Fruiting vegetables
Cherry Tomato NukazukePrick and Pickle 2–3 Days, and Our Honest Take
You can pickle cherry tomatoes in nuka too. To be honest, though, the sweetness of cherry tomatoes and the sourness of the bran didn’t go together as well as we hoped. Not bad, but not worth the long pickling time.
Tarter tomatoes, or varieties that aren’t very sweet, are probably better suited to nukazuke than very sweet cherry tomatoes.
| Prep | Remove the stems and prick about 3 holes with a toothpick |
|---|---|
| Pickling time | 48–72 hours (2–3 days) |
| After pickling | Keep in the fridge and eat by the next day |
Pickling times are for a nuka bed kept in the fridge. At room temperature it pickles faster, and faster still in summer. The saltiness of your bed also makes a difference.
How to make cherry tomato nukazuke
- Remove the stems: Pull off the stems, rinse and pat dry.
- Prick: The skin is thick and keeps the bran out, so prick each tomato in about 3 places with a toothpick.
- Pickle: Lay them gently in the nuka bed so they don’t get crushed, and cover with bran.
- Take them out: Take them out gently and rinse quickly.
For better results
- Peel first: Blanch and peel them, and the bran soaks all the way in much faster.
- Cut in half: The cut surface pickles quickly. Halves fall apart easily, so wrap them in cheesecloth or a tea bag to make them easier to take out.
From bed to plate
A caution
Tomatoes are very juicy. If the skin breaks while pickling, the bed turns watery. Handle them gently so they don’t get crushed, and if the bed does get watery, see Caring for a Nuka Bed.
To bring out the sweetness of cherry tomatoes, sun-drying them may be a better choice than nukazuke.
