Quick Pickling

Basic Quick Dill Pickles: (About 6 pints)

(process 10 minutes)

4 pounds Cucumbers

2 Cups vinegar

2 Cups water

Place in the bottoms of each jar:

1 tsp. salt

1-2 cloves garlic per jar

1 tsp spice mixture (see spice page)

Fresh dill heads, 2-3 per jar (if desired)

1. For whole cucumbers, small sizes up to 4 inches long are preferred.  Larger sizes may be packed whole provided they are processed for a longer time.
2. Wash cucumbers thoroughly.
3. Usually with larger cucumbers it is better to slice, quarter, or halve lengthwise before pickling.
4. Combine vinegar and water and heat to simmer.
5.   Place 1 tsp. salt, garlic and 1 tsp. spices in the bottom of each jar.
6. Place cucumbers in next.
7. Fill with hot vinegar-water solution to 1/2 inch of top.
8. Remove air bubbles with tool or plastic knife.
9. Wipe off tops of jars, making sure clean.  
10.   Place hot lids on jars and place rings on, tighten just to finger tight (when you meet resistance is tight enough, don’t tighten to tight).
11. Place in water bath and process in canner with water at 170’ to 180’ don’t go   over 180’ or you will get a mushy pickle
12.   Process 10 minutes for pints and 15 for quarts.  If using larger whole cucumbers add 5 minutes processing time.
13. When cool, remove rings, let set a few weeks to develop flavor, enjoy.

Basic Recipe for: (Makes 6-7 pints)

Dilly Beans, Pickled Asparagus, Okra and/or Jardiniere (mixed vegetables pickle)

(Process 20 minutes)

4 pounds of green beans (or any of the above veggies)

(basically use equal parts vinegar and water, then you can make any amount)

3 cups vinegar (I use white for these)

3 cups water

1 tsp. Spice Mixture per pint jar (see Spice page)

1 tsp. salt per pint jar.

1-2 cloves of Garlic per jar (or as much as you like)

Option if you don’t like the spicy, just use black peppercorns or cut down on the amount of pepper flakes, or any combination of spices you like, make it your own,  the spices have nothing to do with preserving it.  

1. Combine water and vinegar.  Heat to the simmering point.
2.   Place salt, garlic and spices in the bottom of each jar:

Cut and Add to jars:

Beans or which ever vegetable your using (I don’t cut Okra) to fit jar leaving 1/2     inch head space.  Raw pack all your veggies.

Process 20 minutes in simmering (170-180’ for any pickle product so they won’t get mushy) water bath.  Remove from water and enjoy the pop, pop of the sealing jars!

When cool, remove rings, let set a few weeks to develop flavor, enjoy.

Traditional Bread and Butter Pickles: (6-7 pints)

(process 10 minutes)

10 Cups sliced pickling cucumbers

4 medium onions, thinly sliced

1/2 Cup salt

3 Cups white vinegar

2 Cups sugar

2 Tbsp mustard seeds

1 tsp celery seeds 1 tsp ground turmeric

1. In a glass or stainless steel bowl, combine cucumbers, onions and salt.  Mix well, cover with ice water and let stand at room temperature for 2 hours (prepare brine while waiting).  Transfer to a colander placed over sink, and rinse with cool running water and drain thoroughly.
2. To make Brine; In a stainless steel saucepan add vinegar, sugar, mustard seed,

     celery seeds and turmeric.  Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, stirring                           to dissolve sugar.  

1. After Cucumber/onions have set for 2 hours, add drained and rinsed cucumbers/onions to hot brine, heat to 170’-180’.
2. Pack vegetables into hot jars.   Ladle any hot brine over vegetables to cover, leaving 1/2 inch headspace.  Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace, if necessary.  Wipe rim, place lid on jar and screw band down until resistance is met.
3. Place jars in canner, check temperature 170’-180’  and process for 10 minutes.
4. When cool, remove rings, let set a few weeks to develop flavor, enjoy. 

Horseradish Bread and Butter Pickles:  Substitute 2 Tbsp Prepared horseradish for mustard and 2 Tbsp grated gingeroot for the turmeric.

Or use fresh grated horseradish, 2 to 4 tablespoons, and a few slices of Jalapeno for a variety.

Pickled Beets: (about 6 pints)

(process 30 minutes)

3 Tbsp pickling spice (store bought or home made)

2 1/2 Cups white vinegar

1 Cup water

1 Cup sugar

10 Cups prepared beets (tip below)

1. Tie pickling spice in a square of cheesecloth, creating a spice bag, (or use a spice bag or tea ball)
2. In a large stainless steel saucepan, combine vinegar, water, sugar and spice bag.  Bring to boil over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve sugar.  Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes, until spices have infused the liquid.  Discard spice bag.  Add beets and return mixture to a simmer.
3. Using a slotted spoon, ladle beets into hot jars.  Ladle hot liquid into jars to cover beets, leaving 1/2 inch headspace.  Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace, if necessary by adding more of the liquid.  Wipe rim, place lid on jar, screw band down until resistance is met.
4. Place jars in canner, ensuring they are completely covered with water. Process same as pickles but for 30 minutes.  
5. When cool, remove rings, let set a few weeks to develop flavor, enjoy.

This is a basic recipe, Different spices can be added (cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns, Caraway seeds etc). This is the traditional blend you can adjust the flavors to suit your family’s taste.

Tip:

To prepare beets for use in this recipe, leave 2 inches roots and 2 inches of stem intact to prevent bleeding. Scrub thoroughly and sort by size, placing larger beets on the bottom of the saucepan and smallest on top.  Add water to cover, bring to a boil and cook until tender, 20 to 40 minutes, depending upon the size of the beets.  Remove beets from saucepan as they are cooked and run under cool running water.  Drain. Slip off the skins and remove roots and stems. Leave baby beets whole and slice or quarter larger beets. 12 medium beets equals about 10 cups.

My Spice Mixture is:

1 1/2 cups dill seed to 1 cup pepper flakes and mixed well. Keep on hand to use in all your pickle products if you like it.

Pickling Spice (like the one you buy in the store)

6 cinnamon sticks (3 inches long each), coarsely crushed

3 tablespoons mustard seed

1 tablespoon each whole black peppercorns, cloves, dill seed, whole coriander, and whole allspice

1 tablespoon whole mace, coarsely crushed

A 1 1/2 inch piece ginger root, peeled and finely chopped

1 bay leaf, crumbled

1 dried hot red pepper, crumbled

Combine spices and store in an airtight jar.

Yield: About 2/3 cup.

Spice Possibilities:

Allspice                                   Coriander Seed

Bay leaf                                   Dill seed

Black pepper                            Ginger

Cardamom                                Mace

Cayenne                                   Mustard

Chili                                         Nutmeg

Cinnamon stick                         Hot red Pepper

Clove                                        Horseradish

Your combinations are endless, see which ones you like the best and go for it.