Where Bounty Of Summer Is A Perfect Fit: In A Pickle Anything - Zucchini, Cucumbers, Okra - Can End Up Pickled. Sweet, Sour, Dilled Or Candied, Pickles Pick Up A Summer Meal.

Pickling adds to the very atmosphere of summertime. Early-morning forays into the dew-wet garden to gather fresh vegetables; the kitchen exuding sharp gusts of vinegar and pickling spices; dark earthenware jars standing on counter tops, shrouded in white muslin, and sparkling-clean canning jars turned upside down in readiness beside the kitchen sink.

My mother was an inspired and indefatigable pickler. Anything might end up in a pickle: watermelon rind, zucchini, green tomatoes, quinces, green beans, okra, clingstone peaches, bell peppers, pumpkin, tiny ears of immature corn, green walnuts, and, of course, cucumbers.

There were sweet pickles, sour pickles, dill pickles and candied pickles. There were three-day, nine-day, and 14-day pickles. And the only way to have certain pickled specialties is to make them yourself during the summer.

For most purposes, pickles are divided into four general classes according to the ingredients used and the methods of preparing them. They are: brined or fermented pickles, fresh-pack pickles, relishes, and fruit pickles. The recipes given here include the last three types of pickles.

The salt used for pickling should be pure salt with no additives - that is, no iodized salt, sodium-reduced salt, or salt with anti-moisture ingredients added. Do not use rock salt because it is not food quality.

Vinegar used for pickling may be either cider or distilled vinegar with a 40 percent to 60 percent grain strength (4 to 6 percent acidity). The strength of commercial vinegar should be marked on the labels; 5 percent acid strength is common.

Cider vinegar is made from apple cider and is the general-purpose pickling vinegar. Its mellow flavor blends well with herbs, spices and other ingredients used in pickle-making.

Distilled vinegar is made from diluted alcohol and is either white or cider-flavored. It has no color and only its own characteristic sharp, acetic flavor, so it is used with fruits and light-colored vegetables that would be less attractive if combined with amber-colored cider vinegar.

For those timid about plunging into pickling, a word of encouragement. Making pickles is not difficult, no more trouble than preparing for a dinner party. The recipes offered here are simple and can perk up a summer meal.