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Fermented Zucchini Pickle question

14 years ago

I have an over run of Zucchini from the garden. I was wondering what was the best way to make a fermented chip. From what I have read, I was thinking of using a 5% brine with dill, garlic and hot pepper (we like it spicy) and doing a slow ferment in the refrigerator (4-6 weeks). Any ideas on this? Should I use a stronger brine? Am I nuts for trying this method?

Thanks, Nik

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Comments (5)

digdirt2
14 years ago
Why not just use the standard fermented dill pickle recipe only use zukes instead of cukes? You can do them in the fridge.

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: NCHFP - Fermented Dill Pickles
nik1965
Original Author
14 years ago
Dave,

I don't know??? Using the link you supplied would make an 8.2% brine (possibly too salty???, I don't know). Have you tried this method? I am in a quandary, reading other posts and vinegar inhibiting lactic acid formation. I am new to making brine / fermented pickles. Though, I have been canning and using vinegar pickle (quick) for many years. My Kraut turns out great every year. I do know that 10% brine as suggested in many old ways is way to strong and even after a freshening bath they suck. Thanks for the reply...

Nik
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Can't say what Mom used to do but many did store their fully fermented pickles in the cellar or a root cellar because the temps there were about the same as fridge temps 40-45 or even cooler in the winter. But even then they won't store for long so they'd need to be eaten within a reasonable length of time. Now days the guidelines read: Fully fermented pickles may be stored in the original container for about 4 to 6 months, provided they are refrigerated and surface scum and molds are removed regularly. Canning fully fermented pickles is a better way to store them. So processing them after they are fully fermented allows for longer shelf storage and it also eliminates the need to skim them every few days since the processing prevents any molds, listeria or yeasts from developing. Here is a link that might be useful: Fermented Dill Pickles instructions
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Yes, cutting off the blossom end is VERY important!! This end contains enzymes that can spoil a brine and make unpredicatble results. I usually cut both ends off when I make half sour fermented cukes. Its a way to get the brine inside much quicker, as they just sit out 2-3 days, and then the fridge. The vinegar I use is a tiny amount and is added only after they are placed in the fridge. It helps slow down any further fermenting if it were to continue under cold storage. Even though there are millios of pickle recipes, and some written by note worthy people, they still can be of questionable nature to the home canner and current safety standards. Yes, you can make a relish. I have several huge overgrown picklers (one weighs almost 2 pounds!), that will get cut open, seeds removed (tough!) and onions added. It will be a sweet pickle relish, with white and cider vinegar, Splenda, celery seed, mustard seed, and a bit of dill seeds. I also like to add a dash of green food coloring to give it the 'commercial look'.
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Just a side note from my recent refrigerator pickle experience. I used a similar recipe which did not brine and drain the cucumbers before the syrup was added; the salt was added to the syrup and poured over the cucumbers. The sweet and sour pickles were great the first week, then they started to get progressively more salty and less sweet as the weeks went on. I made four pints and we ate about one pint per week. My friend and I determined that the difference between her recipe (salt only in brining) and the one I used (salt in the syrup) was that as time went on, the salt in the syrup became more absorbed by the cucumbers. In my friend's recipe, the excess salt and water is drained off and the cucumbers are not sitting in the salt as they age in the refrigerator. The next time I make this recipe, I am going to brine the cucumbers and drain them before adding the syrup, and I'll omit the salt in the syrup.
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Last time I asked about it, Dave told me that there would not be enough vinegar or salt left in the jar to cure them. That assumes that the company making them only uses just enough vinegar and salt, and no extra for safety's sake. No, what I said was that the brine had been diluted by the water in the cucumbers originally in the jar. So it no longer had sufficient pH to safely process the new cucumbers. Cucumbers are 80% water after all. It doesn't matter whether the manufacturer used sufficient salt or not although I'm sure they did as they have to pass FDA inspection. But their pickles are made in huge vats and then packed in jars. While on the shelf all the water in those cucumbers leaches out into the brine diluting it. That is what happens with all brines - basic osmotic chemistry - the sodium is exchanged with water. Once opened the jars have a limited shelf life - an expiration date - for that very reason, reduced pH. So year old pickle brine is low enough in pH as to allow all sorts of bacteria, including listeria, to grow in it. Eating those pickles is your choice, your risk to take but the lab tests would would show that it has neither sufficient salinity nor acidic pH in it to make it safe. More importantly it is in no way comparable to fresh made brine as we are discussing here. Dave
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digdirt2
14 years ago
Well I have 2 1 gallon jugs of this recipe going right now - one on the counter as we have always done them and one in the fridge for comparison. I used a combination of cuke and zuke spears in both jugs.

It is week 4 for the counter ones and we haven't tasted them yet - couple more days I think - but they look good and feel finger crisp. The 6 week ones in the fridge are really good eating and the zuke spears are crisper than the cuke spears. Not too salty for us but I'll admit that we both like salty foods.

Bout all you can do is try a small container of them and see what you think. And you could cut the salt back to 7% with no problems but I don't think I'd go any lower than that or you'll likely get slime problems.

Dave
nik1965
Original Author
14 years ago
Dave,

Thanks for the reply. I'll give it a try and see how it turns out. Hey, one never knows till you take the plunge. I'll post the recipe that I use and the results as they happen. Thanks again...

Nik
busylizzy
14 years ago
If you have the Ball Blue Canning Book, look up the recipe for the brine for pickled cauliflower. It's not for fermentation, but I had leftover brine last year from the cauliflower and extra squash I thought what the heck use that brine. I must say that brine for squash is excellent, I chunked the squash and they were as crisp as any pickle I ever had. too bad I only had 2 pints, they were gone in a flash.

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