1. No. More free water and more alkaline pH. You can sub zucchini for cucumbers in most of the NCHFP/Ball tested and approved cucumber pickling recipes for canning as long as the amounts are not changed because they all contain sufficient acids and safe processing and storage instructions. But other recipes and other methods of food preservation may not be safe for substitution and have to be evaluated individually. 2. No. "Everything" is way too broad and slices when another form is called for can end up as mush. The best use for overly mature cukes and zukes is grind/shred for relishes or chutneys. Dave

I wouldn't worry too much about the salt as long as it is designed for canning. Same goes for Vinegar. Vinegar is vinegar imo. The only wild card on your list would be the spices IMO. I don't have a recommendation but going with an established name brand would be the best bet. But what you might want to also consider is additions to the mix such as some minced garlic and/or sliced onions. Have fun and let us know how it turns out. Just keep in mind that if you can them the proper way by heating the canning solution to the required temps before filling the jars of peppers that it will essentially "cook" the peppers resulting in soft if not mushy peppers. I tried it one year and since have given up but I canned them sliced and canning them whole may work out a bit better. Now, I "cold can" them and freeze the jars that I cannot use right away. Freezing them will soften them a bit but not as bad as regular canning. Once thawed, they will last a couple months or more in the fridge.

Lpink, thanks for all the info. You actually answered one of my questions in your last post. I was wondering how long a refrigerator pickle is safe to eat. I've seen recipes that say no more than a week, and that's what I was guessing. I'm assuming that the very short time they're safe is what prompted people to go one step further and freeze them. That way you could make a bunch of pickles when the cucumbers are in season, freeze them, and use just one container at a time. Not as efficient as canning but at least you'd have some sort of pickley thing available all year round. I have another question, this time about seasoning. About the same time as the pickling cukes are on sale at farmers markets, dill heads are also on sale. But sometimes they look pretty run-down. If I can't find good looking dill heads, could I substitute some dill seed? I realize the pickles would not be exactly the same, but would they be awful?

<is the food supposed to be totally submerged in the brine? My quartered pickles seem to be floating a bit above the brine.> In the ideal world, yes they should all be totally submerged. But when they aren't tightly wedged in they will often float. Usually with time and with enough brine still in the jar they will sink down some. If they don't they tend to turn dark and unappealing so once you open the jar just toss those top few. Tip over should be avoided however you can - just put some water filled jars in if necessary - as not only does the brine get out but the water gets in and dilutes the brine. It is usually recommended that those jars be marked, refrigerated, and consumed first and early since there is no way to know how much the brine was diluted. Dave