The world of vinegar is wide, wild, and a little aggressive. Between the health zealots touting the supposed healing properties of ACV, and the more refined flavours of fancier lads (such as sherry vinegar), plain, distilled white vinegar does not get much culinary love.

The success of a meal plan can only be judged by the percentage of it that’s consumed. It may sound obvious, but the execution of a good meal plan requires planning meals you are excited to eat. Picking the right proteins, vegetables and sides is important, but picking the right condiments — I’m talking sauces, marinades and pickled things — is even more so.

You’re most likely already aware that beer makes a great deglazing liquid, but you may not be familiar with its pickling prowess. Using it to season and preserve vegetables is a great way to use up any beer you may not feel like drinking. (Just kidding. I know you guys always feel like drinking all the beer, but these pickles really are good.)

True, fermented pickles are always going to be more flavorful than quick pickles but, as Epicurious reports, Mark Bittman adds a bit of smoky depth by grilling the vegetables first.

When building your perfect burger, it can get easy to get carried away with toppings, and added moisture can pool, wreaking havoc on your buns. Beyond cleverly stacking your ingredients to keep the wetter ones away from the bread, blotting your moist toppings can make a real difference.

Homemade canning and pickling is a lot of fun, but you know what sucks? Standing over a pot of boiling water in an already-swampy kitchen for hours to sanitise and seal slippery glass jars. No thank you. I switched to freezer pickles years ago and haven't looked back since. If you've got some available freezer space, this is a great technique to have in your arsenal.

Happy weekend, and welcome back to 3-Ingredient Happy Hour, the weekly drink column featuring super simple yet delicious libations. Today we are featuring a bracing and briny favourite of mine that I have been sipping on for years: The polarising Pickletini.

Making pickles is a time-honoured tradition for many, but they take time to get right. If you're going to eat those pickles soon, a quick pickle might be more your style, and this guide from Cook's Illustrated shows you how to pickle almost anything: Fennel, carrots, and yes, even cucumbers.

Pickle juice is a magical liquid that can be used to jazz up potato salad, brine meat, and even add a salty punch to cocktails, but it also makes a pretty fantastic loaf of bread.

It's not like store-bought pickles are expensive, but it's kind of fun to pickle your own produce. It's also pretty easy, especially if you have some leftover pickle juice on hand from an empty jar.

My love for sushi ginger borders on obsessive, and have been known to go out to sushi just to satisfy my pickled ginger craving. This is unnecessary though, because you can make delicious, perfect gari in the comfort of your own kitchen.