Vietnamese Pickled Daikon and Carrots

Vietnamese pickled daikon and carrots are a sweet and tangy condiment used on Banh Mi sandwiches.

They are easy to make and can be enjoyed additionally as a crunchy snack or topping for salads, sandwiches, and rice bowls.

These Vietnamese pickled daikon and carrots are cut thicker for snacking.

If you are making them specifically for Banh Mi, you will want to cut them thinner into a matchstick thin size.

Watch how to make

I personally make several batches of these to keep on hand for snacking and will still use this thicker pickles for my sandwiches and salad toppers.

Ingredients

You will need the following ingredients to make Vietnamese pickled daikon and carrots:

• daikon
• carrots
• white sugar
• white vinegar- Some recipes use a rice vinegar. Rice vinegar is sweet. This recipe uses white vinegar for the tart tangy flavor it adds.
• water
• salt- Use the cheap table salt for removing the liquid from the daikon and carrots. You do not want to use a pickling salt. You can use a Kosher or sea salt for the brine.

Steps to make pickled daikon and carrots

Follow these steps to make pickled daikon and carrots.

1. Peel and slice daikon and carrots to uniform sizes (matchstick size for Banh Mi and a little thicker for snack size). In a bowl, generously salt the vegetables evenly. Toss to coat. Allow the salt to remove the moisture from the vegetables 1 to 3 hours. (If cutting small for Banh Mi, you will only need to salt the vegetables for 45 minutes.)
2. Give the vegetables a good rinse to remove the salt. Squeeze the vegetables while rinsing to remove any extra salt and liquid.
3. Pat vegetables dry. Leave to air dry while you make the brine.
4. In a sauce pan, cook sugar, vinegar, water, and salt. Boil until sugar is completely dissolved, then remove from heat. Allow the brine to cool to room temperature.
5. Pack jars with vegetables.
6. Pour brine over vegetables. Screw on the lids and refrigerate. You can eat them within 24 hours, but they are best after 3 days of pickling.

Tip:

Tip: Try to cut your vegetables in the same size. If you are cutting them thin for Banh Mi, you may want to use a mandolin.

Notes:

Note: Don't skip out on the salt bath. The salt actually draws out the extra liquid in the vegetables allowing them to remain crunchy and easily soak in the brine. It also helps remove some of the odor from the radishes.

Note: If you add the brine while it is still hot, the heat will soften the carrots and daikon. Therefore if you allow the brine to cool to room temperatures, your vegetables will be more crunchy.

How long do pickled daikon and carrots last?

The pickled daikon and carrots last up to 4 weeks in the refrigerator.

After 4 weeks they begin to loose their flavor and crunch.

About the recipe

This recipe came from my sweet beautiful dear best friend, Ann and her mother Anh. 

Ann is my partner in crime in most of my dinner shenanigans.

If you follow my Instagram feed, you have probably seen her in my feed and Instagram stories.

Anh is known for her incredible gift of cooking Vietnamese food.

She made incredible homemade Vietnamese sandwiches and Pho for me to devour.

With the dishes, she had a batch of these pickled daikon and carrots and her homemade hot pickled peppers.

Using Anh's recipe, Ann came over personally to make a big batch with me just for you.

It is so special sharing delicious recipes from my close friends with my readers. I hope you enjoy!

Like this recipe? Try also some of these:

• Pickled Serrano Peppers
• Mexican Pickled Carrots
• Fire and Ice Pickles
• Jalapeno Relish
• Hawaiian Chili Pepper Water
• Pepper Jelly

Please leave me a comment below if you make these pickled daikon and carrots; and tell me what you thought about it. I would love to hear back, and so would my readers.

Also post your picture of your pickled veggies on Instagram or Facebook, and tag @aforkstale with #aforkstale hashtags! I will share with my followers! xoxo!

Recipe