Makes 2 quarts

• 1 cup apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
• 3 tbsp. kosher salt
• 1 tbsp. sugar
• ½ tbsp. whole black peppercorns
• 1 head iceberg lettuce
• 4 large cloves garlic, peeled and lightly smashed

1. In a small saucepan, combine vinegar, salt, sugar, and peppercorns, plus 2 cups water. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove pot from heat and allow brine to cool to room temperature, about 20-30 minutes.

2. While the brine is cooking, slice the lettuce into quarters, through the stem, and peel off the outer leaves until only the pale, dense hearts remain. (The removed leaves should be about equal in volume to the remaining hearts; reserve them for making chilled iceberg soup, or use them on sandwiches or in salads.) Trim any protruding stems on the quartered hearts to be flush with the lettuce.

3. Tightly pack the lettuce quarters into well-cleaned quart jars, slicing the lettuce into even thinner wedges if necessary, and tuck the garlic cloves among the lettuce wedges. Slowly pour in the room-temperature brine until lettuce is fully covered. (Discard any unused brine, or reserve for another use.) Seal the jar, then gently swirl and shake it to make sure the brine reaches every bit of the lettuce. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, and up to one week. The pickles are at their best after one or two days, when they’re at the peak of flavor and still shatteringly crunchy; after that, the texture will begin to soften.

From https://www.newyorker.com/culture/kitchen-notes/its-time-to-admit-that-iceberg-is-a-superior-lettuce