This easy pickled asparagus recipe is perfect for making delicious refrigerator pickles, or it can be processed in a water bath for long-term storage.
Use these tangy pickled asparagus spears as a healthy snack, a flavorful addition to any charcuterie board, or a delicious garnish to any homemade Bloody Mary.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Fresh Asparagus - Thin asparagus spears will pickle best.
- Garlic clove
- White vinegar
- White sugar - Sugar can be omitted, but it helps to smooth the sharp edge of the vinegar.
- Pickling salt - Kosher salt can be substituted.
- Pickling Spice - I recommend using my homemade pickling spice recipe, but storebought spice is fine. Otherwise, use a combination of mustard seeds, coriander, black peppercorns, clove, allspice, and bay leaves.
- Crushed red pepper flakes - This can be left out if you don't want any heat.
How to make it
Begin making this homemade pickled asparagus recipe by bringing vinegar, water, sugar, and salt to a simmer in a saucepan.
While the pickling brine simmers, trim the woody ends of the asparagus to fit into quart jars. Then fill your mason jars each with one asparagus bunch, garlic clove, two teaspoons of pickling spice, and red pepper flakes.
Once the sugar and salt has dissolved into the vinegar brine, pour the hot pickling liquid into the quart jars, wipe the top of the jar clean, and seal with canning lids.
The jars can be stored in your refrigerator for months. If you are using sterilized canning jars, you can process them in boiling water, using a water bath canner, for 10 minutes. Then store them in your pantry.
Pickled Asparagus
Equipment
- 1 quart jar
- 1 Saucepan
Ingredients
- 1 bunch asparagus
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 ½ cup distilled white vinegar
- 1 ½ cup water
- 2 tablespoons white sugar
- 1 tablespoon pickling salt
- 2 teaspoons pickling spice
- 1 dash crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Add vinegar, water, salt, and sugar to a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer. Cook until all of the sugar and salt has dissolved.
- Trim asparagus spears so they fit inside a quart jar, then tightly pack them into the jar. Add the clove of garlic, then sprinkle in the pickling spice and crushed red peppers.
- Once the sugar and salt have dissolved, pour the hot brine into the glass jars, leaving about a half inch of headspace.
- Wipe the rims clean, then seal the jars with canning lids and place them in the refrigerator to pickle for at least two weeks for the best flavor. Alternatively, you can process sterilized mason jars in a water bath for 10 minutes for long-term storage.
Leave a Reply