Host Indira Lakshmanan learns more about why consumers are embracing all sorts of pickled-flavored products on store shelves.
She speaks with food writer Karen Solomon, author of several books on pickles including her latest “Pickles, Illustrated.”
Book excerpt: ‘Pickles, Illustrated’
By Karen Solomon
Green strawberry salsa
The young, green, unripe berries that usually fill your jam jar are excellent for pickling, as is a lot of green fruit. The flavor and texture of a green strawberry is not unlike a tomatillo. I know it may be tricky to find these berries, but ask your local farmers’ market strawberry vendor, and I’m sure they will be happy to bring you some.
I already know what you’re thinking. Can you really call a salsa a pickle? I say yes. We are safely in the realm of food cured in acid for longer storage. This just so happens to be a pickle that tastes very good on chips.
Directions:
Hull and dice 1 pint of unripe strawberries. Chop ½ to ¾ of 1 red onion (about ¾ cup [105 g]). Mince 3 garlic cloves.
Add the strawberries, onions, and garlic to a medium sauce- pan along with ¼ cup [60 ml] of fresh lime juice, ¼ cup [60 ml] of distilled white vinegar, 1½ teaspoons of kosher salt, and ½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper. Cover and boil for about 5 min- utes, stirring occasionally, until it becomes thick and saucy.
Remove from heat and allow the salsa to cool for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then stir in ½ cup [4 g] of fresh mint leaves (tightly packed).
Your salsa is now chip ready. It will keep, refrigerated, for about 2 weeks.
Savory citrus pickled cabbage
Cabbage is universally enjoyed in some kind of preserved or salted state. Here, with the Southeast Asian flavors of lime juice, fish sauce, garlic, ginger, and chile, is one of my all-time favorites. Not only can this dish fill the void of any coleslaw at a picnic (thinking of you, fellow mayonnaise haters), but I also recommend you try it with stir-fried noodles or barbecued pork, chicken, or fish.
Directions:
Discard the tough outer leaves of a 1½ pound [230 g] napa cabbage. Lay the cabbage on its side with the root end facing you. Use a knife to split the root and then pull the cabbage apart into halves. Lay each half flat-side down and split the root again. You’ll finish with four long spears of cabbage still held together by the root. Then chop the cabbage quarters into 1 inch [2.5 cm] pieces, discarding the core and root, and transfer the pieces to a large mixing bowl.
Rub 2 tablespoons of kosher salt into the cabbage and let it sit for 20 minutes. Stir it once halfway through; you’ll notice that the cabbage will start to wilt and appear wet.
While the cabbage sits, squeeze ½ cup [120 ml] of fresh lime juice from about 5 limes. Mince 1 large garlic clove and a 1 inch [2.5 cm] cube of peeled fresh ginger. Slice 1 small jala-peño into very thin rounds.
Squeeze the wilted cabbage hard to rid it of some of its water and salt. Drain it and return it to the bowl.
Add the lime juice, garlic, ginger, and jalapeño to the cab- bage along with 3 tablespoons of fish sauce and 1 tablespoon of sugar. Mix thoroughly to combine.
You can eat this pickle right away, but it’s best to let it mari- nate for at least a day (you can do so in the mixing bowl or transfer the pickle to a canning jar). When covered tightly and stored in the refrigerator, this pickle will last at least 3 weeks.
From “Pickles, Illustrated A Cookbook of 36 Recipes and Briny Miscellany” by Karen Solomon, © 2025. Published by Chronicle Books. Illustrations by Alice Oehr.
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