I am from Korça , well, my mom’s origin to be sincere and this city is popular for its traditional homemade pickles. One curious fact, it is very difficult to find homemade pickles in stores in this city because every family makes its own and no one buys it ☺. From my personal experience, I was searching almost all markets for homemade cabbage pickles and couldn’t find any, so I asked the seller and he told me: “My dear, no one here buys pickles in the store, they just make their own”
Back to the recipe, I have chosen to share with you two pickles recipes as per my mom’s. Regarding the third one, I’ll share my personal twist of the traditional Curd stuffed peppers.
[lt_recipe name=”Homemade Albanian Style pickles” prep_time=”24H 10M” difficulty=”Easy” summary=”Fermentation process lasts 5 days so you have to be patient.” print=”yes” image=”https://bakemydayhappy.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/pickles.jpg” ingredients=”Cucumber pickles:;• 1 kg small cucumbers for pickles;• 3 tbs. salt; • water as needed; Mixed Cabbage pickles:;• 1 finely shredded white cabbage;• 1 cubed green pepper;• 2 grated carrots;• 3 tbsp. salt;• 6 cloves garlic;• 1 bunch of parsley;;Stuffed hot cherry peppers:;• 10 hot cherry peppers (deseeded);• 50 gr goat cheese;• 50 gr crème frâiche;• olive oil as needed;• 2 cups water;• 1/3 cup vinegar;• 1 tbsp. sugar;• 1 tbsp. coarse salt ; • 1 tsp. black peppercorns;• 4 garlic cloves;• 3 bay leafs;” ]TO MAKE THE CUCUMBER PICKLES: Divide the cucumbers in four parts longwise and add them to a bottle. Seal the bottle and shake well to cover all cucumber pieces in salt. Let it rest somewhere warm and sunny for about 24 hours. The next day cover the cucumbers in water till fully covered. Shake well, adjust with salt if needed and let the fermentation do its part. Leave it unopened for about 5-7 days shaking at least one time daily. After 5-7 days you’ll notice that the water in not clear anymore and in the surface you’ll see some white residues. Do not worry for this is natural due to fermentation. BONUS tip: You can drink also the pickling juice. It contains good bacteria and it can facilitate digestion.;MIXED CABBAGE PICKLES: Repeat the same step as with the cucumbers. Mix together the finely shredded cabbage, carrots, green pepper, garlic and parsley. Add salt and mix through with your hands, squeezing them a bit. Place the veggies in a large jar and let it sit for 24 hours. After 24 hours, cover with water and let it pickle for about 5-7 days shaking the jar daily. Now, a very crucial tip, after the pickles are ready you HAVE TO serve them with a very war bean stew and some delicious cornbread ☺.;STUFFED HOT CHERRY PEPPERS: In a small pot add the water, vinegar, salt, sugar peppercorns and bay leafs. Bring to boil and submerge the cherry peppers for about 4 minutes. Turn off the heat and remove them carefully. Pat dry the peppers and set aside. In a small bowl mix together the goat cheese, crème frâiche until smooth. Fill the peppers with the cheese filling and place them in a small jar. Add the garlic cloves, bay leafs and cover the jar with olive oil until fully covered. These pickles are ready in 2 days and can be stored in the fridge for up to 2 months.;[/lt_recipe]
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