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It’s the Perfect Time to Get Into Pickling
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ou’ve tried coaxing a sourdough starter to life or braiding a challah, turned speckled bananas into muffins, maybe even churned out sheets of pasta. For those lucky enough to hunker down at home in good health during the coronavirus pandemic, experimenting in the kitchen can be a welcome escape. But what about your produce drawer? If you can’t get your hands on baking staples right now, or are looking for a stay-at-home food project that’s a bit
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Baltimore Jewish Times May 8, 2020
more nutritious, consider pickling and fermenting. By making your own pickles or kraut, you can stretch the contents of your fridge, save wilted fruits and vegetables, and make something that lasts for months. You’ll also be leaning into a long, rich tradition embraced by Jewish cultures all over the world, a tradition of preserving foods to last in times of scarcity and uncertainty. “It’s more of a lifestyle” than a recipe, said Jeffrey Yoskowitz, co-founder and
chief pickler of The Gefilteria. Pickling and fermenting, said Yoskowitz, who also teaches Jewish food anthropology, is “a way of making sure you don’t waste, using resources to plan ahead,” he said. “If you are someone who does this at home, you always have something to add acidity, freshness, and essential nutrients” to whatever you’re eating. Which is why, he explains, these methods were a bedrock of Eastern European Jewish cuisine for centuries. To survive the long,
Jars: Getty Images via JTA; Pickle, Floortje
Sophia Gottfried | The Nosher via JTA
