Pickled Vegetables

YIELD: Makes about 10 cups

ACTIVE TIME: 1 hr

TOTAL TIME: 1 day

INGREDIENTS

1. For pickling liquid

• 2 1/2 cups distilled white vinegar
• 3 cups water
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 5 tablespoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon yellow mustard seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon dried hot red-pepper flakes

2. For vegetables

• 1 head cauliflower (2 lb), trimmed and broken into 1- to 1 1/2-inch florets (6 cups)
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 4 carrots, cut diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices (2 cups)
• 4 celery ribs, cut into 1-inch-thick slices (3 cups)
• 1 cup drained bottled whole peperoncini (4 oz)
• 1 cup large brine-cured green olives (preferably Sicilian; 6 oz)
• 1/2 cup oil-cured black olives (6 oz)

PREPARATION

1. Make pickling liquid:

1. Bring pickling-liquid ingredients to a boil in a 3-quart nonreactive saucepan over moderate heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Transfer to a 4-quart nonreactive bowl and cool about 30 minutes.

2. Cook vegetables:

1. Bring about 6 quarts unsalted water to a boil in an 8-quart pot. Have ready a large bowl of ice and cold water. Add cauliflower to pot and boil until crisp-tender, about 4 minutes, then transfer with a slotted spoon to ice bath to stop cooking. Cook remaining vegetables separately in same manner, allowing 4 minutes each for bell peppers and carrots and 2 minutes for celery. Drain vegetables in a colander and spread out on 2 large kitchen towels to dry.
2. Add cooked vegetables, peperoncini, and olives to pickling liquid. Weight vegetables with a plate to keep them submerged, then chill, covered, at least 1 day.

Cooks' notes:

•Stainless steel, glass, and enameled cast iron are nonreactive; avoid pure aluminum and uncoated iron, which can impart an unpleasant taste to recipes with acidic ingredients.

•Pickled vegetables keep, covered and chilled, 1 week.