Cucumber Pickles

I've been craving those tangy, crunchy mini cucumbers that local asian restaurants (Wild Ginger, Monsoon, etc) serve as an appetizer.  Each bite is filled with a refreshing flavor.  Ironically, I gave my mom a cookbook that contained the recipe for Wild Ginger's pickled cucumbers and had to give it a shot.

Small pickling cucumbers can be hard to find, but Trader Joe's, Whole Foods and even Costco usually sell them.  Typically they'll be sold in a prepackaged plastic bag, and you get somewhere around one pound.  I bought mine at Costco and they came in a 1.5lb package.  I plan to use the unused cucumbers for slicing and dipping in hummus...

The recipe is fairly straight forward. Its only time consuming because you have to let the sliced cucumbers sit for an hour while salt helps extract some of their juices.  Otherwise, you combine the ingredients and let them sit!  They only keep for 3-4 days max, so make sure you can eat them or give some away! 

Cucumber Pickles, courtesy of Wild Ginger

1 lb small pickling cucumbers

2 tsp coarse salt, divided

2 Tbls distilled white vinegar

2 Tbls sugar

5 Tbls hot water

4 slices fresh ginger, peeled

4 shallots, peeled and quartered

Slice cucs into ¼” rounds and combine with 1 tsp salt.  Cover and let sit 1 hour.  Rinse cucs with fresh water and drain well.

Combine remaining tsp salt, vinegar, sugar and hot water.  Stir to dissolve.  Pour over cucs and toss with ginger and shallots.  Let sit at least 1 hour.  Cucs will remain fresh 3-4 days if refrigerated.