Green strawberries have become one of the biggest summer restaurant trends, especially pickled green strawberries. And while they might seem daunting they are one of the easiest and tastiest things to make at home.
What are Green Strawberries
In essence they are under ripe red strawberries, which begin white and juicy then turn a golden green, often with pink blushes and become tart and even bitter. The flesh is more firm than ripe strawberries making them easier to work with.
The art acidity of green strawberries, especially when pickled work really well with both sweet and savoury – as well as salty and fattier meats.
While it may seem strange to imagine strawberries in their unripe form as delicious think about green mango or papaya which are also so delicious before they are ripe.
How to Use Green Strawberries
Don’t replace green strawberries in your favourite red strawberry recipe, they just don’t bring the sweetness you would need. Instead look to replace tomatoes, citrus and unripe fruit with them.
They can be used in salsas, mignonettes, or to replace capers. They are great on cheese plates, in vinaigrettes or served with pates and terrines. Impress your friends with a green strawberry gazpacho, ice cream or granite.
How to Pickle Green Strawberries
While many are familiar with pickling fruits and vegetables in jars to preserve them we chose to put them in a pickle brine and then vacuum seal them. Our vacuum sealer at Loka is commercial grade but we’ve also used vacuum sealer for home use.
We use the traditional water bath canning method for many things, like our pickled ramps, because we can then use the liquid from the jars as vinegar. However, vacuum sealing has its advantages too:
1) You use just a fraction of liquid, which saves on the cost.
2) You use a fraction of the space, these strawberries can be stacked in the fridge.
This pickled green strawberry recipe is basic, without spices or herbs, so there would be more flexibility in using them. For example, you can always add fennel to your final recipe, but there’s nothing worse than wanting to use them and realizing the fennel you put in the pickle doesn’t mesh with the recipe you wanted to use them in.
We’ve provided the vacuum sealed proportions, to pickle in jars simply multiply the proportions by 7 to 10. Ensure that the liquid fully covers the berries.
- 5 lbs green strawberries, washed and cut into halves
- 3 cups cider vinegar
- 1 cup water
- 1.5 cup granulated white sugar
- ¼ cup kosher salt
- Bring cider, water, sugar and salt to a boil.
- Ensure sugar and salt is fully dissolved and remove from stove and let cool.
- Divide strawberries evenly amongst six bags, add 4 oz of brine to each bag.
- Vacuum seal and refrigerate.
If you’re already pickling green strawberries let us know how you’re using them.
Pickled Green Strawberries is a post from: Bacon is Magic