Pickled Asparagus 2014

Busy, busy day!  The best thing about today?  Pickling asparagus!!  This is the second year I've pickled asparagus and I thought I'd try a little different recipe.  The ones I made last year were good but not quite spicy enough.  My family likes REALLY SPICY pickles.  So, here is how I made them this year.

I started with 120 spears.  I picked them up at the Minneapolis Farmer's Market this morning.  One thing I learned from last year is that I need to use the thicker stalks.  The smaller stalks are great for steaming but don't pickle very well.  The skinnier they are, the more "mushy" they get.  I cut off the ends then put them in a large bowl.  For each 30 stalks, I sprinkled on 1/3 cup of coarse salt, covered them with cold water and let them soak for about two hours.

While the spears were soaking, I prepared the jars and lids by sterilizing them in boiling water.

I also prepared the brine.  In a large stock pot, I boiled together  1 2/3 cups of white vinegar, 2/3 cups of sugar, 1 teaspoon of mustard seed, 1 1/2 teaspoons dill seed, and 1/2 teaspoon chili pepper flakes (per 30 spears of asparagus).

After the two hours of soaking, I rinsed off the asparagus in cold water and then put the spears in the sterilized jars.

To each jar, I added lots of baby dill.

This is something I made note of to change for next year.  Baby dill is all you can buy right now unless you grow your own.  I am definitely going to grow my own to be ready for this time next year.  I think that dill taste is so much more strong in mature dill!

Remember, my family likes their pickles with a little kick so I also added sliced habanero peppers, jalapenos and serrano chilies.

When the brine was ready, I ladled it into each jar, filling it to within about 1/4 inch from the top.

I put a sterilized ring and lid on each jar and then put them in a hot water bath for about 10 minutes.

After 10 minutes, I removed each jar to a clean towel in hopes that they would seal.

There has been lots of poppin' going on!!!

"Asparagus inspires gentle thoughts."  -Wally Lamb