Wednesday, June 27, 2012

By the Jar dill pickles….

We adore dill pickles in our house….could you guess?

Typically I purchase a large quantity of cucumbers and make a large batch at once.  This year I have 14 small cucumber plants in pots (read they are small plants intended for pots that produce small cucumbers perfect for pickles).  Due to this change, I needed to come up with a recipe that I could use as I have cucumbers ready, because saving them up just will not work.

You will need a wide mouth quart jar, a ring and lid.  Remember to wash and sterilize your jar, and boil the ring and lid before use.  I leave my rings and lids in the hot boiling water up until I am ready for them.



Here is my by the quart jar recipe:

- scrubbed pickle size cucumbers (make sure to leave at least 1/4" of the stem on it or the pickle will be mushy)
- two heads fresh dill
- two cloves pealed garlic
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
- 1 1/2 cup water
- 3/4 cup white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon canning/pickling salt (do not use table salt because it contains iodine)


Pack first 4 ingredients into a clean sterilized jar.  Bring the water, vinegar and salt to a boil and pour into the jar leaving 1/4" headspace.  Clean rim, place lid and ring on jar.  Place jar in a pan full of boiling water (make sure it is at a rolling boil before you place the jar in, and that the water covers the jar by at least 1").  Boil the jar for 20 minutes, retrieve and let sit untouched for 24 hours.

Now the hard part, put it away and let it sit for 8-10 weeks before you open them, this is when the pickling is done, so if you cheat and crack into them sooner you will be disappointed.

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