Acar timun (Indonesian pickle) is part of condiments that accompanies many dishes from fried rice to meat dishes. Spicy, sweet, and sour!
If Korea has kimchi, Indonesia has a similar type of pickle called acar. It is a very popular condiment that you can spot it easily from street vendors to a high-end restaurant, but in a different presentation. If you’re new to pickling, making acar timun is not difficult at all.
The ingredients
Making acar is so easy and it only requires a few ingredients that are:
- Water
- Vinegar. You will need distilled white vinegar in this recipe
- Salt, sugar. Use kosher salt or canning salt
- Cucumber, carrot, shallot, red chilies. These are the basic ingredients in making acar although some places do not add red chilies and keep it simple
How to make acar timun
Making acar timun won’t take you all day and only takes a few minutes to prep. And here are the steps:
- Prep the vegetables and cut them into small pieces
- Pickle the vegetable by boiling water, vinegar, and salt; then, add all the vegetables into the pot
- Transfer to a glass jar and store it in the fridge
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Important notes
- Be sure to give it a good scrub to remove the wax if your cucumber is waxed
- Do not use iodized salt as iodine tends to give canned goods some unnatural, funny shades of color and leave sediment at the bottom of the jars
- Use fresh vegetables for better taste and crunch
- Overnight is best. Let it sit in the fridge overnight for a better result
Storing
Store acar in an air-tight container or glass jar and in the fridge. An unopened jar stays fresh for up to 2 months and once opened, it is better to enjoy it within 7-10 days.
What to eat with acar timun
Acar timun is served as a condiment it pairs well with turmeric fried rice, chicken satay bowl, fried chicken, martabak, soto, bbqs, and grilled chicken skewers.
Making condiments should not be difficult and this acar timun (Indonesian pickle) will be your new favorite!
Acar Timun (Indonesian Pickle)
Ingredients
- 2 cucumbers
- 2 carrots
- 15 Asian shallot peeled and halved
- 20 Thai red chilies remove the stems
- 2 cups water
- 4 tablespoons sugar
- 4 tablespoons white vinegar
- 2 teaspoons salt
Instructions
- Cut the cucumber into half vertical, remove the seeds; then, cut into small cubes.
- Peel carrots and cut into small cubes.
- Boil water, sugar, salt, and vinegar in a pot until sugar dissolves. Turn off the heat and add all the vegetables into the pot. Let it soak for 10 minutes and transfer the pickle to clean glass jars. Store in the fridge.
Bernice says
I love how so many cuisines have a ‘side pickle’ type of condiment. I love how easy they are to make and how much they liven up certain dishes.
veenaazmanov says
I am anxious to get a Bottle ready in my fridge. Sounds so easy to make and as an appetizer for any meal. Thanks for a reminder.
Sharon says
These pickled vegetables were the perfect complement to grilled chicken and rice. I’m excited to try this on many other recipes!
mikayla says
I mixed up a a batch of this and it is resting in the fridge for the weekend. I sampled a bit and wow, it is delicious and so easy!
Tammy says
Oh wow I need to start pickling more! Especially with the garden this year…I think it would be wonderful to preserve some of those fresh veggies. This sounds really delicious!
Lauren Michael Harris says
I get something like this from our local Indian take out restaurant so I wanted to try to make this at home. It came out delicious! I loved the aded chili pepper!
Jacqueline Debono says
What a great pickling recipe. I made it with red chilli because we like our food spicy! Then served with a simple roast chicken.
Lori | The Kitchen Whisperer says
This is so up my alley on flavors! I loved everything about this! So easy and so flavorful;!