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Looking for a way to upgrade your sandwiches, cheese plates, cocktails, and more? Let me introduce you to giardiniera, a pickle-y vegetable medley I put on nearly everything. It’s true, you could just buy a jar from the store, but if, like me, you start finding yourself going through, ahem, too many of them, this is the recipe for you. Turns out, it’s actually wildly easy to make your own giardiniera—not quite a quick pickle, but certainly simple enough to make at home. Read on for all my top tips!
Giardiniera is a bright and briny Italian antipasti that features a variety of colorful vegetables. You can find many variations, though they all have something in common: preserved or pickled vegetables. The two main kinds of giardiniera you can easily find today are Italian and Chicago-style.
Italian giardiniera is typically composed of larger pieces of raw vegetables that are often brined in salt before being plunged into a vinegar-based brine. Chicago-style, on the other hand, consists of much smaller pieces of vegetables that are often first pickled in vinegar, drained (sometimes), then added to oil. Italian-style, which is what I went with here, is more often eaten whole, as a side or accompaniment to a meal, whereas Chicago-style is usually eaten as part of a dish, like a muffuletta or a classic Italian beef sandwich.
Every step here is simple, so it’s important to follow the few steps that there are to ensure the most flavorful pickled vegetables. In my research, I found that soaking the pieces of vegetables in salt water overnight penetrated them perfectly, so don’t skip this step! In a large bowl toss cauliflower, bell pepper, carrot, celery, garlic, and salt. Pour water into the bowl, making sure the vegetables are submerged in water. Place in the refrigerator for 12 to 24 hours. I let mine go for at least 24, so don’t stress if it’s a little more.
At this point, you can make the pickling liquid and allow it to sit in the refrigerator overnight if you want to get ahead. You can make it the same day you’ll be using it to brine your vegetables too. In a large bowl, whisk some vinegar, oil, black pepper, red pepper flakes, fennel, and dried basil or oregano.
Once your vegetables have been salt-soaked for at least 12 hours, drain them and divide them between 2 containers. I used deli quarts, but glass jars or even a bowl would work too. Pour the pickling liquid over your vegetables (making sure to get a good mix of the herbs in each container!), then store in the refrigerator for another 12 to 24 hours before eating. Enjoy!
The complete list of ingredients and instructions can be found in the recipe below.
Giardiniera can last up to 2 weeks, refrigerated, in an airtight container. If you want to preserve it for future use, follow these best canning practices.
small head of cauliflower, chopped into bite-sized pieces
red bell pepper, seeds and ribs removed, chopped into 1/2" pieces
large carrot, sliced on a bias into 1/2"-thick pieces
celery ribs, sliced into 1/2"-inch thick pieces
garlic cloves, smashed, peeled
kosher salt
vegetable oil
white wine vinegar
black peppercorns, lightly crushed
crushed red pepper flakes
fennel seeds, lightly crushed
dried basil or oregano
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