Ever watch your kids devour a whole jar of pickles in one sitting? Now they can eat as
many as they can make with this simple recipe. The pickles, like the jams in this book,
are not processed in a hot-water bath and must be stored in the refrigerator.
Cucumbers lose moisture quickly once they are picked, so they need to be soaked in
water before pickling to rehydrate them, which helps ensure that the pickles turn out
crisp. This means that you will have to start the recipe a day ahead of time. The recipe
requires pickling salt, a very fine noniodized salt that is free of additives. The anticaking
agents in regular table salt will turn pickled vegetables dark. Using wide-mouth pint
jars will make it easier to fill them with cucumbers and pour in the hot brine—and for
little hands to remove the pickles. [MAKES SIX 1-PINT JARS]
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About 25 blemish-free cucumbers,
each 4 to 6 inches long
4 cups water
2 cups cider vinegar
1⁄3 cup plus 1 tablespoon pickling
salt
3 teaspoons brown mustard seeds
1 bunch fresh dill
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1. Place the cucumbers in a large bowl and add water to cover by
2 inches or so. Let stand overnight.
2. The next day, thoroughly wash six 1-pint canning jars and their lids
and screw bands. Put the jars, lids, and screw bands in a large pot and
add water to cover. Bring to a boil and
continue to boil for 15 minutes to
sterilize the jars, lids, and bands.
Turn off the heat and leave the
jars in the hot water until ready
to use.
3. Pour the 4 cups water into a large nonreactive saucepan. Add
the vinegar and pickling salt and bring to a boil over a high heat,
stirring to dissolve the salt. Meanwhile, remove the cucumbers from
the soaking water. Trim off the tips of each cucumber and cut lengthwise into quarters.
4. Using tongs, lift the jars, lids, and screw bands from the hot water
and dry thoroughly. Stand the cucumber quarters upright in the jars;
they should fit snuggly. Add ½ teaspoon of the mustard seeds to each
jar. Immediately ladle the hot brine into the jars, leaving a ¼-inch headspace. Use a clean skewer or chopstick to tuck sprigs of fresh dill among
the cucumbers. Wipe each jar rim clean with a damp towel, then top
with a lid and seal tightly with a screw band. Let the jars cool overnight.
5. Label the jars with the recipe name and date (see page 42). The
pickles will keep for up to 3 months in the refrigerator.