At last Saturday’s “Cooking with Flavor” class, we talked about salting your food throughout the cooking process to draw out flavors, and making sure to taste it along the way. We tasted five different types of salt and while everyone’s preference was different, we definitely noted that there are marked differences between even just those five options which obviously
We also experienced the difference that acids such as vinegar and lemon juice can add to many dishes from frosting to broth, adding “brightness” and cutting through rich or heavy foods.
Finally, we covered the importance of cooking food that also looks beautiful, because we really do eat with our eyes first. I made Hoisin Pork and Vegetable Rice Bowls from Once Upon a Chef: Weeknight/Weekend cookbook (available here at Harvey’s): a delicious, easy meal that can look like a pile of brown slop if you don’t take a few extra minutes to add some toppings.
Even a simple sprinkle of chives or green onions makes a huge difference in how appetizing the food looked – but then we topped it with pickled red onions, red bell pepper, pickled carrots, cucumber, and white and black sesame seeds and it looked even more scrumptious!
Adding garnishes like this can be a great way to use up bits and pieces of vegetables that would otherwise spoil in the refrigerator. And in the case of pickled vegetables, you can make a batch and they’ll keep for weeks in the refrigerator, making it easy to add color and texture to meals with just a few minutes of prep.
Here’s how I quick-pickle red onions (or other vegetables such as carrots, radishes, or jalapenos):
Pickled Red Onions Recipe
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon honey or granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 red onion, thinly sliced
Place sliced onions in a pint jar. Combine vinegar, sugar or honey, and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer until sugar or salt is dissolved. Allow to cool slightly; then pour over onions and shake well. Allow to sit for at least 15 minutes, shaking the jar occasionally.
If you have more time, the onions will remain crisper if you do not heat the vinegar at all, but they’ll take longer to pickle (allow them to sit for a couple of hours).
With either method, they can be refrigerated for at least a few weeks. Once you use them up, you can just add additional onions to the same liquid.
We use pickled onions as a topping for tacos, braised meats, nachos, sandwiches, and more!