My family takes our pickles seriously. Sour pickles, half-sours, pickled green tomatoes, you name it. We debate whether Grandma Rosie used too much dill or not enough, why the garlic cloves sometimes turn blue, whether you need a little sugar or you don’t, and so on. So when I saw this beautiful recipe, the epitome of simplicity, I knew I wanted to share it with you! Feel free to use any combination of the following vegetables. You can pickle anything, not just cucumbers. Each 1-quart jar will contain approximately 12 ounces.

Veggie choices:

Asparagus, blanched 1 minute and cooled.
Broccoli stems, peeled and cut into sticks.
Carrot sticks, blanched 2 minutes and cooled.
Cauliflower florets, blanched 1 minute and cooled.
Green beans, steamed 2 minutes and cooled.
Kirby cucumbers, quartered.

Measure out these ingredients into several small containers:

• 3 Tbsp. kosher salt
• 2 Tbsp. sugar
• 1 1/4 cups distilled white vinegar (5% acidity)
• 2 Tbsp. coriander seeds
• 6 large garlic cloves, halved
• 4-6 long hot chiles (red or green), halved lengthwise
• 16 sprigs of dill

Pack your vegetables into a sparkling clean 1-quart glass jar. If there are extra, start a second jar. Combine the salt, sugar, vinegar, coriander seeds, and garlic in a separate jar, and shake patiently and vigorously until the salt and sugar are completely dissolved. Add 2 cups of water to the spice jar, and then pour the brine over the vegetables. Tuck the chiles and dill in and among all the vegetables. Then add more water to keep the vegetables submerged. Close the jars and refrigerate overnight. Keeps in the refrigerator up to one month.

Thank you to foodandwine.com for teaching me how to do this!