I'm sorry it's taken me so long to weigh in on this discussion, though I've been corresponding privately with ajsmama. The Just-Like-Gregg's recipe intrigued me, so I decided to try it. Here's what I learned: The cucumbers get salty, dilly, and garlicky without becoming pickles, because no vinegar is added and no fermentation occurs. I've had these in the refrigerator for about a month now, and they're now getting a bit too hot from the peppers. But, as I expected, there is no sign of spoilage. When ajsmama wrote me regarding this forum discussion, I was alarmed by a post about listeria in fermented pickles. Now I can't find the post; perhaps it was removed? Anyhow, I looked up the study that was mentioned, "Listeria monocytogenes Survival in Refrigerator Dill Pickles," on the website of the National Center for Home Preservation, and I urge anyone worried about the safety of unpasteurized fermented pickles to do the same. Here's my summary of the study: Cucumbers were soaked in a listeria inoculum for 15 minutes (I recommend washing cucumbers in clean tap water instead). Some of the cukes were then fermented in a weak brine, some in a medium brine, and some in a very strong brine. In all cases, the listeria population increased slightly during the first few days, declined sharply by the end of the seven-day fermentation, and continued to decline slowly during refrigerator storage. Although the listeria didn't disappear entirely, it fell to ONE-ONE HUNDRED-THOUSANDTH of the peak amount. If for fear of listeria you want to avoid eating fermented cucumbers that haven't been heat-processed, you should certainly also avoid eating raw cucumbers or any other raw vegetables or fruits.

This is a safe recipe to use, no oil. Even storing in the fridge with the oil could be a problem with a risk for botulism if stored for more than a few days to a week. Not safe at all in the cupboard. If you want, you can use dried oregano in it. : Colorado Mix (Pickled Pepper Vegetable Blend) 2 1/2 pounds peppers, mild or hot as desired 1 pound cucumbers, cut into 1/2-inch chunks 2 to 4 carrots, cut into 1/2-inch chunks 1/2 pound cauliflower, cut into 1-inch flowerettes 1 cup peeled pickling onions 7 to 14 garlic cloves, as desired 6 cups vinegar 3 cups water 2 tablespoons pickling salt 2 tablespoons sugar, if desired Yield: Makes 7 to 8 pints Procedure: Wash and prepare vegetables. Slit small peppers. Core large peppers and cut into strips. Remove blossom end of cucumbers and cut into chunks. Peel and chunk carrots. Break cauliflower into flowerettes. Pack vegetable medley into hot, sterilized jars, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. In 3-quart saucepan, bring vinegar, water, salt and sugar to a boil. Pour hot solution over mix in jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Add liquid to bring headspace to 1/4 inch. Wipe jar rims. Add pretreated lids and process in boiling water bath. For best flavor, store jars five to six weeks before opening. Table 1: Recommended process time for Colorado mix in a boiling water canner. Style of pack/Jar size Process time at altitudes of: 6,000 ft or less Above 6,000 ft Raw: Half-pints or pints 10 min. Quarts 15 min.

That recipe is low in vinegar and it is well diluted with water too. It is basically a 6:1 water to vinegar ratio while the approved recipes call for a 3.5:1 ratio. Might be fine if they were regular peaches. But since they are low acid to begin with and no additional acid added, I wouldn't keep them. JMO Dave

The peeling is optional with any recipe. The need for it depends on the type of pepper and how thick the skin is. Cutting slits in the whole peppers is recommended. The soaking in vinegar is optional. The slits will allow the brine access to the interior. Just takes time. So pre-soaking them could speed up the process. Personally I've never done it. As for the pickle crisp, the amount used depends on the brand used, there are several and some are more or less coarse ground so different amounts would be called for. So use the directions on whichever brand you have, To determine if it is enough or not try some of the ones you have already done and see if you may need a bit more. That will be the best indicator and with time and testing you can decide how much works best for you. But you need to know that using too much can affect the flavor badly and that "very crisp" may not be a realistic expectation with home-canned pickled products. Heat processing just doesn't allow for "crunchiness" so homemade will never be as crisp as store bought which are processed quite differently. JMO Dave