I stopped at a farm stand on the way to work this week, and they had the cutest little baby “middle eastern” cucumbers. Cute as can be. I asked about their potential future as a pickle, and the farmstress said the skins were SOOO tender and they’d probably make a fine pickle! So I grabbed five (four for pickling and one for fresh) and took them home with intention to pickle ’em.

I don’t can, in the sense of hot water and headroom and sterilized jars. My grandmothers did. My mother has. I’m just a little intimidated by the whole botulism risk I think. And the heat. In the middle of summer. And the steam. I need an ice tea already!

Quick refrigerator pickles, though, are a totally different story. I’ve done them in the past (can’t find the recipe of course) and there are 1000s of recipes out on the internet. I’ve also done pickled shallots with much success (on a spicy lamb burger with greek yogurt OMG sounds like another blog post, eh?), but I was aiming for something sweeter, more like a bread-and-butter pickle, but without the jaw achingly sweetness. This brine struck that balance … sweet, but not too sweet … sour, but not too sour … salty, but not too salty!

I started these off in the morning before work and had serviceable pickles for dinner. They continued to percolate and mellow over the next day or so. Use within about 3 weeks I’m guessing.

Quick Refrigerator Sweet Pickles

4-6 very firm smallish cucumbers
2 cups distilled white vinegar
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons pickling spice (bay, pepper, mustard, …)

Slice your cucumber into rounds about 1/4″ thick. Place them in a large heat-proof glass bowl.

Combine the vinegar, sugar, salt, and pickling spice in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Pour the brine over the cucumber slices and stir to ensure all the slices are submerged. Cover. Allow to cool on the countertop. Refrigerate. Keep refrigerated under cover for up to 3 weeks. Discard if you start to get off smells or colors!

I especially like them with peanut-butter-filled pretzels. Peanut butter and pickles are a match made in heaven. You know, I bet these would taste amazing deep-fried! Hmmmm … do I sense yet another post coming up ?

So another dish I learned to make in cooking class was Drunken Noodles. Now, if your Thai grandmother was making both Garlic Basil Chicken and Drunken Noodles, I’m sure the two dishes would be totally different from each other. But with my foggy memory and American palate, well, my versions are VERY similar. One has fish sauce and is served over rice, the other has carrots and noodles, but I’m not sure I could name which was which in a blind taste test.

NOTE: If you have a Thai grandmother who can shame me into truly appreciating the differences, please contact me soonest because I WANT to be in that blind taste test!

Drunken Noodles
Serves 2+, but I usually double this to serve 4+

Typically when I make this, I make about 1/3 as a kid-approved version and 2/3 as a spicy adult version, which you will see in the pictures. So I will try to explain that as I go.

3 – 4 garlic cloves, minced
3 – 5 Thai chile peppers, minced fine
3/4 lb lean beef, sliced thin (can use chicken or pork)
12 ounce package of rice noodle sheet, cut into wide noodles
2 – 3 tablespoons canola oil
3 teaspoons granulated sugar, divided
2 1/2 teaspoons seasoning soy sauce, divided
3 tablespoons oyster sauce, divided
1 medium-sized white or yellow onion, sliced thin (root to stem) [I used a giant shallot this time since I had no onion!]
A large handful of baby carrots, cut into matchsticks
A bunch of Thai basil leaves

Your garlic, chiles, beef, noodles, onion, and carrots should be prepared before you ever turn on the stove. Have your condiments setting to the side with lids off.

Heat both a small saute pan (I use an 8″ omelet pan) and a medium saute pan (I use a 10″ fry pan) over medium to medium-high heat. Swirl about a tablespoon of canola oil in the small pan and a tablespoon or two of canola oil in the large pan.

Turn on your exhaust fan (trust me). Add 1/3 of the garlic to the small pan. Add the remaining garlic and the chiles to the large pan. Adjust the heat if needed — you are going to cook these just until fragrant. Add 1/3 of the beef to the small pan and 2/3 of the beef to the large pan — stir them around to coat the beef in the garlic and the oil. Cook the beef, stirring occasionally, until it’s about 1/2 done (a little pink is okay).

Add about 1/3 of the noodles to the small pan and 2/3 of the noodles to the large pan — stir them around to coat the noodles in the meat juice and oil. Don’t play with them too much — they tend to fall apart — and it’s okay if they caramelize a little — some color is okay.

Sprinkle 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons of sugar, 1/2 teaspoon seasoning soy sauce, and 1 tablespoon oyster sauce over the beef in the small pan and stir.

Sprinkle 1 – 2 teaspoons of sugar, 2 teaspoons seasoning soy sauce, and 2 tablespoons oyster sauce over the beef in the large pan and stir.

Put a few slices of onion in the small pan (the kids will pick it out probably) and the remainder of the onion in the large pan. Put about 1/3 of the carrots in the small pan and the remainder in the large pan.

Turn the heat down a bit and cook a few minutes until the vegetables softens but are still tender-crisp. Sometimes I will put a lid on the pan to reduce evaporation while they cook a bit.

Toss in the basil leaves and stir until they wilt a bit. Serve immediately.