Turşu
In Turkey turşu is sold in dedicated shops, and the brine, turşu suyu, is drunk by the glass, much like pickle juice in Poland. It is a colourful mix of vegetables — cauliflower, carrot, cabbage, peppers and cucumbers — pickled in a salt and vinegar brine with garlic. The vinegar acidifies the brine from the start and protects the vegetables in the first days, while fermentation adds depth; after 7–10 days the vegetables are crunchy, sour and slightly hot. A slice of beetroot turns it all pink.
Your own work in that: 15 min.
- Preparing the vegetables 30 min
- Brine 5 min
- Cooling the brine 30 min
- Packing the jar 15 min
- Pickling 14400 min
Step by step
0 / 8 donePrepare the vegetables
Break the cauliflower into florets, cut the carrots into sticks about 1 cm thick and the cabbage into wedges with a piece of core so they hold together. Leave the cucumbers whole and prick the peppers in a few places so the brine gets inside.
Ingredients: 300 g cauliflower · 2 pcs carrots · 300 g white cabbage · 4 pcs small pickling cucumbers · 3 pcs long thin-walled green peppers · 1 pcs beetroot, one slice · 6 cloves garlic · 2 pcs dried chillies · 1 tbsp dried chickpeas
Cabbage wedges with core — they stay whole.Boil the brine
Bring 300 ml of the water to the boil with the salt and sugar, stirring until they dissolve — about 5 minutes. Use non-iodised salt without anti-caking agents: the additives in table salt can cloud the brine and spoil the taste.
Ingredients: 1000 ml water · 2 tbsp non-iodised rock salt · 1 tsp sugar · 200 ml wine or cider vinegar, 6%
Cool and add vinegar
Take the pan off the heat and add the remaining 700 ml of cold water and the vinegar. Cool the brine about 30 minutes, until completely cool. Hot brine would cook the vegetables and rob them of crunch.
Ingredients: 1000 ml water · 2 tbsp non-iodised rock salt · 1 tsp sugar · 200 ml wine or cider vinegar, 6%
Prepare the jar
Scald a 2-litre jar. Put the garlic, chillies, beetroot slice and a spoonful of chickpeas in the bottom. Chickpeas are a common Turkish addition — by tradition they speed up the fermentation.
Ingredients: 300 g cauliflower · 2 pcs carrots · 300 g white cabbage · 4 pcs small pickling cucumbers · 3 pcs long thin-walled green peppers · 1 pcs beetroot, one slice · 6 cloves garlic · 2 pcs dried chillies · 1 tbsp dried chickpeas
Garlic, chilli, beetroot and chickpeas at the bottom.Pack the vegetables tightly
Pack the vegetables in layers, tightly so they do not shift. Leave 3 cm of space below the lid.
Ingredients: 300 g cauliflower · 2 pcs carrots · 300 g white cabbage · 4 pcs small pickling cucumbers · 3 pcs long thin-walled green peppers · 1 pcs beetroot, one slice · 6 cloves garlic · 2 pcs dried chillies · 1 tbsp dried chickpeas
Pour over the brine
Pour in the brine to cover the vegetables by at least 2 cm. Hold them down with a cabbage leaf or a small weight — everything must stay below the surface.
Ingredients: 1000 ml water · 2 tbsp non-iodised rock salt · 1 tsp sugar · 200 ml wine or cider vinegar, 6%
Everything under the brine — that is what keeps it safe.Pickle 7–10 days
Screw the lid on loosely and leave the jar at room temperature (18–22°C), out of the sun, for 7–10 days. Every 2 days check the vegetables are under the brine. The brine turns cloudy and the vegetables change colour — that is normal.
Ingredients: 300 g cauliflower · 2 pcs carrots · 300 g white cabbage · 4 pcs small pickling cucumbers · 3 pcs long thin-walled green peppers · 1 pcs beetroot, one slice · 6 cloves garlic · 2 pcs dried chillies · 1 tbsp dried chickpeas
Move to the fridge
Once the vegetables are sour but still crunchy, close the jar tightly and move it to the fridge. Serve with grilled meat, kebabs and beans, and drink the brine as turşu suyu.
Ingredients: 300 g cauliflower · 2 pcs carrots · 300 g white cabbage · 4 pcs small pickling cucumbers · 3 pcs long thin-walled green peppers · 1 pcs beetroot, one slice · 6 cloves garlic · 2 pcs dried chillies · 1 tbsp dried chickpeas
Before you start
Safety
A flat white film on the surface is yeast — skim it off. Coloured, fuzzy mould or a rotten smell means the jar must be thrown away. Vegetables poking above the brine spoil first.
Storage
Turşu keeps up to 2 months in the fridge. In the cold, fermentation almost stops, so the vegetables stay crunchy for a long time.
Other vegetables
Green tomatoes, green beans and turnip also make excellent turşu. Hard vegetables such as carrot or turnip pickle slowest, so cut them into thinner pieces than the cauliflower and cabbage.