Use up an abundance of leeks to make these Quick Pickled Leeks in a hurry – a few simple ingredients come together nicely for a topping on your favorite dish!
When you think of pickles, more then likely leek pickles aren’t the first to come to mind. They are ginormous… and more times than not, really dirty in the grocery store or market.
Dirty as in… you need to give them a good scrub because they can have remnants of the garden dirt stuck in them pretty darn good. But once you get them cleaned up, they are so fun to cook with.
Or, in this case, make pickles with.
Add some pickling brine, and a sprig or two of thyme and you are in business. These are the most delectable (and unusual) pickles you will ever come across.
And so easy to throw together.
Quick Pickled Leeks
These quick-pickled leeks come together easily with just a few main ingredients:
- white wine vinegar
- thyme
- garlic
- sea salt
- lemon juice
Wash your leeks; then cut them into rings/half moon slices. Stuff a few sprigs of thyme along with your leeks into a canning jar along with the garlic. Combine the other ingredients in a saucepan over low heat. Once the mixture comes to a boil, turn off the heat and pour the brine over the jarred leeks.
Top with lid and ring and allow to cool before refrigerating.
How to eat Quick Pickled Leeks
These yummy leeks are great on top of vegetable soups, on tacos, or using in place of a relish. They have a very fresh and earthy flavor with a considerable amount of punch.
Quick Pickled Leeks
Ingredients
- 2 large leeks
- 1.5 C white wine vinegar
- 1 C water
- 3 sprigs thyme
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1 lemon zest and juice only
- 1 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Toss the vinegar, water, salt, and lemon in a saucepan and bring to a boil. This will be your brine.
- While the brine is heating to boil, rinse your leeks well, taking care to get all of the dirt out from under the various layers. Trim the green head and keep that for other recipes (I use mine for stock). Chop off the root base and discard that, too. Slice the leek lengthwise down the middle and open.
- Clean out the leek once again to make sure you have no added dirty and debris. Chop into half moon shapes, or rings, your preference, and drop into your jar along with the sprigs of thyme and clove of garlic.
- Once the vinegar starts to boil, remove from the heat and pour over the leeks. Cover with lid and ring. Let sit to cool, then place in the fridge. They will keep for up to 14 days.
Enjoy these pickled leeks:
- On burgers in place of pickles
- As a topping for your favorite nachos recipe
- Straight out of the jar…
- On your favorite tostada, or taco recipe
OTHER PICKLING RECIPES TO TRY:
- Raw Pickled Beets
- Pickled Brussels Sprout Halves
- Pickled Lettuce Recipe
- Pickled Sweet Corn
- Pickled Hatch Chiles
- Spicy Pickled Celery Sticks
- Pickled Asparagus Spears
And forget veggies – fruits can be pickled too!
Did you make this recipe?
If you did, take a second to rate the recipe and leave a comment to let me know how it turned out for you.
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