Pickles
The first step in pickling vegetables is soaking them in ice or salt water to keep them crisp. Since regular salt water will cause many vegetables to lose vitamins and minerals, it is recommended that calicium salt be used instead of table salt.

To pickle your vegetables, simply soak them in vinegar. Cider vinegar will produce the best flavor, although white vinegar will not discolor the vegetables as much.

Be sure not to consume any pickles that are too moldy, mushy, overly discolored, or have an bad smell, as they may have spoiled.

Plants in this guide that can be pickled
Compositae - The Aster Family
Common Dandelion

Young flowerbuds can be pickled in vinegar.
Phytolaccaceae - The Pokeweed Family
Pokeweed

Peel shoots*, boil in several changes of water for 15 minutes, then pickle in hot vinegar.
Typhaceae - The Bulrush Family
Common Cattail

In early spring, sprouts at the tips of rootstalks can be peeled, boiled, and pickled.
Except where specifically noted, all text, photographs, and drawings copyright Chris Bersbach and Lisa Leombruni 2002. No part of this page may be reproduced without the express permission of the authors.