Earthen_Step
Well-Known Member
Continue Reading Here if interested w/ pictures and better formatting.
If this is your first time treating yourself to a true fermented pickle you may need time to acquire the taste, but give it a chance. I have given tastes to many people and everyone has liked the pickles! They sure don't taste like the pickles you buy at the grocery store (they are much better imo).
Step 1: Gather your cucumbers and equipment. You will want to clean the dirt off of your cucumbers (or other vegies). Also do a pretty nice job at cleaning whatever you are going to ferment in, to decrease the risk of contamination. I do a minimalist approach to my fermenting. There are all sorts of fancy equipment you can use to decrease chances of contamination or make it less maintenance. If I started failing a lot with botched batches I would probably make a bubbler similar to this person's.
Step 2: I will slice thin rounds for sandwiches any of the large cucumbers. I will quarter or eighth my medium-sized cucumbers. I will keep the small cucumbers whole. You can do what you like, this is just my preference.
Step 3: Make your brine. Depending on how you do this you can do it the day before or hours before. I do a ratio of 3 cups water to 1.5 tbs of salt with great results. If your water is terrible you can go with distilled water or boil it for 5 to 10 minutes. If your water is great then just warm it up and dissolve your salt and set aside for use later. For these large 1/2 gallon jars I need about 3 cups of water with 1.5 tbs per jar.
Step 4: Load up any extra goods you plan to have in your pickles. The pickles in this tutorial are loaded with sage, basil, dill, oregano, and thyme. I have done them with nothing but brine (salt-water) and cucumbers, I have done them with garlic and brine. I have done them with jalapeno peppers, garlic... You really can't go wrong, put things in you love and you will probably enjoy the end result.
Step 5: Load the cucumbers till it's as stuffed as you can get with about an inch gap at the top. With pickles I will wedge one large cucumber at the top to keep the contents below submerged in the brine. Once it's full you will pour your brine until you have about a 1/2 inch gap at the top for it to expand. Make sure your brine is down to about room temperature.
Step 6: At this point you put the lid on firm, but don't crank down extremely tight. Ideal temps I have found to be 58-68 degrees. If it gets much warmer it ferments a lot faster and the pickles seem to be a bit mushier. Also if they are fermenting very quickly you will need to "burp" them 2x a day. At a cooler temp you can burp them once every day or two.
To burp them all you need to do is open the lid. If it has been very active open it over the sink as it can overflow just like a shaken up soda bottle. If it fills up to the top pour some out so there is a half inch gap. If the water level runs too low add more water (I just add water, but many people add more brine). The activity will slow down dramatically over 1-2 weeks. Once it seems about done tighten your lid down and stop burping. The CO2 from fermentation will keep the gross molds from growing up top, but if you ignore it completely it could blow your bottle up. That's why I don't crank down on the lid at the beginning, I have had some leak all over my table when the temps were too high and the fermentation activity was going crazy. When it is too hot I ferment in my basement to keep that from happening -- cooler fermenting also helps make a crispier pickle, like I mentioned above.
Step 7: Storage or eat them up! Once the activity has halted and you stop burping them, you can store them for further aging in a cool dark area for months. Some people have even stored them for years! I eat them far too fast for them to store that long. Once I open mine I put them in the fridge. I know people who do not but the taste alters fairly quickly left at room temps and I'm not a big fan. I like to eat fermented pickles or sauerkraut along with most every meal. They go great with sandwiches, rice, eggs, lentils, beans, salads and much more.
Continue Reading Here if interested w/ pictures and better formatting.
If this is your first time treating yourself to a true fermented pickle you may need time to acquire the taste, but give it a chance. I have given tastes to many people and everyone has liked the pickles! They sure don't taste like the pickles you buy at the grocery store (they are much better imo).
Step 1: Gather your cucumbers and equipment. You will want to clean the dirt off of your cucumbers (or other vegies). Also do a pretty nice job at cleaning whatever you are going to ferment in, to decrease the risk of contamination. I do a minimalist approach to my fermenting. There are all sorts of fancy equipment you can use to decrease chances of contamination or make it less maintenance. If I started failing a lot with botched batches I would probably make a bubbler similar to this person's.
Step 2: I will slice thin rounds for sandwiches any of the large cucumbers. I will quarter or eighth my medium-sized cucumbers. I will keep the small cucumbers whole. You can do what you like, this is just my preference.
Step 3: Make your brine. Depending on how you do this you can do it the day before or hours before. I do a ratio of 3 cups water to 1.5 tbs of salt with great results. If your water is terrible you can go with distilled water or boil it for 5 to 10 minutes. If your water is great then just warm it up and dissolve your salt and set aside for use later. For these large 1/2 gallon jars I need about 3 cups of water with 1.5 tbs per jar.
Step 4: Load up any extra goods you plan to have in your pickles. The pickles in this tutorial are loaded with sage, basil, dill, oregano, and thyme. I have done them with nothing but brine (salt-water) and cucumbers, I have done them with garlic and brine. I have done them with jalapeno peppers, garlic... You really can't go wrong, put things in you love and you will probably enjoy the end result.
Step 5: Load the cucumbers till it's as stuffed as you can get with about an inch gap at the top. With pickles I will wedge one large cucumber at the top to keep the contents below submerged in the brine. Once it's full you will pour your brine until you have about a 1/2 inch gap at the top for it to expand. Make sure your brine is down to about room temperature.
Step 6: At this point you put the lid on firm, but don't crank down extremely tight. Ideal temps I have found to be 58-68 degrees. If it gets much warmer it ferments a lot faster and the pickles seem to be a bit mushier. Also if they are fermenting very quickly you will need to "burp" them 2x a day. At a cooler temp you can burp them once every day or two.
To burp them all you need to do is open the lid. If it has been very active open it over the sink as it can overflow just like a shaken up soda bottle. If it fills up to the top pour some out so there is a half inch gap. If the water level runs too low add more water (I just add water, but many people add more brine). The activity will slow down dramatically over 1-2 weeks. Once it seems about done tighten your lid down and stop burping. The CO2 from fermentation will keep the gross molds from growing up top, but if you ignore it completely it could blow your bottle up. That's why I don't crank down on the lid at the beginning, I have had some leak all over my table when the temps were too high and the fermentation activity was going crazy. When it is too hot I ferment in my basement to keep that from happening -- cooler fermenting also helps make a crispier pickle, like I mentioned above.
Step 7: Storage or eat them up! Once the activity has halted and you stop burping them, you can store them for further aging in a cool dark area for months. Some people have even stored them for years! I eat them far too fast for them to store that long. Once I open mine I put them in the fridge. I know people who do not but the taste alters fairly quickly left at room temps and I'm not a big fan. I like to eat fermented pickles or sauerkraut along with most every meal. They go great with sandwiches, rice, eggs, lentils, beans, salads and much more.
Continue Reading Here if interested w/ pictures and better formatting.
