Recipe: Naturally Fermented Pickled Mustard Greens

Despite my love of all things fermented, it's been a while since I posted a recipe, so I thought this was perfect timing - especially since it's fall, so we have an incredible abundance of delicious purple Chinese mustard greens in the garden!

My husband actually turned me on to this recipe, but as the version he sent me called for a specific type of Chinese mustard, I am actually sharing a slightly different recipe, which says it can be made with just about any type of mustard greens, or radish or turnip greens.

I haven't tried this yet, but plan to do so soon - it sounds so delicious and I've been craving fermented foods since my summer cabbage didn't turn out that well, so I haven't made any kimchi or sauerkraut in a while!

Whether you're a fan of pickled mustard greens, or just looking to try a new ferment, you may find this recipe of interest.

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Keep in mind this is a lacto-fermented pickle, so you will need a cool, dark place where it can sit for a while undisturbed. I often put ours on top of the fridge in the winter as our house tends to be cold, but I've also made slow ferments in the basement during the summer. You want your ferment to be somewhere in the range of approximately 68-73 degrees Fahrenheit. The cooler end of the range will take longer to ferment. You can ferment your greens anywhere from 3 days to a week or two. I usually find most of my ferments turn out to my liking at around 7 days - maybe 5 in the summer when it's a bit warmer.

As with most natural ferments, you will need a few basic items and ingredients:

• A non-reactive container to ferment your pickles, plus some sort of weight to hold them under the brine. I usually ferment in 1-quart wide mouth Mason jars, and I have glass pickling weights and air lock lids that fit these. You can also use a traditional fermentation crock, most of which come with weights and a lid with an air lock.
• A kitchen scale, if you want to weigh your salt. I find this a bit confusing, as you have to do some calculations, plus different salts weigh different amounts, so I always measure by volume, but I'm including the instructions for weighing in the recipe below if you want to go that route.
• Good pickling salt or sea salt. You can use regular pickling salt or Kosher salt - just be sure to avoid the iodized kind, which is not suitable for pickling. I like to use Celtic sea salt, or Real Salt.
• Filtered or chlorine-free water. This is super important, as chlorine will kill the beneficial bacteria, leading to a slimy, stinky, rotted product, rather than the tasty ferment you want! If you don't have a filter that can remove chlorine, you can boil your water at a rolling boil (with the lid off) for several minutes, then let cool completely to allow the chlorine to evaporate.

The recipe below makes a 3-quart batch, which I think is rather large, especially if this is your first time pickling greens. I would suggest cutting down the amounts proportionally to the batch size you want, and will probably try a 1-quart batch first myself.

Chinese-Style Fermented Pickled Mustard Greens Recipe*

Ingredients:

• 3 quarts non-chlorinated water
• 3/4 cup kosher salt or sea salt (or see weighing instructions below)
• 3 to 5 star anise
• 5 to 10 dried hot Thai chiles, broken in half
• 1 tablespoon Sichuan peppercorns (optional)
• A 2-inch piece of ginger, sliced thin
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 tablespoons molasses or brown sugar
• 1 1/2 pounds mustard greens, cut into large pieces

Instructions:

• Bring everything but the salt and mustard greens to a boil in a large pot. Turn off the heat and let it cool to room temperature. (If weighing: Pour everything into a vessel that you can weigh, and weigh the water plus spices in grams. Write this down.)
• Wash your mustard greens well, then shake them dry and weigh them in grams (if weighing). Write this down. 
• When it's cool, weigh out 2 percent of the total weight of greens + water + spices in salt. Dissolve this in the liquid. If you use fine-grained salt you should have no problem. If the salt doesn't want to dissolve, stir until it does. 
• NOTE: If you don't want to weigh all this out, just use the salt ratio I have in the ingredients list. It is approximately the same, but not exactly. 
• Get out your fermenting crock or 5 quart-sized Mason jars with 5 narrow jelly jars (or fermentation weights) to keep the greens submerged. You need this many because you will only pack the greens in 3/4 of the way into the jars -- you want at least 1 inch of brine above the level of the greens. 
• Submerge the greens in the brine, using a chopstick or skewer to get rid of any air bubbles. Put the weights on the greens if you have them. If not, place the Mason jars in the sink and put the narrow jelly jars in them. The brine will overflow but the narrow jar will prevent the greens from contacting the air. Set the jars on a baking sheet and put in a cool place away from direct sunlight.
• Let them ferment at least 3 days, or longer. Mold may form eventually. This is normal. You can wait until the mold cap is pretty solid, then pick it off. It's not harmful unless it's black.
• Finish by packing jars tight with the fermented greens, leaving about 1/2 inch of brine over them. Tighten the lids and put in the fridge. They will continue to ferment very slowly, so open the jars every week or two to release pressure.

Let me know how these work out for you! I will try come back and update this recipe with my results once mine are done...

Rose.


* Recipe Source: Honest-Food.net