Karl’s Quick Pickled Japanese Cucumbers

Karl’s Quick Pickled Japanese Cucumbers

I forgot to start the pickles I was planning to make the day before, so I wanted to come up with a faster way to make Japanese cucumber pickles. I decided to use the technique of Persian hot pickles, heating the pickling liquid and the cucumbers to speed up the process. They came out very much like my favorite cucumber pickles from Gombei.

Karl’s Quick Pickled Japanese Cucumbers

Based on a www.thekitchn.com recipe

Ingredients

2 or 3 Japanese cucumbers
2 tsp. Kosher salt
1/4 cup rice vinegar
2 Tbs. sugar
2 Tbs. black sesame seeds
1 Tbs. wakame, reconstituted in water, drained and chopped fine

Directions

Wash the cucumbers and slice in thin diagonals. Place in a bowl and sprinkle the 2 teaspoons of salt on them, and set aside for five minutes stirring occasionally.

Combine last 4 ingredients in a small pot and bring to a low boil. Rinse the salt off the cucumbers in hot tap water and drain. Add the cucumbers to a lidded container and pour the contents of the pot over them. Let cool and then place the container in refrigerator for at least 3 hours. They will be ready to eat then, but their flavor will improve over time.