No or low salt pickles?

16 years ago

My husband used to love pickles, but he hasn't eaten any since he was put on a low sodium diet. I've found a few no-salt pickle recipes, but was wondering if any of you have recipes you've tried -- for either cucumber pickles or other vegetables. The following are examples of the kind of recipes I've found. Any comments or suggestions are appreciated.

Sue (who usually hangs out on the Cooking Forum)

Salt Free Pickles (from Low Sodium Cooking.com)

5 Cucumber,Sliced

2 c Sugar

2 c White Wine Vinegar

1 1/2 c Red Wine Vinegar

1 1/2 c Cider Vinegar

4 T Dill Weed

1 t Black Pepper

2 t Celery Seed

1/2 t Dry Mustard

1 t Turmeric

Combine all ingredients, except cucumbers. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Put cucumbers jars and pour liquid over. Put lids on and store in refrigerator. Will keep for up to 9 months.

Salt Free Dills (from AMA)

12 small cucumbers

1 tbsp. dill seed

1 tbsp. whole pickling spice

2 cloves garlic

1/8 tsp. alum

2 grape leaves (optional)

2-1/4 c. water

1-1/2 c. cider vinegar

1 tbsp. sugar

Rinse cucumbers thoroughly and soak overnight in cold water.Dry and place in a clean hot quart jar. Add dill, pickling spice, garlic,alum and grape leaves to jar.

In a small saucepan, heat water, vinegar, and sugar over medium heat and bring to boil. pour boiling liquid into jar, filling to within 1/2 inch of top. Wipe rim of jar, screw lid on tightly and place in a deep pan. Cover jar completely with water, bring to boil, and cook 20 minutes. Store pickles 2 weeks before using.

No Salt Dill Pickles (from "The No-Salt Lowest-Sodium Cookbook" by Donald A. Gazzaniga)

5-7 medium pickling cucumbers, sliced into quarters

1 c. water

1/2 c. white vinegar

1 small onion, minced

6 cloves,garlic, finely,minced

2 tbsp. ground dill seed

1 tsp. celery seed

1 tbsp. whole pickling spice

2 tsp. whole mustard seed

2 tsp. dried sage

Put the cucumbers into a wide-mouth quart jar with a lid. Combine the water, vinegar, onion, garlic, dill seed, celery seed, pickling spice, mustard seed, and sage. Pour the marinade over the cucumbers in the jar. Fill the jars to within 1/2 inch of the top with the liquid. Seal the jar and set it in the refrigerator for 2-3 days, then serve.

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Comments (5)

readinglady
16 years ago
I'm just guessing that the refrigerator life of recipes #2 and #3 would be relatively brief (akin to any marinated cucumber salad). The proportion of vinegar to water is low and there isn't the preservative quality of salt.

Recipe #2 is especially a concern for me. I wouldn't leave that mixture out at room temperature. There have been studies regarding the development of listeria in dills which are held at room temp for some days and then refrigerated.

Also, the alum is unnecessary. Although some Extension agencies do still allow its use in fermented pickles, it serves no purpose in a quick pickle and can cause stomach upset.

Carol
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ksrogers
16 years ago
Alum is aluminium based, and was primarily used for some sour pickles to give them more 'pucker'. Today, its not used very much. There are a few pickling cucumber types that actually have a flavor of a pickle right off the plants. I forget where I saw this description, but it was interesting that they had a mild pickle taste even without adding any vinegar. As mentioned, none of the recipes could be used for home canning, and the refrigetion may be the only way to store them for a short term. I didn't find much of an effect when using grape leaves. They were usually added to canning jars to help keep the cukes a little crisper. Today, Pickle Crisp does the job very well. Pickle Crisp is food grade calcium chloride. What I have done is pickled Jicima in rice wine vinegar, and its used in sushi (California rolls). The rice wine vinegar is slightly sweet, with a slight amount of salt. I juilienne the jicima. Its texture is almost like a raw potato, only sweeter and mild. I also do the same with carrots. Both remain quite crunchy for a while in the fridge.
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I make pickled cucumbers with little or no salt - fairly easy. I use quart jars, add what ever spices I want in the bottom - garlic, pepper corns, dill seed / weed, tarragon, and then pack them with washed cucumbers, the smaller ones work better, up to the jar shoulder. I see how many jars I have, then mix a 50:50 solution of vinegar and water, we usually use cider vinegar. Boil that, pour over the cucumbers, put on the lids, and process with a boiling water bath for 20 minutes.

They need to sit at least 6 weeks.

These can be made with out any salt, but I usually add a scant teaspoon to the jar.
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ksrogers
16 years ago
One thing to offset the possible blandness due to the lack of salt, is to add a little sugar. Beacause I am diabetic, I like adding a little Splenda to my brines. There is someting about Splenda and the vinegar that very little is needed to sweeten it as much as many cups of sugar would do. For a few different types, try celery seed, and mustard seeds, as well as slices onions and sliced cukes. Add a few smal pieces of sweet red peppers, and you have a good bread and butter pickle. The cider vinegar make them very tasty. I much prefer white vinegar for dills though as the dill and garlic need to be the most prominent flavor, whereas cider vinegar would overpower the dill and garlic a bit. Was wondering if you can deal with a litte MSG? It is sodium based, but has no chloride in it. Here, I must consue a lOT f sodium polystyrene sulfonate, which absorbs potassium in my system, and converts that to sodium. My calcium must also be carefully watched. Tough getting old and everything starts to fall apart.
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picklelover
12 years ago
Hi just wanted to let people know that I made the recipe for dills that were to go into freezer after a few days in fridge. Well even though I doubted it ,still did it and ruined an entire container of pickles as they went to mush of course. They were ok just in the fridge. Would NOT recommend this recipie for dills. Well back to searching for a good no salt dill. Can anyone help me out. I crave pickles like crazy all the time but can not have due health problems.
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No or low salt pickles?

Comments (5)

readinglady

ksrogers

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