I’ve been asked by several to share my refrigerator pickle recipe.  These pickles are sour, spicy, garlicky and real crunchy. If you make them to my recipe and they are too sour, use two tablespoons of sugar and two tablespoons of salt instead of the 1 Tbs. sugar and 3 Tbs. salt. If they’re too spicy cut back on the crushed red pepper. Too much garlic? Buy your pickles from the store.

Ingredients:

1 Pound pickling cucumbers (about 8)
1 Cup white vinegar (5% acidity)
1 Cup water
1 Tablespoon sugar
3 Tablespoons Kosher Salt (make sure its kosher, pickling salt will turn your garlic blue, looks funky but tastes OK)
1 Well rounded tablespoon of your favorite pickling spice
1 Tablespoon red pepper flakes
1 Cup fresh dill sprigs (tapped with the back of a chefs knife to help bring out the flavor)
8-12 cloves of garlic peeled and slightly smashed (like the dill it brings out the flavor).

Directions

Slice the pickles in 3/8″ to 1/2″ thick coins.  In a non-reactive vessel combine vinegar, water, sugar, salt and pickling spices.  Stir well to dissolve sugar and salt. Add sliced pickles and let sit for 4-6 hours.  To a clean wide mouth jar, add 1/3 of the dill, 3-4 cloves of garlic and 1/3 of the pickles. Then add another 1/3 of the dill, 3-4 cloves garlic, 1 tablespoon of red pepper flakes and 1/3 of the pickles.  To finish, add the rest of the dill, garlic and pickles and cover to within a 1/4″ of the top with the pickling brine making sure you get most of the pickling spices in the jar.  Using a new lid and a clean band close tightly and place in the refrigerator to cure for 2-3 weeks.

If you want pickle spears slice your pickles into spears and put the garlic, pepper and dill in as evenly as possible, fill to 1/4″ from the top with the brine and let cure in the fridge 4 weeks.  If you want whole pickles slice the blossom end off and pack in the jar evenly distributing the garlic, pepper and dill. Fill with brine to 1/4″ from the top and let cure for 8 weeks in the fridge.

These pickles are the best! I can’t wait for more than three weeks to eat them so mine are always sliced! Don’t forget to eat the garlic cloves too, wow are they good!  Thee pickles will last up to 8 months in the fridge. I usually make 10 lbs. at a time.

I would love to hear your feedback, enjoy!

 

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