Growing Food and Kids

You can only eat so many cucumbers. With the rest, make pickles!

Summer is winding down but in many places, there are still fresh cucumbers to be had. If you’ve never pickled before, I promise it’s easier than it sounds. And you’ll never buy a jar of pickles at the grocery store that will taste anywhere near as good as the ones you make yourself.

My feisty grandmother once claimed that she would eat my mother’s homemade dill pickles with anything, “even ice cream.” A week later, my mom, a rare practical joker, served ice cream sundaes and stuck dill pickles between Grandmother’s layers of chocolate and vanilla. Surprised but true to her word, she still ate every one.

Since I started pickling a few years ago, I can hardly eat a burger or a sandwich without some of these yummy pickles. (But I don’t put them in my ice cream … yet.)

Want to share the pleasure? Here’s a step-by-step guide to my mom’s dill pickle recipe.

To get started, you’ll need:

• fresh cucumbers (the above pile made seven jars of pickles)
• 1 cup canning and pickling salt
• 1 quart apple cider vinegar
• 2 quarts water
• fresh garlic, about 2 buttons for each jar of pickles
• dill (preferably fresh, but dried will do if you don’t grow it and can’t find it at a farmers market), 1-2 stalks for each jar of pickles
• clean Mason jars with unused (unsealed) lids and rims

Step 1. Slice the cucumbers into 1/4-inch disks.

Step 2. In a large pot, combine canning salt, apple cider vinegar and water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer.

Step 3. In a small saucepan, place your canning lids and cover with water. Bring the water to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer. (This sterilizes your lids to prevent bacteria from getting into the jars and preventing the jars from sealing.)

Step 4. Pack a clean Mason jar with sliced cucumbers until about half full. Drop into the jar two or three peeled garlic buttons and one or two stalks of dill. (I fold the dill stalks back and forth like you would fold paper to make a fan, in order to make them fit. It will seem like the jar’s getting too crowded with all the dill, but my mom always says you need lots of dill to make the pickles taste good.

Step 5. Pack the rest of the jar with sliced cucumbers, leaving about one inch of head space at the top of the jar. 

Step 6. Using a funnel (mine is specially made for canning, like the ones available here), pour the hot brine (the liquid substance you made in step 2) over the cucumbers, garlic and dill, filling the jar. Leave about one-quarter-inch head space at the top. (I use a large coffee mug to dip brine out of the pot on the stove and pour it into the jars. And yes, I know the snowman mug is out of season, but it’s the perfect size for brine-dipping.)

Step 7. Wipe the rim of the jar with a paper towel or clean hand towel to remove any brine or salt that could keep the lid from sealing.

Step 8. Fit a sterilized lid onto the jar and fasten with a lid. (I use a magnetic jar lifter to get the hot lids out of the water and onto the tops of the jars, but regular tongs would work too.)

Step 9. Sit back and listen for the pop sound each jar will make as it seals. (This could take awhile, sometimes up to 30 minutes, but if you’ve kept the liquid hot and closed off the jars quickly, they should seal.)

Step 10: Wait two to three weeks to let your cucumbers “pickle” before tasting them. For crisp-tasting pickles, refrigerate before opening the jar.

Pickles in sealed Mason jars are preserved and will taste good for up to a couple of years — although it’s unlikely you won’t eat them all before then!

Do you pickle cucumbers or plan to try? Please share your own tips or experiences below!