Pungent pickled carrots and daikon are essential in Vietnamese dishes like Vietnamese sandwiches (banh mi), grilled pork and noodles, com tom, noodles bowls, egg rolls, and more. This easy-to-make instant vegetable pickle will stay in the fridge for 2 months.
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Vietnamese pickled daikon and carrots
If you tried Vietnamese cuisine, you must be familiar with the pungent pickle that is served alongside banh mi, egg rolls, com tom, and more. These pickles provide a sweet crunch to fatty, salty food. In Vietnam, you’ll find these pickles predominantly made with daikon in some places, others use 50:50 of daikon and carrots.
The recipe is versatile, you can make this pickle the way you want.
Have you tried Vietnamese dipping sauce (Nuoc cham)? It’s perfect for dipping spring rolls or drizzle over noodles bowl.
Ingredients
- Daikon (white radish) and carrot – Daikon is a type of white radish with a mild taste. It’s essential to cut daikon and carrot into matchsticks. Do not use a box grater. You want to have the vegetables cut into juliennes or matchsticks. Cut them using a knife or mandolin slicer to cut to 2mm thick sticks.
- Rice wine vinegar – is used as a pickling liquid along with water, salt, and sugar. If you don’t have rice wine vinegar use apple cider vinegar or any white vinegar.
- Salt and sugar – Salt brings out the flavor of the vegetables and sugar makes these pickled vegetables a bit sweet.
Variations
- In Vietnam, pickled daikon and carrots are made simple with just water, vinegar, salt, and sugar. No other ingredients go into these pickles.
- If you like to experiment, feel free to add a few slices of jalapeno peppers for a bit of heat.
- You can also sprinkle a few coriander (cilantro) leaves on the pickle just before serving for added freshness.
If you are a fan of cilantro, you don’t want to miss out on creamy cilantro sauce, it’s great as a salad dressing.
Step-by-step Instructions
Step 1: Boil water. To boiling water add rice wine vinegar, sugar, and kosher salt.
Step 2: Mix well until sugar is dissolved. Leave the liquid aside to cool it down to room temperature.
Meanwhile, cut carrots and daikon.
Step 3: Peel carrots. Cut into 2-inch-long pieces. Cut 2mm planks. Stack up a couple of planks together and cut them into thin even sized matchsticks.
Step 4: Peel daikon. Cut into 2-inch-long pieces. Cut 2mm planks. Stack up a couple of planks together and cut them into thin even sized matchsticks.
Step 5: Add julienne vegetables to a clean dry glass jar.
Step 6: Pour room-temperature pickling liquid over it, ensuring the vegetables are covered.
Leave it for 2 hours or until vegetables are tender but have a nice crunch. The readiness of the pickle can vary depending on the thickness of the vegetables.
Store in refrigerator, it’ll keep for 2 months.
Best tips
- Use a sharp knife to cut carrots and daikon matchsticks. If using a mandolin slicer, slice the vegetables into 2mm thick juliennes.
- The readiness of the pickle can vary depending on the thickness of the vegetables.
- You can use any ratio of the two vegetables, usually, I find a 50:50 ratio works best. If you can’t find daikon (radish) double up the carrot.
- Optional step – Add salt to carrot and daikon matchsticks, toss well, leave it for 15 minutes, and remove the moisture. Then pour pickling liquid. This helps with removing moisture and making sure the carrot doesn’t leave an orange stain in the pickling liquid.
I prefer to salt vegetables like cucumber and carrot before using it in salads. This spicy Korean cucumber salad is great when you salt it, rest for 15-30 minutes, and drain off excess liquid before using it in the salad.
Ways to serve
If you tried Vietnamese cuisine, you must be familiar with the pungent pickle that is served alongside banh mi, egg rolls, com tom, and more. These pickles provide a sweet crunch to fatty, salty food.
Storage
Keep the vegetables submerged in pickling liquid in a glass jar and store them in the refrigerator. It’ll keep for 2 months.
When ready to eat, simply drain the amount of pickled carrots and daikon you need from the picking liquid using a fork and serve it with the dish of your choice. Keep the remaining pickle refrigerated.
Recipe FAQs
In Vietnam, you’ll find these pickles predominantly made with daikon in some places, others use 50:50 of daikon and carrots.
It’s personal taste, use vegetables that are readily available to you and are cheaper.
Yes, you can. You can use it to pickle cabbage, cucumber, and mustard greens.
It’s not mandatory, but you can do it as an optional step. Add salt to carrot and daikon matchsticks, toss well, leave it for 15 minutes, and remove the moisture. Then pour pickling liquid. This helps remove moisture and ensures the carrot doesn’t leave an orange stain in the pickling liquid.
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📋Vietnamese Pickled Carrots and Daikon (Do Chua)
Ingredients
- 2 medium-sized carrots
- 1 large daikon white radish
- 1 ½ cup water
- ½ cup rice wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
- ½ cup sugar
- 4 teaspoons kosher salt
Instructions
- Boil water. To boiling water add rice wine vinegar, sugar, and kosher salt. Mix well until sugar is dissolved. Leave the liquid aside to cool it down to room temperature.
- Meanwhile, cut carrots and daikon.
- Peel carrots. Cut into 2-inch-long pieces. Cut 2mm planks. Stack up a couple of planks together and cut them into thin even sized matchsticks.
- Peel daikon. Cut into 2-inch-long pieces. Cut 2mm planks. Stack up a couple of planks together and cut them into thin even sized matchsticks.
- Add julienne vegetables to a clean dry glass jar.
- Pour room-temperature pickling liquid over it, ensuring the vegetables are covered.
- Leave it for 2 hours or until vegetables are tender but have a nice crunch.
- Store in refrigerator, it’ll keep for 2 months.
Video
Notes
- Use a sharp knife to cut carrots and daikon matchsticks. If using a mandolin slicer, slice the vegetables into 2mm thick juliennes.
- The readiness of the pickle can vary depending on the thickness of the vegetables.
- You can use any ratio of the two vegetables, usually, I find a 50:50 ratio works best. If you can’t find daikon (radish) double up the carrot.
- Optional step – Add salt to carrot and daikon matchsticks, toss well, leave it for 15 minutes, and remove the moisture. Then pour pickling liquid. This helps with removing moisture and making sure the carrot doesn’t leave an orange stain in the pickling liquid.
Nutrition
Created by Jyothi Rajesh
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I’m Jyothi Rajesh (Jo for short) and I’m the founder of the food blog, Curry Trail where I share my culinary Adventures. I live in Bangalore, India. I’m a mom of two beautiful kids. My passion is creating and sharing delicious and easy recipes for the home cook. I have been blogging since 2014 and many of my recipes have appeared in both online and print publications over the years. Learn more about Jyothi Rajesh.
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