Dave's Kitchen - Pickled Purslane

 



Recently I was part of a discussion on "Wild Edibles" when the

subject of Purslane came up, I knew what it was and have it

growing in and around my garden but never did more than

nibble at it on occasion. It was always a bit too slimy  and

bland tasting for my my liking so I pretty much ignored it.

However, I would not pull it as a weed or intentionally mow

over it while in the yard or garden.

I decided to try something that was suggested, so I went out

and picked several bags, trimmed out the tender parts, washed

it, then put it in the fridge to "firm" up. I thought about the

best way to pickle it and decided that it would probably do

best as a sweet pickle.  My concern was that it might be

a bit too slimy but I decided to give it a try anyway.

I emptied the bag out and chopped the stems and leaves into

a "relish" sized mix to get an idea of how many jars I'd need

and set it aside while I prepared the jars.

In each half pint jar I added:

1 Sliced Jalapeno Pepper

Several Cloves Fresh Sliced Garlic

1 Teaspoon Dried Dill

1/2 Teaspoon Ground Allspice

1 Teaspoon Mustard Seeds

1/2 Teaspoon Ground Celery(dried)

6 Tablespoons Sugar

I then filled the jars with the chopped purslane and poured boiling

vinegar/water (2 parts vinegar-1 part water) into the jars, all the way

to the rim, leaving no headspace, then lidded the jars. I shook

them to make sure the ingredients mixed evenly, then put them on the

shelf to "Make" (the jars will seal as they cool).

I was concerned that the "slime" of the purslane would

be too heavy to be appetizing so I used a strong vinegar water

mix in the hopes it would cut it the way it does with pickled

Okra or Cactus.

After leaving it sit for about 2 weeks I decided it was time to

give it a try and "Daing", it was good!  From now on the

purslane I find growing in the yard and garden is going to

be carefully tended and gathered to make Sweet Pickle.

 

 

 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 

Thank you, Dave, for this post.  It's nice to have you back.  Dave has a huge garden and this year he had 150 tomato plants...and that's just the tomatoes.  So he keeps insanely busy over the summer, and the Texas heat is not kind.

 

Please leave questions or comments below, or email us at povertyprepping@yahoo.com

 

Thanks!

Susan

Dave's Kitchen - Brined Green Beans

When bringing in produce from your garden, there are times when you have more than you can eat but not enough to warrant getting out the tools and utensils out to process it.

Produce can be stored in the fridge until you have enough but but things like Green Beans can spoil if kept more than a few days.

Green Beans can be "Brined" and kept that way for weeks without spoiling.  That can preserve them until enough are gathered to work with.

 

Brined Green Beans

To brine the beans, wash snap, string or cut them like you would
when preparing them to cook or can.

In a crock, cooking pot or other container, put a thin layer of green
beans in, then add a layer of salt and repeat until the container
is full or you run out of beans.  Top with an additional layer of
salt. Cover the container and set it aside.

Fairly quickly the beans will start to "cry" and after a day or
so the beans will be "swimming" in a brine formed by the salt and
liquid that was drawn out. They can be covered and stored this
way for weeks.  Just make sure the level of the liquid
stays above the green beans. If the brine level drops, just add
water.

More beans can be added and layered with salt as they come
in from the garden until the container is full.  Again, just make sure the
level of the liquid stays above the beans.

When you get ready to prepare them for preserving or eating, drain
the brine and soak them in fresh water for several hours or until the
salt leeches out, and process them like fresh beans. They can be
dehydrated, strung to air dry, or canned. Just process them
and treat them like fresh.

Keep in mind that if the beans are left in the brine for too long, they
may start to ferment and become "Pickles". Theres nothing wrong
with Pickled Green Beans but they will need to be treated like pickle
and processed accordingly.

 

 

 The freshly snapped green beans in a bin
layered in salt.

 

 

 The same bin after it has sat overnight, the salt has drawn
the juices out of the beans and formed the brine.


This is not an indefinite long term method of preserving and store
your green beans but is a good process to be familiar with.

 

 

 

I have a fresh email from Dave about the beans:

 

Just a note about the green beans...

We had our Thanksgiving meal and one thing on the menu was Green Beans so I made up a batch of the ones that have been in the brine for about 10 days now. They were every bit as good(and crisp) as if they had been prepared fresh. I soaked them in fresh water overnight then lightly boiled and drained the water again, they cooked up with just enough salt to season them to taste.

 

I am leaving the rest of the batch in the brine to see just how long they will last before they start to pickle.

 

Dave...

 

I hope he'll let us know about the green bean brine-to-pickles process!