We love pickles at our house, and we especially love dill pickles. After many years of little success growing cucumbers, I have finally been able to grow an abundance and we have been trying different recipes.
Last year was my first successful year and I tried two different recipes. One recipe generated the most sour pickles I have ever eaten in my life. The second recipe was a winner and well loved by my husband and friends so much that they have been anticipating the pickles this summer.
Two weeks ago, we got our first crop of cucumbers. It was time to pickle, and I could not find the well loved recipe anywhere. Not in my texts, notes, Facebook or email. I went on the search and couldn’t find one that I thought would work so I merged a couple of recipes together to create my own. They turned out so good. Yum, yum! No canning required, just refrigerate. There is no sugar either in this recipe. Refrigerated pickles do not last as long as canned ones, but the rate at which they will be eaten, they do not last long enough to sit on a pantry shelf. Canning can certainly be done, and I hope to learn it in the future.
The recipe makes approximately 5 quart jars of pickles using 8-10 cucumbers depending on their size. Make sure to pick them before they get too large to ensure a crisp pickle. Of course, they are crisper the day the are picked, but cutting the end of the cucumber that had the blossom on it and keeping in them in a crisper will help maintain some fresh crispness. I personally feel that homemade pickles are crisper when cut in half inch circles instead of long spears.
Clean and sanitize the jars and lids. I did mine in the dishwasher and made sure the sanitizer feature was turned on. I do not know if this is the correct method, but it is the method I did.
Recipe:
8 cucumbers-pickling cucumbers are best. Wash and cut in slices or spears
6 cups of water
2.5 cups of vinegar
¼ cup of canning salt (canning salt is best to use)
Begin boiling all three while adding the below to each of the jars. Boil until salt dissolves but leave on low to keep mixture hot.
In each jar:
¾ tablespoon of dill seed
8-10 black peppercorns (just sprinkle)
8-10 mustard seeds (just sprinkle)
⅛ teaspoon of dill weed (or just sprinkle)
⅛ teaspoon of celery seed (or just sprinkle)
2-4 garlic cloves sliced in half (amount depending on how much you like garlic
Place sliced cucumbers in jar and fill jar.
Tips: Peel garlic cloves prior to boiling solution. If you like less sour pickles measure use only 2 cups of vinegar. Do not let others taste because they will want them all.
Writer Bio: Summer Bolte
I spend most of my time and days with my three kids, husband and dog. My kids frequently play near me as I garden, cook, DIY and volunteer. My most unusual paying job has to be feeding fruit flies in a research lab, and my most fulfilling job was being an oncology nurse for seven years.
