Why Do You Soak Cucumbers Before Pickling?
harvesthunt
16 years ago
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jimster
16 years agoksrogers
16 years agoRelated Discussions
Soaking pickles in water question
Comments (7)I think this basic recipe may have been what my grandma called her "Cinnamon Pickles" but the spices are different, so I need your opinion. The NCHFP recipe calls for celery seed, mustard seed, and whole allspice berries, but the "crisp" sounds like her recipe - more of a brittle crunch, thanks to the lime. There were cinnamon sticks and whole cloves in each jar, along with vinegar and sugar for the sweet-tart taste, but the color was muddy gray-tan, not pretty but yummy, she disliked artificial colors so it is possible that she left them out - as I would. The fruits/vegetables she used were 1/2" thick round slices with the center cut out so they could have been cucumbers, apples, or even pears for the "pickle" since she grew just about everything! I vaguely remember that there were some other things in the jars - maybe onions or berries? Something not as brittle but spiced and definitely not spicy-hot from chili peppers. I do know she used lime for the crunch because as a young girl she cautioned me to "stop breathing" when she mixed the "solution" and to turn my head and "peek out the side of my shoulder". I have been thinking of this unique and extra crunchy textured "pickle" off and on for 50 years. But a "pickle" then was just something preserved with vinegar. One of those mysterious things grandma did way back when. Recently, I've been looking at Spiced Apple Ring recipes for the spices and method used to replicate that memory, but those recipes must end up with a soft texture and are usually made from crab apples, though the spices are right. Not what I remember for the crunch. What do you think? Is this recipe the basis for her "Cinnamon Pickles"? Nancy...See MorePickling cucumbers when you don't have enough
Comments (9)If you plan to make continual batches of pickles, I suggest that you plant at least a dozen or more plants. More plants means more cukes in each picked batch. Mine go from picking at 6am, to canning or fermenting within two hours. You can't get fresher than that! For the Mrs. Wages, don't forget the GARLIC!! I also add hole seed heads to my dills and use the same pickle mix for the salt brine fermented half sours. Ball pickle mixes are not as tasty and some have added sugar, which, for true dills, isn't usual....See MoreWhy do my half sour pickles turn slimy?
Comments (5)Don't know what kind of recipe your using, but whey isn't usually added to salt water nased brines. Whey contains protien and can cause very bad results. Half sours are simply salt and water, with added dill and garlic. Then whole cukes with both end tips cut off. No onions, bayleaf, mustard seed, of any other spice or herb. What your doing is not properly allowing the cukes natural enymes to work with the salt brine to form lactic acid. After a few days you add a small amount of wite distilled vinegar to stablize the brine and then refrigerate. Lactic acid is what makes them sour. Sufficent salt must be added to the water. Too little, and you get mush and quick spoilage, too much salt and its inedible. Suggest that you do a search within this forum for the many hundreds of posts that explain in great detail the amount of salt needed per gallon of water for half sour pickles, as well as the usual herbs used....See MoreCan non-pickling cucumbers be pickled?
Comments (4)Sure you can Astrid. ;) I'll even stick my neck out and say that most don't use pickling cukes to make their pickles with - especially sliced varieties. Regular cucumbers make great bread and butter, dill slices or slabs or spears, sweet slices or chunks, relishes, etc. The slices may be a little bigger than those from pickling varieties but just as good. We like dill slabs for hamburgers so I cut the cuke on the diagonal (degree is your choice) into about 3/8 inch slices and stack them in quart jars with a head of dill, pour on the boiling dill mix (3 c sugar, 2 T canning salt, 6 c vinegar, 2 T pickling spice) and process 10 min. in BWB. Just one idea. ;) Dave PS: I soak the cuke slabs in heavily iced water for 2 hours before putting them in jars. Keeps them crisper....See MoreLinda_Lou
16 years agoksrogers
16 years agojimster
16 years agokayskats
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