Aug 10th, 2005
Fresh Dill Pickles
So the story goes like this. We grew some cucumber plants and started to anticipate some lovely fresh cucumbers. Then Ryan said, “you know what I love,” – no what? “I love pickles. You know, pickles, the ones you get on a Big Mac.” Oh right, well we need to grow gherkins. “Cool let’s grow some of those.” So we did. I bought some gherkin seeds, put then in the heated propagator and off we went. I planted them up at mtp around a month ago and last week we harvested our first tiny cucumbers (they’re so sweet…as in cute…not sweet to taste).
But of course growing and harvesting gherkins is only half the battle. You then have to pickle them. I used this recipe which is pretty simple and managed to pickle three whole gherkins (more to come we hope). So now we have our first jar of fresh dill pickles, err.. pickling in the cupboard. They won’t be ready to eat for six weeks but I hope they will make one American boy very happy.
13 Responses to “Fresh Dill Pickles”
I don’t know, the things we do for love…
Look at that jar! Fabulous. You should make some onion chutney with all those fab onions too.
Hi, just wanted to know whether you can use the same recipe but slice the pickles before placing in the jar. Thanks for your help.
Yes you can – I have had to chop up several of them to get them to fit in the jar and it works just the same. We opened our first jar yesterday – yum!
Hello, I tried to locate the pickle recipe for Dill pickles, but every time I clicked on Recipes it came up with your weekly gardening entry. No matter, I make lots of jam from raspberries, loganberries, red and black currants and blackberries harvested and then saved in the deep freeze. Now I have been making chutney from the allotment apples, shallots and onions plus other ingredients of course like mustard seeds, cayenne pepper, malt vinegar and of course some demarara sugar. I am now making dried apricot jam, because Holland and Barret are selling this fruit for £1.98 a kilo. I soak the fruit for 2 days and add lemon juice. I will pet you know how it goes. I love your web site as I have had the same experiences on my allotments. You write with such a sense of fun that you should convert anyone who reads it to sticking it out (if they have recently taken on a tiny or a large plot) and getting the material benefit of their hard work. Best wishes from Lawrence.
Wow thanks Lawrence – I’m touched:
Just for you here is the text from the Pickle recipe.
FRESH DILL PICKLES
30 pickling cucumbers, 4 inches long (4 1/2 lb.)
16 c. water
2 c. Kosher salt
4 c. white vinegar
6 c. water
4 cloves garlic, peeled
2 tsp. mustard seeds
Fresh dill
Wash cucumbers well; drain on paper towels. Combine 16 cups water and salt in a very large glass or ceramic bowl; add cucumbers. Cover the container with plastic wrap; let stand 12 to 18 hours. Next day, pour off brine; drain well. Combine vinegar and 6 cups water in large kettle; bring to boil; add cucumbers, return to boiling.
Pack cucumbers tightly into 4 hot, sterilized quart jars; add 1 garlic clove, 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds and dill sprig to each jar. Bring vinegar mixture to a boil; pour into jars to within 1/4 inch of rim. Seal, as manufacturer directs; process in hot water bath 15 minutes. Cool. Label with date. Cool in cool dry place. Makes 4 quarts.
What is the difference between a dill sprig and a dill head? I’m afraid I am going to add too much.
Thanks, Brandye
Hello – I just ran across your blog here while looking for a way to make pickles m’self. Just grew a tiny crop of cucumbers here in NJ, and thought why not? I too like pickles…..
At any rate – just wanted to say I was glad to see that other people have eccentric hobbies too :) Hope it went well! Fingers crossed for mine here… Cheers!
Very cool, I hope that your pickles turn out excellent. If you want to learn a whole lot more about pickling, you should check out and keep an eye out on my pickling website. I will be releasing a complete pickling guide with tons of recipes, tips, and secrets very soon.
http://www.howtopickle.com
for more pickling recipes try http://www.homecanning.com
Ok, I’m a city girl going to take a stab at pickling some cucumbers. Here’s my dumb question for the day.. What is a DILL HEAD??
Please help !!!
OMG I just made the best batch of pickles. These are SO good. Recipe is from “The Joy of Pickling” by Linda Ziedrich.
Recipe:
Servings: Makes 1 Quart Pickles
Author Notes: Half-sours aren’t pickles taken prematurely from their brine; rather, they’re cured quickly in a low-salt brine, which hastens the fermentation so the pickles never get very sour, no matter how long they remain in the brine. In The Dill Crock (1984), John Thorne describes half-sours as “cucumbers still, not pickles-little cucumbers who [have] died and gone to heaven.”
Ingredients: 1/4 teaspoon black peppercorns, crushed
1/4 teaspoon coriander seeds, crushed
1 bay leaf
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 quart 3- to 5-inch pickling cucumbers
1 dill head
1 chile pepper, slit lengthwise
1 1/2 tablespoons pickling salt
3 cups water
Instructions: Makes 1 Quart
1. Put the peppercorns, coriander, bay, and garlic into a quart jar. Gently wash the cucumbers, and remove the blossom ends. Pack the jar with the cucumbers, adding the dill head and chile pepper. Add the salt to the water, and pour the brine over the cucumbers, leaving 1 inch of headspace. Push a quart freezer bag into the mouth of the jar, and pour the remaining brine into the bag. Seal the bag. Keep the jar at room temperature, with a dish underneath if the seeping brine might do some damage otherwise.
2. Within 3 days you should see tiny bubbles rising in the jar; this means that fermentation has begun. If scum forms on top of the brine, skim it off daily, and rinse off the brine bag. lf so much brine bubbles out that the pickles aren’t well covered, add some more brine made in the same proportion of salt to water.
3. The pickles should be ready within a week, when they taste sour and when the tiny bubbles have stopped rising. skim off any scum at the top of the jar, cap the jar, and store the pickles in the refrigerator for about 3 days, after which time they should be olive-green throughout. They are best eaten within about 3 weeks.
Why do some receipes call for using a glass bowl to mix the pickels up. What would happen if you used a plasitic bowl.