Chef Joost
Acar Ketimun (Indo-Dutch Cucumber Pickle)
Acar means pickle, ketimun means cucumber, and this little bowl of sweet vinegar, chilli, and crunch is the cool note that lets an Indo-Dutch rijsttafel keep its balance.
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Zoetzure Augurken
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Small cucumbers, salt, vinegar, sugar, and patience: zoetzure augurken are the Dutch larder at its sharpest, a jar of summer kept for the bread-and-cheese table.
Sauces & Condiments
Dutch
Make Ahead
Budget Friendly
25 min
Active Time
5 min cook•24 hr 30 min total
Yield2 jars of 500ml
In my grandmother's second notebook, the pickle page is stained more than written. That tells you everything. Augurken were never grand food; they were the little sharp thing beside the cheese, the cold sliced meat, the boiled egg, the brown bread. The thing you missed when it wasn't there.
The name already tells you the method, if not the whole history. Zoetzuur means sweet-sour, and augurk is the small cucumber made for preserving, firm-skinned and full of snap. But let me tell you a secret: the sweetness is not there to make dessert of a pickle. It rounds the vinegar so the cucumber stays bright, crisp, and useful at the table. Dutch tafelzuur, table sour, is not decoration. It is balance.
This is summer work. Use small, fresh gherkins when the skins are tight and the seeds barely formed; tired cucumbers make tired pickles, and no amount of clove can rescue them. Salt draws out water first, then the hot sugared vinegar goes in. Hou het altijd simpel, always keep it simple. A clean jar, a good rest, and a week of waiting are doing most of the cooking for you.
Sweet-sour pickles became part of the Dutch household larder through the older northern European practice of preserving summer vegetables in salt and vinegar, with sugar becoming more common as colonial trade made it cheaper in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Augurken appear in Dutch household cookbooks as tafelzuur, table sour, served with cheese, cold meats, boiled potatoes, and rich stews to cut fat and salt. The spice profile, often mustard seed, dill, bay, clove, and pepper, reflects the Dutch pantry after the VOC period, where imported spices became everyday preserving tools rather than luxuries.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
small fresh gherkins
Quantity
750g
scrubbed
onion
Quantity
1 small
thinly sliced
coarse sea salt
Quantity
35g
white wine vinegar or natural vinegar
Quantity
500ml
5 percent acidity
granulated sugar
Quantity
175g
water
Quantity
150ml
yellow mustard seeds
Quantity
2 teaspoons
black peppercorns
Quantity
1 teaspoon
coriander seeds
Quantity
1 teaspoon
bay leaves
Quantity
2
whole cloves
Quantity
4
dill sprigs
Quantity
2 small
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| small fresh gherkinsscrubbed | 750g |
| onionthinly sliced | 1 small |
| coarse sea salt | 35g |
| white wine vinegar or natural vinegar5 percent acidity | 500ml |
| granulated sugar | 175g |
| water | 150ml |
| yellow mustard seeds | 2 teaspoons |
| black peppercorns | 1 teaspoon |
| coriander seeds | 1 teaspoon |
| bay leaves | 2 |
| whole cloves | 4 |
| dill sprigs | 2 small |
Equipment Needed
- •Two clean 500ml jars with tight lids
- •Large mixing bowl
- •Small saucepan
- •Clean kitchen cloth
Instructions
- 1
Salt the gherkins
Put the scrubbed gherkins and sliced onion in a large bowl and toss with the coarse salt. Cover and leave in the refrigerator for 12 to 24 hours. The salt pulls out water, firms the flesh, and gives the vinegar room to enter; skip this and the pickle tastes watery, which is a sad little lesson.
- 2
Rinse and dry
Rinse the gherkins and onion quickly under cold water, then drain very well and pat dry with a clean cloth. Do not soak them. You want excess salt gone, not all the character washed out.
- 3
Pack the jars
Pack the gherkins and onion into two clean 500ml jars, tucking in a dill sprig and a bay leaf in each. Leave about 2cm of space at the top. The jars should look full but not crushed; a bruised gherkin softens faster than a careful one.
- 4
Boil the brine
Combine the vinegar, sugar, water, mustard seeds, peppercorns, coriander seeds, and cloves in a small pan. Bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves, then simmer for 2 minutes. Taste the air above the pan, not the brine itself; it should smell sharp first, sweet second.
- 5
Fill and close
Pour the hot brine over the gherkins, making sure they are fully covered. Tap the jars gently on the counter to release trapped air, then close with clean lids. Let them cool on the counter before refrigerating.
This recipe is written for refrigerator storage, not pantry canning. Keep the jars cold, and use clean utensils every time you serve from them. - 6
Wait a week
Refrigerate for at least 7 days before eating. The first day tastes like cucumber in vinegar; by the end of the week the sweet, sour, salt, and spice have stopped arguing and become tafelzuur, the crisp little sour that belongs beside almost everything.
Chef Tips
- •Use gherkins no longer than your thumb if you can find them. Large cucumbers have more seed and water, and they give you softness where you want snap.
- •The tide sets the menu, and so does the calendar; make these in high summer when pickling cucumbers are firm and cheap. In winter, buy a good jar and spend your patience elsewhere.
- •For a stronger old-fashioned spice note, add one extra clove, but no more. Clove is a guest with a loud voice, and a whole jar can become its lecture.
- •Serve sliced with jonge kaas, cold roast pork, liverwurst, bitterballen, or a plain boiled egg. Rich food needs sour company.
Advance Preparation
- •Needs at least 7 days in the refrigerator before serving; 10 to 14 days gives a rounder sweet-sour balance.
- •Keeps 4 to 6 weeks refrigerated if the gherkins stay covered by brine and you use clean utensils.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 50g)
Calories
25 calories
Total Fat
0 g
Saturated Fat
0 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
0 g
Cholesterol
0 mg
Sodium
380 mg
Total Carbohydrates
6 g
Dietary Fiber
1 g
Sugars
5 g
Protein
0 g
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