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Recipes with non-iodised salt

5 recipes that use non-iodised salt, with photos, step-by-step instructions and cook times. The quickest, Egyptian mixed pickles, takes 30 minutes. It is most often cooked with garlic, celery leaves and raw beetroot.

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Egyptian mixed pickles

Every koshari shop, ful cart and shawarma stall in Cairo puts a little dish of mekhalel on the counter, and Egyptians at home keep a jar going all year. Turnip batons are the star, dyed bright pink by a single slice of beetroot, with carrot, cucumber, chilli and lemon packed in alongside for crunch, heat and a bitter citrus edge. This quick fridge version is ready to eat in about 5 days and keeps for a month, cold. A common mistake is using iodised table salt, which clouds the brine and can soften the vegetables, so buy plain non-iodised salt. Chef's tip: cut the lemon into quarters but leave them joined at the base, so they flavour the brine without turning the whole jar bitter.

30 minEgyptianChutneys & DipsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Mzhave

No supra is laid without mzhave, a platter of crunchy sour vegetables that clears the palate between rich dishes and toasts. In Kakheti and Imereti families pickle green tomatoes, small peppers, garlic, cauliflower and cabbage together in autumn, flavouring the brine with dill stalks, celery leaves and a hot pepper or two. A common mistake is packing in warm brine, which softens the vegetables; let it cool fully first. Chef's tip: prick each green tomato with a skewer so the brine reaches the centre, and add a few cherry or vine leaves to the jar if you have them, for crunch.

30 minGeorgianSidesVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Gurian pickled cabbage

Gurian pickled cabbage turns heads at the Ozurgeti market: whole cabbage wedges stained deep pink by beetroot, layered with garlic, celery leaves and hot pepper and left to ferment in brine until crunchy and sour. Families in Guria put up big crocks in late autumn for the winter and the New Year table, and serve it beside fatty pork, beans and cornbread. A common mistake is using iodised salt, which can stop the ferment and darken the pickle. Chef's tip: keep the jar at cool room temperature for the first few days, then move it to the fridge once it tastes pleasantly sour, so it stays crisp.

30 minGeorgianSidesVeganGluten freeSpicy
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Lighvan-style brined cheese

The village of Lighvan, on the slopes of Mount Sahand south of Tabriz, gives its name to Iran's most loved breakfast cheese: a white, holey, tangy sheep's milk cheese matured in brine, traditionally in goatskins or tins in mountain caves. Across Azerbaijan province it is eaten every morning with warm bread, walnuts, fresh herbs and sweet tea. This home version uses pasteurised sheep's milk (or a mix with goat's milk) so it is safe to make in your kitchen. Village Lighvan is set with animal rennet; use a vegetarian (microbial) rennet to keep it vegetarian. The commonest mistake is cutting the curd before it gives a clean break, which loses yield and makes a crumbly cheese. Chef's tip: let the cheese firm in the fridge for a full week in the brine; it develops its classic tang and little holes as it matures.

1500 minPersianBasicsGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Khiar shoor

Khiar shoor, salty cucumber, is the pickle that turns up in every Iranian sandwich shop: sliced into olivieh and kalbas rolls in Tehran, eaten whole beside a plate of polo, or offered from a jar with bread and cheese. Small, firm Persian cucumbers are packed upright with garlic, dill, tarragon and chilli, then covered with a vinegar-sharpened brine. They are ready in about ten days and stay snappy for months. Chef's tip: pickle the cucumbers within a day of buying them; even a few days in the fridge makes them hollow inside.

30 minPersianChutneys & DipsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Goes well with non-iodised salt