Cucumbers with figs are a dish that adds spices to family meals because the harmonious sweet and sour taste helps to relieve the feeling of eating a lot of greasy food.
However, to make standard pickled cucumbers with figs, keep them brittle for a long time and avoid being greasy, the following secrets need to be applied:
Choosing standard ingredients
The quality of the pickled cucumber with figs depends largely on the choice of ingredients. In particular, housewives should pay attention to choosing cucumbers (cucumbers with sticky rice), small fruits, thick intestines, longan and bright green.
Hand-held melons that are not soft will be crispy after pickling. Avoid choosing large melons with a large intestine, which are easily soft and waterlogged.
For figs, priority should be given to choosing fruits that are not too young or too old. The figs are even, have thin shells, and the intestines are pink when the salt is present, so they will be crispy, less plastic and less sandy.
Properly processed
This is an important step to help the pickled cucumber with figs not be soft and mushy. In particular, cucumbers to maintain their crispiness need to remove excess water.
After washing, soak in diluted salt water and let it dry. You can pair them, remove the intestines and slice them cross-seated.
Then, mix the melon with a little seed salt, shock well and let it steep for about 20 - 30 minutes. Salt will help drain the water from the melon and then use your hands to gently squeeze it and rinse with filtered water, drain.
Figs are a fruit that has a plastic substance that causes sand and can easily get darker. Immediately after slicing the figs (can be sliced or double-sliced), soak them in a bowl of cold water with salt and lemon juice (or vinegar).
Soak the fig for about 30 minutes to release all the plastic and then rinse many times with water until the water is clear and liky. Remove the figs from the basket to dry completely.
recipe for sweet and sour broth
The most important addition of pickled cucumbers with figs is the pickled water. A balanced mixing ratio will help the pickled cucumber with figs be delicious and preserve them for a long time.
Accordingly, housewives can apply the formula 1:1:1:3, corresponding to 1 portion of sugar, 1 portion of delicious fish sauce, 1 portion of rice vinegar and 3 portions of filtered water.
Add the mixture to the pot, boil gently to help the spices dissolve and let cool completely before soaking the melon and figs. Next, slice the garlic, slice the chili or leave the fruit whole.
Apply the soaking and storage process
Soak the pickles in a glass jar, note that the jar needs to be cleaned, drained with boiling water and dried to avoid bacteria. Intercrop cucumber, fig, garlic, and chili in the jar. Pour slowly from the soaking water to fill all the ingredients.
Use a bamboo or a clean heavy object to press on top, making sure the melon and figs are always soaked in water, not floating on the surface, which will cause damage.
Leave the melon and pickle soup in a cool place for about 1-2 days to be used. When the melon has reached the desired sourness and crispiness, it should be stored in the refrigerator to slow down the fermentation process, helping the melon retain its crispiness and deliciousness for longer.
