This pickled jicama is tangy, crunchy and refreshing. It tastes great on salads, tacos, burgers, and in wraps. If you love the crisp taste of apples and the salty tangy goodness of pickles. You’ll go nuts for this easy pickle recipe. If you’re new to picking or fermentation in general don’t worry. You’ll find my top tips for pickling so that you’ll be a pickling pro after you make this recipe!
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Why You’ll Love this Pickled Jicama Recipe
- Easy
- Tons of Flavor
- Tastes great on Salads and Burgers
- Gluten Free
- Dairy Free
- Vegan Friendly
- Vegetarian Friendly
- Nut Free
- Paleo Friendly
- Keto Friendly
I’m sure you’ve had pickles before. But pickles aren’t the only kind of fermented food out there. You can use the power of pickling to bring out the flavors in lots of ingredients including jicama. Pickles jicama is crisp, refreshing and flavorful. It goes well with guacamole, tacos and other Mexican cuisine.
What Does Jicama Taste Like?
Jicama has the crisp texture of an apple but its flavor is bland and neutral. It’s traditionally served raw with lime and cayenne pepper. However, pickled jicama is becoming more popular. Jicama tastes crispy and tangy when pickled with Spanish spices. This intensifies the flavors.
Pickled jicama still tastes crispy but instead of bland it’s infused with the bright flavors of citrus and a hit of spice from cayanne.
What is the Best Way to Eat Jicama?
The best way to eat jicama is to slice it into sticks and enjoy it with lime juice and cayenne pepper.
What Can I Do With Jicama?
There is a lot you can do with jicama. The most popular way to enjoy jicama is to slice it into sticks and season it with lime and cayenne pepper. You can also make pickled jicama to be enjoyed on its own or on salads, sandwiches, tacos, in wraps and more.
Since jicama is bland and refreshing it makes a great accompaniment dish to heavier Mexican food like chicken, tacos, and more.
Ingredients You’ll Need to Make Pickled Jicama
- Sea Salt
- Water
- Jicama
- Jalapeno
- Lime
- Cayenne Pepper
- Fennel Seed
How to Make Pickled Jicama
- Step 1: Combine the salt and water, stir until the salt is completely dissolved. You can heat the water in a saucepan to speed it up.
- Step 2: Place the Jicama, Jalapeno, Lime Juice, Cayenne Pepper, and Fennel Seed into the jar. Pour over salted water to completely cover the Jicama. Use a weight to keep the Jicama from rising above the surface of the water. You can also use a fermentation kit and follow instructions as directed.
- Step 3: Cover the lid with a cloth or paper towel and secure with a rubber band. Leave in a warm spot for 1 week, then transfer to the refrigerator.
Equipment Needed to Make Pickled Jicama
- Pickling Jar or Mason Jar with a rubberized lid
- Pickling Weights: Pickling weights are used to push the jicama down so that it sits below the pickling liquid. Jicama tends to float. Any jicama floating above the salt water will turn moldy and it won’t pickle. So it’s important to use weights to press the jicama down. If you don’t have pickling weights you can use small clean rocks
- Fermentation Kit: You can gather all of the equipment yourself but if you’re new to pickling buying a fermentation kit could make your life a lot easier.
- cheese cloth: Cheese cloth is used to cover the lid of the pickling jar. If you don’t have cheese cloth you can use a paper towel or dish rag.
How Does The Jicama Stay Fresh During Fermentation?
The salt water is anti-microbial and prevents the food from souring while it is fermenting. Anything that floats above the salt water is going to be prone to spoilage.Some mold may form on the Jicama closest to the surface of the jar. That’s O.K. just scoop it off. The Jicama underneath is safe to eat.
Pro Tips for Making Pickled Jicama at Home
- The Jicama will become sourer as you allow it to ferment. Try it every so often. Once the Jicama has reached a level of sourness that you like place it in the fridge to halt the fermentation process.
How Long Does Pickled Jicama Last?
- In the Fridge: Pickled jicama will last in the fridge for up to 1 month.
- On the Counter: It will last for 1 week on the counter.
- In the Freezer: I’ve never tried to freeze pickled jicama but I don’t think it would freeze well. Since the pickles are so watery and water expands when it freezes the water will rip apart the jicama during the freezing process. Resulting in soggy jicama when it’s thawed out.
Fermentation to Keep Food Fresh and Build Umami Flavor
Foodies and health fanatics everywhere are saying that fermentation is the way of the future, but this is only half true. While fermented foods are regaining popularity among the artisan food crowd, fermenting foods is really a way of the past.
Fermentation is a Great Way to Preserve Food
Back in the day before refrigeration, fermentation was one of the few ways of preserving food for later use. Fermentation is the only method in which healthful bacteria can proliferate and penetrate the foods we eat as well as the only way to get the ever sought after flavor profile formally known as Umami.
Almost everything people like is fermented… cheese, coffee, miso and sauerkraut are just a few examples of popular fermented foods.
So on that note I have been heavily into fermentation lately.
I would like to share with you one of my recipes that people have been going nuts for, pickled Jicama. Jicama is a Mexican vegetable that is traditionally enjoyed with a hit of lime juice and cayenne pepper.
I liked this dish so much when it was first introduced to me so I figured it would be great as a fermented salad. Low and behold it was!
Easy Pickled Jicama with Jalapeno Lime and Cayenne
Equipment
- Pickling Jar
- Pickling Weights
- Fermentation Kit
Ingredients
- 1/2 tbsp Sea Salt
- 2 C Warm Water
- 1 Jicama cut into thin strips
- 1 Jalapeno diced
- 1 Lime juiced
- 1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper
- 1 pinch Fennel Seed
Instructions
- Combine the salt and water, stir until the salt is completely dissolved. You can heat the water in a saucepan to speed it up.
- Place the Jicama, Jalapeno, Lime Juice, Cayenne Pepper, and Fennel Seed into the jar. Pour over salted water to completely cover the Jicama. Use a weight to keep the Jicama from rising above the surface of the water. You can also use a fermentation kit and follow instructions as directed.
- Cover the lid with a cloth or paper towel and secure with a rubber band. Leave in a warm spot for 1 week, then transfer to the refrigerator.
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