Pickled onions

[bourrut]

[I][IHave,just finished my jar of haywards pickled  onions ,and had a thought,put some of my home grown shallots in the brine,anybody tried this.and any other suggestions.thanks.[I]

[andyh4]

Pickled onions avaialable in Auchan (well in Guillharand Granges anyway) . Not quite as good as H's, but still ***ned good

 

My experience doing it yourself is that they do not stay crisp for very long

[Val_2]

We live in a region renowned for it's shallots and onions and so I always pickle a fair amount. To keepthem crisp you must soak them overnight in cold salty water and then rinse extremely well. Mine never go soggy and keep for a few years.

[Framboise]

I've been making my own for a few months now - frankly they don't last long because my OH scoffs 'em rapidly!   Yes they do need to be soaked in salted water overnight then packed into clean jars in pickling vinegar.   I use vinaigre d'alcool, boiled-up with peppercorns and a finely chopped red chilli, packed into the jars with a couple of fresh bayleaves.   I have now got our French neighbour hooked on them too.    I could not find malt vinegar here hence why I use vinaigre d'alcool instead, but I reckon it tastes nearest to the vinegar we are used to with our onions.   [blink]

[Tancrède]

they do not stay crisp for very long

Yes, the brining is essential.  1oz to 1 pint is generally good for vegetables.  I must admit that I don't wash mine after brining  -  French salt looks dirtier than it really is.

[Pierre ZFP]

or you can just sprinkle the onions liberally with salt and leave overnight.  Wash off the salt and shake off the excess water.

[cathyinfrance]

i wanted to make some pickle cornichon , i tried the one from Casino , i like it very much , but i wanted to make some myself more then buy them , small bottle already 1 euro .

[Âme]

[quote user="Framboise"]vinaigre d'alcool [/quote]

I clean the windows with that! Didn't know it was edible. [blink]

[Lucinda]

I use Cider Vinegar which is actually much nearer to Malt Vinegar when pickling. My onions keep crisp for years - agreed it is the brining that is essentail. You can buy pickling onions here in the Dordogne but I think it may be a bit late in the season now - I usually buy then in August/September time.