helpmejim

pickled watermelon rind-
why do all recipees for this pickle stipulate that the rind must bathe in a salt water brine for 24 hrs before pickling?

potato-
when boiling does an unpeeled spud do better versus a peeled one. Iam refering to the intake of water and overall flavor.

chestnut-
do you know of any trees in new york state?
I would love to buy one

sorry for the delay...am discombobulated here.

you've had lots of advice on pickling, I'm not sure 'bout potatoes, but as far as I know there are no chestnut trees (except for inedible horsechestnuts) anywhere NEAR here. All were killed by the blight, I understand

ciao

pickled watermelon rind-

As far as I know, *all* pickling requires soaking in
brine, as that's an essential part of the process. The
24 hours ("short-brine" pickling) is somewhat arbitrary
but is generally enough time to allow for the brine
solution to do it's work of drawing the sugars and
moisture from the foodstuff and create lactic acids.
This is critical as it's what keeps the pickled food
from spoiling (the lactic acids also contribute to the
flavor). Remember to use pickling (or dairy) salt in
your brine solution.

potato-

I'm not sure that leaving the skin on would greatly
affect water absorbtion, but I only leave the skin on
new potatoes. I would strongly recommend that you use a
pressure cooker instead of simply boiling them, as it's
faster and doesn't leech as much out of the potatoes
(unless you want to use the water for soup base).

chestnut tree-

Hmmm. Check with a nearby nursery for information. It's
likely that a variant is available for your region, and
the pros should be able to say for sure.

No, there are other kinds of pickles beside brine
pickles. Some pickles are simply marinated in
vinegar or some other acid.

For example: Slice some cucumbers into spears, and soak
them for an hour in rice wine vinegar,rice wine, sugar,
sesame oil, hot oil, and hot pepper flakes. It makes a
really yummy oriental pickle that I first had at
Ollie's.