Recycled Brine Pickles

Save your store bought pickle brine for easy home made pickles! It’s best to use brine from naturally fermented pickles, like Bubbies, but you can use a vinegar based pickle brine as well. In the cooler months, turnips and radishes are perfect, and of course cucumbers in the summer months. This is super easy but you’ll still need to do a little prep for best results.

Ingredients

• Turnips, radishes or cucumbers sliced about 1/4″ thick
  Enough leftover pickle brine to submerge veggies
  Salt

Slice veggies and lay out in a more or less single layer on cutting board. Sprinkle with liberally with salt. Toss together and set in a colander to drain. Let sit for 15-30 minutes, the salt will draw out moisture from the vegetables so it does not dilute the pickle juice. Pour any juice off of veggies and pat dry. Sprinkle with a bit more salt then add to pickle juice. If using brine from fermented pickles, cover and leave to sit on the counter for a day or two before refrigeration to start fermentation. Put vinegar based pickles directly in fridge. The pickles will be best eaten within a couple of weeks. You can keep recycling the pickle brine for a while as long as the salt level stays consistent (taste the brine occasionally and add more salt to veggies before placing in brine if it is starting to taste less salty).

Submitted by Sara Jones, Tucson CSA