Beginning Pickling

            Pickling! This growing season we chose to grow twice as many cucumbers as last year… And boy do we have a lot of cucumbers! I have tried a couple different kinds of pickles, combining recipes from this year and last year.

            My dad requested some garlic and dill pickles using a recipe based off of a successful small business, Mcclure’s Pickles. I used the recipe found here, http://www.food.com/recipe/mcclures-garlic-and-dill-pickles-447357. I followed the recipe closely however my garlic still turned a light shade of blue!

            I was able to use cucumbers and dill right from the garden. I picked almost fifteen pounds of cucumbers ranging from 6 inches to 9 inches long (some of the cukes had been left on the vine longer than they should’ve!). I cut the cucumbers down to the right height to fit in the quart sized mason jars I was using. Then I cut the cucumbers into thick spears hoping the thickness would help keep more crunch as they pickled over the next two months or so.

            I chilled the cucumbers in the refrigerator as I prepped the hot water bath. I use a huge canning pot, and it does take quite some time for it to boil to begin sterilizing the jars and tops. I cut and washed some dill from the garden. The dill when cut releases a very fragrant scent. While I was out in the garden I realized one of my dill plants had flowered! I cut the flowers to encourage the plant to continue to produce leaves, and used the flowers to decorate my kitchen windowsill. A unique garnish but it seemed fitting, as I was about to make six quarts of garlic and dill pickles!

            I put the brine on the heat. This recipe is very simple using a bit of salt, vinegar and water. I sterilized the jars when the water began to boil. Next was to place the dill inside the jars. I left them in large pieces so as to decorate the sides of the jars for aesthetic purposes. I put what might be considered a half bunch of dill into each quart mason jar hoping this would help strengthen the fresh flavor of the dill. I also added four cloves of garlic to each quart; the recipe provided is for pint-sized jars.

            The recipe says to pack as many spears into each jar as possible, so I packed them in there! There is a strategy to putting the first few spears into the jar and wedging the dill in place along the sides without squishing it to the bottom. It was at this point I was thankful I was using the wide mouth jars (thanks Papa!). The spears filled in the jars nicely, and using the thinner slices to fill in the gaps left me with a very packed mason jar. There was space above the spears though and I used diced cucumber (from when I originally cut the cucumbers down to size to fit in the mason jars) to fill in the gap.

            I ran out of brine to fill as many jars as I needed for the amount of cucumbers I had cut! So I quickly heated up some more and continued to pack jars as the new brine heated up. I also ran out of fresh garlic so substituted garlic powder… I am not sure how this will turn out as I have yet to taste these pickles. I put the powder into the brine as it was heating up.

            Next I made some sweet pickles using apple cider vinegar, sugar, cloves, mustard seed, celery seed, and turmeric. I used this recipe as a guide, http://www.marthastewart.com/316122/sweet-and-spicy-bread-and-butter-pickles. This brine smelled divine as it heated up on the stove. The turmeric also gave the brine a classic yellow look like store bought bread and butter pickles. Then in a few of the jars with the sweeter brine I added dried habaneros, four to a jar hoping to get a kick! In different jars I added dried chilies, maybe eight to a jar. A sweet and spicy pickle is one of my all time favorites!

            After your jars are sterilized and packed to the brim, it’s time to add the brine. The brine should fill in the jar right up to the rim, leaving a quarter inch of space (if that). The lids should be placed and hand tightened (not overly so but closed firmly).  These full and closed jars need to be added back into the boiling hot water bath for 12 – 15 minutes. Please use caution! These jars are going to be incredibly hot when it comes time to remove them. Please use the appropriate tool and safety when moving the jars into and out of the boiling water.

            Once the jars have been in the hot water bath for at least 12 minutes they can be removed. They can be placed on a towel on a counter space, preferably out of the way as they will be HOT for quite some time. They should sit without being moved for 24 hours. Check the lid and make sure the button is depressed (did the mason jar appropriately seal?), if the button has not depressed after 30 hours, never fear, your pickles are still good but need to be stored in the fridge.

            From my experience and from other articles, if your pickles have been sealed correctly they can last for up to a year! We love to give pickles to our families and friends as we always have more than enough. Next I will be attempting to pickle some banana peppers, make relish, and pickle some okra! If my Thai Chile peppers come in I may even try to make a hot sauce! Don't be afraid to be creative with your picking adventures. Just remember to sterilize everything and make sure there is a correct balance of vinegar in your jars to keep bacteria from growing. 

Do you have a favorite recipe you would like to share for pickling? Please share below in the comments!