pickled asparagus

i love pickling. compared to making jam, it's a breeze. i can do it with only a few hours on hand and since you pack each jar separately, i can make as much or as little as i have supplies for.

(i didn't chop the asparagus for pickling)

spring's first foray into canning was pickling asparagus: cheap, in season and impressive looking.

i've found that the large roasting pan that i have is perfect for washing large amounts of things. i used it for my first arugula harvest and its come in handy for the asparagus as well.

over two weekends i did two batches of asparagus. i'll do one smaller batch this weekend.
for all of them, i used a simple brine: water, white vinegar and salt in a 1/1/1 ratio.

finished product!

• 3 cups of water
• 3 cups of vinegar
• 3 tablespoons of canning salt

for the first batch, i used in each jar:

• 1 teaspoon coriander
• 1 teaspoon yellow mustard seeds
• 1 clove of garlic 
• 1 dried chili pepper

for the second batch:

• 1/2 teaspoon pink peppercorns
• 1/2 teaspoon dill seeds
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1 dried chili pepper

all in all it was pretty simple.

1. blanch and ice-water bath asparagus, that has been trimmed to fit the jars. (I used the tall 12 oz. ones.)
2. bring bring to a simmer.
3. pack jars with herbs and then asparagus, tightly.
4. pour hot brine to 1/2" mark.
5. cap and place in hot water bath.
6. process for 10 minutes at a boil.
7. remove and place on counter to cool.