How to make the Spanish Escabeche

What is pickle?

Pickling is a method of preserving food in vinegar. The origin of this type of cuisine is Arabic, in fact the name derives from the Arab-Persian sikbâg, which means "stewed with vinegar". The vulgar pronunciation of sikbâg was as iskebech, which became escabetx. The purpose of pickling is to keep food, mainly fish, in an acidic environment such as vinegar. This acidic environment blocks the cells responsible for putrefaction, and also prevents the formation of the compound that gives the characteristic fishy smell. But they actually perform the same function with any type of food, so you can make pickles with meat and vegetables.

Types of pickle:

Pickles can be cooked cold by adding an acid medium to the food cooked separately, or hot by cooking together. Obviously, if we cook the food in a mixture of vinegar, wine and oil, the flavor will be more intense. But the storage times are also different:

• Short-term storage: the marinade and the main ingredient are cooked together. It lasts 1-2 days.
  
  
• Medium storage: They are cooked separately and then combined when still hot. It lasts 8 days.
  
  
• Long storage: prepared separately and folded once cooled. Drink after 15 days.

Ingredients:

2 parts of extra virgin olive oil

1 part vinegar (apple, cider)

1 part of white wine (you can replace it with vinegar)

laurel

peppercorns

Salt

Garlic

The "Spanish" recipe includes oil, vinegar (or vinegar + wine) and seasonings; the "French" recipe adds julienned vegetables.

How to prepare:

1. Heat oil over low heat in a saucepan or skillet. When it's hot, add the garlic and cook for a few minutes.
2. Remove the garlic, add the rest of the spices (bay leaf, pepper, finely chopped carrots, onions, etc.). Cook for a few minutes.
3. If we need to cook food with marinade, we add it and brown it a little on all sides.
4. Add vinegar and wine and simmer for about 20 minutes (or whatever you need) over low heat.
5. If we do not cook food with the marinade, let it cool and then add it to cold food.
6. Store in a refrigerator in an airtight container. 

6 practical tips:

How long will the brine last?

As we saw earlier, it depends on how we prepared it. When we mix the main ingredient with the marinade, it is important that they are at the same temperature, both cold and hot.

Let's take a look at the retention times:

• All cooked together: 1-2 days
• Cooked separately and in a warm mixture: 8 days
• Cooked separately and blended cold: 15 days.

Oil

It should be extra virgin olive oil, preferably with a delicate flavor.

Vinegar

The choice of vinegar variety depends on the taste. More delicate, such as apple or cider, better retain the original flavor of the main ingredient.

Wine

Wine is optional, but it goes especially well with meat. White sherry wine is ideal for pickles. But if you dare, you can use 2 parts oil, 2 parts vinegar and add half a glass of lemon juice, grapefruit, depending on the main ingredient you choose.

Spices

Do not miss the bay leaf and peppercorns. Black pepper is commonly used, but different types can be mixed. The proportion is 10 grams per liter of marinade. Other aromatic herbs such as thyme can be used with game; There are those who consume peppers (especially in mussels), cloves, chili peppers, nutmeg ... there are no rules, you just have to think about what works best for the main ingredient.

As for salt, you should not abuse it, because the marinade already gives a lot of aroma: only 3 grams per kilogram of product.