Torshi is a pickled vegetable medley that’s fun to say, easy to make, and easiest to enjoy! This Middle Eastern side dish is a crunchy, briny complement to grilled meats, smoky flavors, and summer afternoons spent behind the barbecue. Add torshi to your plate for a side that shines on its own, or take torshi for a dip in hummus or baba ghanoush. Chef Pat shows us how to make this terrific torshi, so watch our video and see the full recipe below!
Torshi
Ingredients:
- 2 quarts water
- 1/2 cup Brussels sprouts (or cabbage), quartered
- 1 cup cauliflower, cored and cut into small florets
- 1/4 cup carrots, sliced to 1/8″
- 1/4 cup fresh banana peppers (or another pepper of your choice), sliced to preferred thickness
- 1/4 cup celery, sliced to preferred thickness
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced to 1/8″
- Torshi pickling brine (recipe below)
Instructions:
- In a stock pot, bring water to a boil.
- Once boiling, measure cauliflower, carrots, Brussels sprouts, and garlic, and add to boiling water for 3 minutes.
- While vegetables are blanching, prepare an ice bath in a bowl. After vegetables have blanched for 3 minutes, remove and immediately plunge into ice bath to stop the cooking process.
- Drain the ice bath, and combine all ingredients into an appropriate jar. Pour the hot pickling brine over the top, making sure all vegetables are submerged completely.
- Allow to cool on the counter for 15 minutes, then refrigerate for at least 14 hours. The longer pickle, the better!
Torshi Pickling Brine
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/3rd cup apple cider vinegar
- 2 TBL white sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black peppercorns, whole
- 1 tsp turmeric, ground
- 1 TBL pickling spice blend (if unavailable, substitute 1/2 tsp cumin seed, whole; 1/2 mustard seed, whole; 1 pinch caraway seeds)
Instructions:
- Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan, and place on the stove on medium heat and bringing the liquid to a boil.
- Once boiling, remove from heat and pour over top of blanched vegetables.