I grew up eating the bold-flavored radishes and other vegetables that my mom pickled in a spicy-sweet white vinegar and ají amarillo pepper brine. I loved them, but it wasn’t until I worked in Asian restaurants abroad that I understood how a delicate, quick-pickled vegetable can turn a simple dish into something incredible. Use this quick-pickling braise to make crispy, Japanese-style pickled cucumbers, carrots, and radishes, or blanch baby squash, bell peppers (for a crunchier version, leave the peppers raw), or Fresno chiles to soften them up before adding them to the pickling liquid.
How you cut the vegetables also changes their texture. For a crispy sandwich or tiradito topping, finely dice cucumbers (or cut them into matchsticks) and let them marinate briefly, no more than a day. Leave thinly shaved radishes in the marinade for a couple of days, and you’ve got a good stand-in for store-bought pickled ginger. And little chunks of peeled, uncooked eggplant are one of my favorite vegetables to pickle. When you leave them in the brine for a few days, they soften up into tangy, pillowy bites. The brine makes about 2 cups, enough for 1 large or 2 smaller jars. How many pickles you wind up with varies depending on the type of vegetables and the size you cut them, but it’s easy to quickly make another batch of brine if you need more.
1 To make the Brine: Heat a medium saucepan over high heat until hot. Add 3 tablespoons whole black peppercorns and shake the pan a few times until they smell toasty, about 45 seconds. Immediately pour in 2 cups unseasoned rice vinegar and 2 cups sugar. Bring the liquid to a boil and turn off the heat. Stir again to make sure the sugar has dissolved. Let cool completely before using. Makes about 2¾ cups brine.
2 To prepare the Vegetables: Slice 3 to 4 cups vegetables however you would like. Fresh cucumbers and carrots are nice finely chopped, sliced into matchsticks, or thinly sliced into rounds about ⅛ inch thick. Radishes and ginger work well very thinly sliced or shaved. I like to cut unpeeled eggplant into small pieces about 1 inch long (Japanese or Chinese eggplant are best, as they have fewer seeds, but globe eggplants also work). Baby squash and chile peppers can be sliced in half if they are large; bell peppers can be cut into chunks or finely diced. Blanch vegetables like baby squash, seeded sweet bell peppers, or Fresno or other chiles (or for a crunchier texture, leave the peppers or chiles raw, whichever you prefer) before brining them. Blanch the vegetables in simmering water until crisp-tender (just a few seconds for finely sliced vegetables or up to 60 seconds for larger chunks), and immediately dunk them in an ice bath.
3 To make the Quick Pickles: Pack the vegetables into a medium food storage container or several glass jars. Pour in enough brine to completely submerge the vegetables. Refrigerate at least overnight or for up to 3 days, depending on your preference. Fewer days makes them crunchier and lightly pickled; longer and they will be softer and more intensely flavored. (With eggplant, always wait until they have softened, 2 to 3 days.) Strain and save the brine (discard the peppercorns or return them to the brine for additional spiciness). Refrigerate the pickles, covered, for up to 1 week. You can reuse the brine one more time (within 3 to 4 days), if you’d like.