Tangy Mixed Vegetable Pickle (Dua Gop)

 

As a side dish for Mark Bittman's Grilled Skirt Steak with Vietnamese 'Chimichurri' I decided to try to pickle some cauliflower.  After paging through Into the Vietnamese Kitchen:  Treasured Foodways, Modern Flavors by Andrew Nguyen I stumbled across her recipe for Tangy Mixed Vegetable Pickle - perfect.  All I needed was a red bell pepper and I was in business.  Now the recipe makes about 8 cups and takes at least 24 hours to do so it is something of an endeavor.  We cut the recipe in half, but will still probably have mixed vegetable pickles to last for the next few weeks.  Luckily, according to Nguyen, the pickles keep well in the fridge for about 3 weeks.

Recipe after the jump!

Tangy Mixed Vegetable Pickle (Dua Gop)

Into the Vietnamese Kitchen:  Treasured Foodways, Modern Flavors

Andrea Nguyen

Ingredients (*Note this recipe was roughly halved):

1/4 cup salt

3 cups lukewarm water (add more water as needed to cover vegetables)

1 large red bell pepper, seeded and cut into strips 1/2 inch wide and 1 1/2 inches long

1 large carrot, peeled and cut on the diagonal into strips 1/4 inch thick and 2 inches long

1/2 medium head cauliflower, trimmed and cut into 1 inch florets

2 cups distilled white vinegar

1 1/4 cups sugar

2 cups cold water

In a large bowl combine the salt and warm water and stir.  Add all of the vegetables.  The water should just cover them.  Set aside for 4-6 hours.  Meanwhile, prepare the brine.  In saucepan, combine the vinegar, sugar and cold water.  Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and allow to cool completely.  Drain salted vegetables, but do not rinse.  Put them in a 2 quart glass or plastic container.  Pour in enough brine to cover vegetables and discard the rest.  Cover the container and refrigerate overnight.

The pickle will be ready to eat the next day and will keep in the refrigerator for about 3 weeks.