Balsamic Pickled Cherries

in Cherries, Cherries & Berries, Condiments, Fruit, Pork

Balsamic Pickled Cherries

If we are what we eat, my stellar eating habits over the last two months would produce some sort of cherry-Sauza-Cool Ranch Doritos hybrid. But mostly cherries.

We took advantage of cherries being so plentiful and affordable this summer. Was it like that everywhere else? I swear that this was the first summer they virtually begged us to buy them.

With the end of cherry season approaching, I hoarded a few pounds for the freezer and then spotted a terrific idea in Food & Wine for the very last pound of cherries I had on hand: pickling in balsamic vinegar.

Balsamic Pickled Cherries

The balsamic vinegar takes on the sweet cherry flavor and made a tasty vinaigrette to drizzle over grilled pork tenderloin. And the sweet & sour cherries are perfect for snacking, eating in a salad, over toasted baguette slices topped with goat cheese (my favorite!), and piled on top of brined & grilled pork chops.

Balsamic Pickled Cherries

The original recipe (for Pickled Figs) noted that the figs would be good on the shelf for 6 months. Cherries are more delicate than the slightly under-ripe figs recommended and I wanted them to retain as much of their texture as possible. I was certain that they wouldn’t survive a 15-minute canning bath so I chose to skip the “official” canning procedures and stored them in the fridge instead.

Pickled Cherries

Stretch out the cherry season with these balsamic pickled cherries.

Ingredients

  • 4-5 1/2-pint canning jars with lids and rings
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 cups water
  • 3/4 cup balsamic vinegar
  • 1 1/4 pounds cherries, stems and pits removed

Instructions

  1. In a medium saucepan, stir together the sugar, water and balsamic vinegar until the sugar has dissolved.
  2. Bring to a boil and then add the cherries, simmering over low heat for 10 minutes.
  3. Spoon the cherries equally between the jars (I ended up with 4 full jars of cherries and a 5th jar that was just over half full of cherry-balsamic vinegar).
  4. Turn up the heat to high and cook the balsamic mixture for another 5 minutes.
  5. Ladle the syrup over the cherries, leaving 1/2 inch of space at the top.
  6. Screw the lids and rings on top and try to wait a few days before opening the first jar.
  7. The cherries will keep a couple of months in the fridge.
  8. If you wish to store the cherries at room temperature, you'll need to follow appropriate canning procedures: sterilizing the jar components first and then boiling the closed jars for 15 minutes in a hot water bath.

Notes

Yields: 4-5 1/2 pint jars

Adapted from Food & Wine

Estimated time: 30 minutes

Comments on this entry are closed.

  • Oooh – I have a new cherry pitter that I need to put to use. These sound super fun!! 🙂

  • I am so excited to make these. I always wanted try canning, and this recipe doesn’t sound to difficult. Thank for the recipe.

  • I would say I’ve mostly been cherries and corn this summer…but after this I may have to add balsamic vinegar to that list.

  • Ummmm yes. This is happening this weekend. Wow.

  • This intrigues me but scares me at the same time. The idea of it is something I would totally go for, but I tried out pickled grapes last summer and they were nearly inedible vinegar bombs. I know balsamic is a more gentle vinegar compared to some others, but how is the acidity level on these lovelies?

    • You are braver than I – I don’t think I can wrap my mind around pickled grapes 🙂 The acidity level is decently low, considering we’re talking about vinegar. They have a nice sweet & tangy bite but the balsamic mixture is *so* much sweeter than any other pickling recipe I’ve ever used.

  • How amazing would that be on some ice cream or greek yogurt!? looks awesome the way you paired it with the pork. 🙂

    • Oooh, I agree. They’ll be awesome with greek yogurt! I have yogurt on my shopping list and I’ll be sure to test it out this week 🙂

  • Looks gorgeous with that pork tenderloin! Fantastic clicks.