my dream indie kitchen store
Luke and I LOVE McClure's Pickles (I first tasted them at the Brooklyn Flea and have been hooked ever since)
The stairs to the class had these fun knife imprints.
A coat rack of old meat grinders.
Our recipe for the evening. Looks easy enough, right? Pickling is a simple process, but we learned so many little vital scientific facts. For instance, the vinegar that you buy has to be distilled between 4-6%. Any lower, and your vegetables won't fully pickle which could potentially lead to bacteria growth. Bad news for eating. Did you know this? I did not. Noted!
We definitely learned a lot about the old fashioned way of preserving food from Bob. His family has been making pickles for generations and it's pretty awesome that him, his brother and parents are keeping the tradition alive, and sharing it so the rest of us can enjoy!
Luke jumped right in and got to picklin'
The rest of the class anxiously followed. A pinch of cumin seed here, a dash of fresh ground ginger there.
Now the simple balance of water, vinegar, and salt.
Ta-da!
In 2 weeks, we will enjoy our pickled treats.
While the jars had a heat bath for 10 minutes (in a stainless steel pot, mind you) we expolored a bit. Down below us, a sourdough class was in session.
They had the best bookshelf full of old classics.
A farewell message at the registers.
City Cow
Before we left, Luke bought a jar lifter (those funny looking jar tongs to retrieve them from scalding pots of water) and he seriously wants a copy of "The Joy of Pickling" for his (our) birthday. This class has unleashed a pickling beast! That reminds me, my Great Uncle Al makes some terrific pickled watermelon rinds (weird, I know, delicious, YES) I must get the recipe!
