Tuesday, January 21, 2025
9.0°F

Opal’s Homestead Hacks: Pickling — with olive juice, too

SHOLEH PATRICK | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 4 years, 10 months AGO
by SHOLEH PATRICK
| March 27, 2020 1:00 AM

In case you missed Wednesday’s introduction of Opal Harbert, Queen of Homestead Hacks, here’s a recap.

This mom, wife, and martial arts instructor (she’s nothing if not well-rounded) who lives on a few acres just over the border in Mead, Wash., has an approach to daily life that’s rather old-fashioned.

Having grown up with parents who literally lived off the land, built and grew their own or just made do, Opal’s penchant for borderline-hoarding, repurposing, and DIY-ing has suddenly gone from weird to wise.

So as we all hunker down in the coming weeks, Opal’s helping us stretch dollars and resources in very simple ways. Wednesday, Opal taught us how easy it is to make immune-boosting bone broth instead of tossing out those meaty carcasses and dregs.

If your taste buds lean tart, you’ll like today’s tip too.

Got pickles? Addicted to olives? Keep the liquid after eating the last one. It’s precious stuff and goes nicely with the veggies you forgot to use.

“If you use a jar of pickles,” says Opal, “keep the pickle juice and just put in some fresh veggies or boiled eggs to make any pickled item. Let it sit for a few days — the more the better.”

Opal loves pickled carrots and cauliflower. Hey — don’t knock it ‘til you’ve tried it.

“If I know I have to use up some veggies so they won’t go bad, I’ll just put them in pickle juice. It’s a super easy hack.”

That goes for olives, too. Besides making great salad dressing (just add a dash of vinegar, salt, pepper and oregano if you have it), it can really perk up cooking.

“Keep the juice from the olive jar and put veggies such as mushrooms in there, and you have olive-marinated mushrooms,” she suggests. “Or pour it in the pan like olive oil. It works and adds flavor. Olive juice is also great tossed with pasta salad!”

I’ve always kept my olive juice in the fridge, but Opal doesn’t.

Interested in other creative ways to conserve, and waste less? Look for more of Opal’s Homestead Hacks in the coming weeks. When the weather gets warmer, I’ll tell you what she does with cardboard in the garden.

photo

Harbert

MORE COVID-19 STORIES

Opal’s homestead hacks: Don’t trash good garbage
Coeur d'Alene Press | Updated 4 years, 9 months ago
Opal’s homestead hacks: Feed the birds
Coeur d'Alene Press | Updated 4 years, 9 months ago
OPAL’S HOMESTEAD HACKS: Practical tips to outlast the virus
Coeur d'Alene Press | Updated 4 years, 10 months ago

ARTICLES BY SHOLEH PATRICK

November 5, 2024 1 a.m.

Fascist or socialist: Name-calling defined

Here are some facts behind explosive labels

MLP: Repeat it again?
January 17, 2023 1 a.m.

MLP: Repeat it again?

Like sunshine to the desk-chained office drudge, like the length of this sentence, useless words are tantamount to frustration for Your Mrs. Language Person. The Snitty Old Biddy beseeches you, Dear Readers: Give words their due meanings and heed these admonitions against repetition.

SHOLEH: New Hope for Alzheimer's
January 10, 2023 1:05 a.m.

SHOLEH: New Hope for Alzheimer's

For folks with early-stage Alzheimer’s hope is on the horizon. A drug newly approved by the Food and Drug Administration may help slow its progression.