IS delicious! Just last week Deb from Smitten Kitchen posted pictures and a recipe for vegetable slaw. Writing as quickly as she could (I am quite sure) she wax poetically about what happens when one discovers sandwiches, salads, and tacos dressed with sweet and sour crunchy toppings also known as pickled veggies!
My frig was over-flowing with carrots, red, yellow and orange sweet peppers, and cabbage. But what started dancing in my head was the rationalization that this healthy veggie slaw would easily give an air of credibility to a finely grilled all-beef hotdog! One of my worst traits – that I am very good at, is rationalization!
Veggie slaw can consist of anything you want it to. Radishes, red, orange and yellow bell peppers, carrots, onions, fresh sugar snaps and Kirby cucumbers, are a few suggestions, but you can use any firm, crunchy vegetable you think will pickle well.
After slicing up 4 to 5 cups of veggies, I heated up white vinegar, sugar, salt, and mustard seeds. I divided up the veggie mix into jars and poured the cooled-down mixture over my new crunchy slaw mix.
How else can I explain what happened when I kicked the veggies into high gear, pickled the heck out of them and then served them on wonderfully grilled hotdogs for dinner?!! Just say, YUM!
The vegetables will be lightly pickled after an hour or so and wonderfully pickled within a day. The good news is it will keep in the refrigerator for up to a month or longer. The bad news is once you start eating this slaw on whatever you fix for lunch –it won’t last that long! 🙂
No canning, vacuum seals, or sterilized jars necessary. When storing in the refrigerator make sure the vegetables are completely covered in the brine solution.
I used a sharp knife and cut up my veggies by hand. But a simple mandoline that has julienne blades, a julienne peeler or a food processor with slicing blades will do the trick as well.
Before I had this post written we gobbled up the slaw on a turkey and cheese sandwich on rye bread. My Chief Culinary Consultant said of his first bite, “this is an explosion of flavors!” Well put. Oh ya, I also put some hot pepper flakes in one jar for him!
Let this pickled slaw be the crowning taste for your picnic lunch!
Happy Pickling!
Catherine
- 4 to 5 cups mixed slivered or julienned firm, raw vegetables
- Optional: a few slivers of jalapeno or hot pepper flakes
- 1 cup Distilled white vinegar
- 6 tablespoons sugar
- 3 tablespoons kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons mustard seeds
- 1 cup cold water
- Heat vinegar, sugar, salt, and mustard seeds to a simmer in a small, non-reactive* pot over moderate heat, stirring only until sugar and salt dissolve. Remove from heat and stir in cold water, which brings down the mixture's temperature. Let cool to lukewarm.
- Divide vegetables between 3 or 4 pint jars (or two quart jars). Pour cooled vinegar mixture over the vegetables and refrigerate until needed. Slaw will be lightly pickled within 1 hour and fully pickled within 1 day.
* Non-reactive pot - do not use an aluminum pot. Stainless steel or a pot sealed with Teflon works well.
The vegetables can be sliced by hand or with a mandoline or julienne peeler works well too!
No canning/vacuum seals/sterilized jars needed. Pickled slaw can be stored in the refrigerator up to a month. Make sure the brine completely covers the vegetables to keep them fresh.
Recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen.