Can I ask why in a pressure canner? It isn't required in any way and trying to pressure can pickles results in a very mushy and unappetizing pickle.

At any rate, here are all the dill pickle recipes. See link below.

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: Dill pickle recipes

They will be mush. Why do you want to pressure can pickles ?

You can tell I have no idea... How about a refrigerator dill pickle recipe? I followed the link but I have no idea which one would be good. The Clausen refrigerator dills are the type I really like.

My favorite is easy. I have fresh dill getting very big now, and soon the plants will have seed heads. My cuke plants are still way too small. Because of the big differences in the two, I planted more dill and hope it will mature in time. I start with a salt brine, either using water and pickling salt, or part of a box of Mrs. Wages or Ball dill pickle mixes. I add some garlic cloves and pack each jar with VERY fresh pickling cukes and I cut off the end tips from both ends. Once the brine has the right TASTE to me, I will pour it into the packed canning jars and cover loosly. These are left on the counter for about 2-3 days. Then, I add a tablespoon or two of white vinegar to each jar, cap and refrigerate. Even up to a year later, the pickles are quite crisp. Pressure canning a high acid food is counter productive. Pressure canning is used mostly for canning low acid foods. Even for that, with a loose fitting cover, the pressure canner can become a boiling water bath canner, but because the 'half sour' pickles I make see no heat of any kind, they get refrigerated instead. Check out Claussen as a refrigerated pickle type.

Some of the refrigerator pickle recipes can allow listeria to grow, so you need to be careful with instructions and recipes.
Claussen are a fermented type pickle.
Fermented Dill Pickles  Refrigerated "Clausen" Type

1 Gallon Jar
Pickling Cucumbers
12 Fresh Dill Flower heads, or
2 Tbsp Dried dill weed and
2 Tbsp. Dried dill seed
10 to 12 Cloves Garlic
6 to 8 Peppercorns
1/4 Cup Vinegar
1/2 Cup Salt
1 1/2 Quarts Water

In 1 gallon jar add pickling cucumbers Rinse but do not wash the cucumbers. Add Dill flower heads or dried dill weed and seed, garlic, peppercorns, and vinegar. Dissolve salt in water and add to jar. Fill jar the remaining way with water. Add weight to keep cucumbers under brine.

Fermentation sequence
1. Clear brine  no cloudiness for 1 to 3 days
2. Cloudy brine with gas formation, 2-3 days
3. Cloudy brine  no gas formation, 5 to 6 days

Pickles ready to eat after 10-11 days.
Refrigerate pickles if you do not want to process them.

To process the pickles
Fill clean, sterilized quart jars with pickles to within 1/2inch of the top. Wipe, seal, and process in a hot water bath for 15 minutes. Remove and place on towel in a draft free area. Let jars stand for 12 hours. Label and date. Store in a dark, cool area.

Hello everyone, I would like to use this recipe that is exactly what my grandmother used to pickle green tomatoes. Would the processing be the same for the tomatoes?

And, as I mentioned before Classen also offers a HALF SOUR pickle, which isn't fully fermented, so its fermentation is halted by adding a small amount of vinegar. They also have green tomatoes that are a half sour type.

Thanks Linda Lou. That recipe sounds great. I'll make some tonight.
Rick

Linda Lou,
I made some last night. I'm assuming that they are fermented at room temperature and then put in the refrigerator after about 6 days. I'll be making some more tonight and every night for awhile since I'm getting about 30 per day.
Rick

linda lou
how long will the fermented clausen pickles keep in the refrigerator if they are not processed?

Hello, I am so pleased to find out that so many people are interested to find out the special method of drying and eating the 'tangy taste' of the new found crasin! I am so pleased to see that the idea of this berry-extravaganza has finallly caught on!

Have a berry happy day!
Nigel berry

Where is a 'crasin' even mentioned here??

Someone has had too much pickle juice...

Anyone know where I can find more gallon jars? I only have one and lots of pickling cukes.

Gallon jars are hard to find. Ball only goes to half gallons, and i have two cases, which fit nicely in the fridge. Maybe a food grade plastic pail with lid would work. Years ago, gallon glass jars were for relish, pickles, mayo, and other resturant foods in large ammounts. Now they use packets or plastic mostly.

I believe the Claussen type are 2-3 months in the fridge.
Fully fermented type pickles are 4-6 months in the fridge.

I got those glass sun tea jars at thrift stores and used them.
I also use them for storage. The little spout doesn't hurt anything on them.

Linda Lou,
I tried the first pickle from your recipe. Thank you very much. The pickles are incredible. They don't taste like the Claussen ones, they're better! They taste like the ones you get at a real deli.

BTW...you can get gallon jars at Costco filled with pickles and relish. I found friends with 5 of them. :)

Linda Lou! I really want to try your pickle recipe. I am a little confused on the fermentation part. Can you stop the fermentation after just 2-3 days and then refrigerate? I am new to pickling but these are the type of pickle I want to make. If I do ferment for 10 days, how long will they keep in the refrigerator? Can this recipe be scaled to make 2 quarts? Or can I break it down into 4 quarts ( equals a gallon) and maybe give them as a gift? I am the only one in my house that eats pickles, I just don't want to have too many. Thanks for any help and sharing your recipe.

Linda Lou's recipe used the 'full fermentation' process. The 2-3 days fermentation is used for the HALF SOUR pickles. I prefer this method as it does keep the cukes crisper and longer. They do need refrigerationafter teh short room temp 'partial curing'. If your at a local supermarket, look for Claussen REFRIGERATED half sours. Linda Lou's recipe is quite different and depends on the lengh of the time the cukes are in a brine at room temperature. The half sours I speak of are much easier and quicker to make and you can even do a single cuke by just making the proper water to pickling salt ratio, toss in a cup up garlic clove or two and some fresh dill weed and maybe (if you have them) dill seed heads. I do this, along with using some of the Ball or Mrs. Wages dill pickle mixes as the salt portion. The reason is simple, these mixes have a stronger dill 'extract' in them and it can give a nice POWERFUL dill flavor as opposed to just adding the fresh or dried dill. I make mine in half gallon Ball jars and they an keep up to a year in the fridge. I just ate the last one from last summer, and it was still nice and crunchy!!

I have some questions/clarifications regarding Linda Lou's recipe:

1. Can onions be added with the cukes? I love pickled sweet onions.

2. At what point do the pickels go in the fridge? After the 5-6 days with no gas? So about 11 days total?

3. Do they stay in the original juice and bucket to go into the fridge? Or are they put in fresh juice?

4. Can pickle crisp be added?

Thanks.

2 more questions:

5. Wondering why do you rinse, but not wash?

6. If processing, fill to within 1/2 inch of the top with what? With the brine they were fermenting in? What if it is scuzzy brine?

Thanks much.

Some times its rinse, somes times wash, its basically similar.. A 'wash' might involve using soap? Not for pickles!! If they are very dirty, a rinse may not get all the dirt out, or a longer rinse with a light scrubbing can then 'wash' the dirt away. Its your choice there if you don't like dirt in yor teeth! If your fermentiing fully, they need a longer time at room temp to properly 'cure'. If its half sour, or PARTIALLY cured (partially fermtented) its only out at room temps for a 2-5 days tops. Onion slices can be added, but might not give a good result for a fully fermented pickle. Its your choice, and unless the recipes are calling for onions, it may not be very practicle, or tasty. The salt based brine (juice is the same throughout the whole process for fermented, unless its under salty, or over salty where it can be adjusted SLIGHTLY near the end of room temp fermentation. Pickle Crisp may not work well with a fermented pickles, as lactic acid is produced as opposed to the use of a vinegar based brine. Linda Lou's recipe is quite different from a half sour and a 'regular' dill pickle. Dill pickles come in many kinds of recipes and methods too. Suggest start at a pojnt where your making a vinegar based and get a bit of the basics answered first, insteado of dealving in to some of the unknown, which might bring on many more confusing issues and questions. PIckle Crisp is prmarilay used for canned vinegar based pickles that are being canned. Its meant to reduce the acidic action that vinegar does when exposed to cukes. Its use is the replacent for PICKLING LIME, whidh isn't used much anymore, because there, you DO need to wash and scrub after a 24 hour soak in lime and water in the fridge. You may want to read a afew more threads involving pickles and and their various recipes. Fermented pickles (ONLY) cannot be canned or processed, and can only be refrigerated- like the popular CLAUSSEN types.

You'll know the fermentation sequence has ended when there's no activity in the brine. Snap open a pickle and it should be translucent inside. And, of course, it should taste good. Then you can process them.

You can fill the jars to the 1/2-inch mark with the strained and boiled brine. However, I don't like to do that because I find it "funky" so I make up a fresh finishing brine instead. If you check the link and go to page 19 you'll see a recipe for "fresh brine." Use that.

The cucumbers are rinsed rather than washed because washing, especially if you use a vegetable brush, increases the odds you'll damage the skin. Exposing the flesh can lead to spoilage during the fermentation process. Use multiple rinses and clean the cucumbers with care, especially if you leave the stem end. The area around the stem is a common collection point for bacteria.

The recipe can be scaled by half or a quarter, whatever is convenient. Just be very sure you maintain the proper proportions of salt to water in the brine.

The document I linked to provides a helpful tutorial that will answer a lot of your questions.

Carol

Here is a link that might be useful: Homemade Pickles and Relishes

For comparison,
My half sours, the insides are partially white and partially translucent. I don 't reuse a brine, but do not change the original brine either. Mine cannot be canned, so must reside in the fidge for all storage. They are a slight a bit crisper than the fully fermented ones. One reason for the 'funky ' brine is because during full fermentation, the cukes release a lot of enzymes, and the brine tends to get quite cloudy. For a clearer appearance its good to replace the old original brine for the fully fermented pickles. My half sours have a somewhat more fresh, crisp texture and taste, compared to the fuly fermented ones, and they keep up to a year in the fridge, if they last that long. As mentioned, scrubbing is not good, and no brushes! Many pick cukes have small pointy spines on the sides, so when I rinse, these spine tips are also rubbed off is possible. For my half sours, BOTH ends tips need removing. For the fully fermented, the blossom end tip must be taken off as there is a lot of enzyme buildup there, that you don't want in a finished fully fermented pickle. Always be sure to TASTE your brine before using it. If its overly or under salty, it can give you a lot of grief. Under salty will spoil during fermenting, and overly salty will b a bit too much to deal with as to the bitterness. Minor adjustments to the brines' water/salt ratio while in the first day or two, can help pinpoint the right taste you will want. Even for that, after 3 days, you can dig out a cuke and taste it even then.. Thats the nice thing about these, if made right, they can be good within a couple of days and beyond.

Great thread. Started today to make Linda Lou's Clausen type pickles following her recipe above and I have a question.
If scum starts developing which they say to skim off, doesn't it get into the dill which is also at the top? Do you then rinse off the dill?

Got them cooking right now. (That is fermenting in the crock). Can hardly wait to try one.

Thanks.

Pack the dill and garlic in first, then the cukes. This way a cuke gets scum, you pull it out, and rinse it off. Skimming any off scum with a spoon is fine too. Just keep those cukes and all under the liquid. The scum forms only on the surface and the pickles and stuff should be under the surface of the brine. A fermenting crock is a food safe ceramic, glazed, heavy open pail, like a big plastic food grade bucket. Come in many depths, capacities, and sizes. Most have no covers, so a kitchen towel is used to cover an open one to keep most 'stuff' out, but air and gasses are easily released. They are used for making fermented cabbage-sourkraut, and almst every other fermented pickle product. Not oven proof, but heavy, and possibly very dangerous if they are very very old, where lead glazes were used to give them non pourous surfaces. A big dinner plate is used to help hold brined the products under the brine. As a weight, a water filled canning jar makes a gooo weight on top of the plate for keeping stuff under brine. The crocks are not cheap!

If well-covered, scum is less likely to develop. As Ken said, it's preferable to layer the dill, garlic etc. at the bottom so they're weighted by the cucumbers. I also put the larger cucumbers on top. (Sort by size.)

To remove the scum without picking up the dill, just use a large flat spoon (ladle, spatula, whatever) and press down a bit to submerge the dill and get the foam. I actually pull out my plate and weight to get full access to the scum. Then I wash the plate before replacing. Cleanliness is critical with fermentation.

Also, if you use a plastic zip-loc-type bag to hold down your weight, fill it with brine. Then if there's any leakage, the integrity of the brine hasn't been compromised.

Carol

Thanks for all the responses. The info from Wisconsin is great.

Has anyone ever fermented pickles in a food grade plastic pal with an airlock (the kind for home brewing or home winemaking?). Seems this would work better than a kitchen towel?

Been there, done that. Its a bit more costly, but you still have a risk of scum, as its motly airborne. The locks let out gasses, but thats not all that was inside, unless the whole thing was exposed to strong sulfur or other bactera killer first. There are several posts about using pails and these water seal locks. Once the pail is open for even a second for examintaion, it can catch millions of airborne bacteria. The scum is mostly harmless and even more so after a while and offers a better protected surface.

Sometimes there's scum, sometimes not. Certainly the kind of bucket you mention will reduce the likelihood of scum forming, but there are no guarantees. Some regard scum as a menace; traditionally Eastern Europeans regarded scum as a good thing which enhances flavor development during fermentation.

Do skim if it forms but you don't need to obsess as long as you're not seeing mold. Mold is what you need to be concerned about.

Carol

Here's a simple Dill Pickle Recipe:

Dill Pickles

Wash cucumbers and pack them into sterilyzed jars. Place several sprays of dill into jars. Heat 1 quart of water, 1 cup of vinegar, and 1/4 cup of canning salt to a boil. Remove from heat and let mixture cool. Pour over cucumbers filling to 1/4 inch of the top. Seal. They will become cloudy, but will soon clear. Process in water bath approx. 10 minutes. Pickles will be firm and crisp.

Brine makes for approx. 2½ qts

*You will need to double, triple, or even quadruple this recipe if you're making several jars of pickles.

**I got this recipe from a lady over at the Taste of Home Forums*** These turn out really great!!! I also add dill seed, and mustard seed to the jars.

Luvpickles,
The ratio of vinegar to water is quite different from a normal brine. These appear to be barely on the 'edge' of being safe to can. Dill, spices and herbs are better to deal with if they are put in first, then the cukes. This way, the ferny leaves don't get trapped in the seal area when teh lid is placed on them. The cukes also need the blossom end trimmed off. Tasting a brine before filling also reduces the failure of a possible bad batch of brine. Add garlic too. A sweet Bread & Butter is similar, but with sugar, cider and white vinegar, celery seed, and mustard seed. Unless the recipe is actually from a source that has been approved safe for home canning, you may want to store these in the fridge instead of a regular BWB process. Its your safety thats a concern.

I agree the ratio of vinegar to water in the brine is too low. The processing time would be OK for pints but is too short for quarts.

As cucumbers are low-acid veggies, the amount of vinegar is critical.

Compare with this recipe from the NCHFP. Other spices listed could be left out and only dill used for a safe-tested pickle similar to your recipe.

Here is a link that might be useful: Quick Fresh-Pack Dill Pickles

Uh,oh, now I'm concerned and confused.

Concerned because I borrowed a big old crock and no one knows the age of it. How does a person know if it has a lead glaze or not? I'll be afraid to eat the pickles.

I'm confused about the vinegar to water ratio every one keeps refering to. Is this ratio different if making fermented vs. quick pack pickles? Linda Lou's recipe from the top of this thread only has 1/4 vinegar to 1 1/2 qts water and that is what I used. Plus I put extra water in it.

I was tempted to buy some pickling cukes at the sale barn today. Gerkin size went for about $20 for a 20lb box and a little less for a larger dill size. I had to use regular cukes for my pickles and yes I know they probably will not turn out as well but I wanted to try the dills anyway. Next year I plan to plant some pickling cukes.

I don't know of any way to tell with old crocks. That's why I quit using them. Someone else may have information on how to detect lead, short of lab testing, but I haven't heard of any.

Linda Lou's recipe is a fermented pickle. That's different from a quick pickle because the fermentation process creates acid. So the vinegar is only a small % of the acid in the total mixture. I hope that makes sense. I didn't want to go into all the whys and wherefores of fermentation.

Basically it's apples and oranges to compare a fermented brine to a quick brine.

Carol

Regular cukes will soften quickly, and because the skins are so thick they will be tougher to enjoy. When I buy cukes for salads, I use pickling types as their skins are very thin and crisp, and are not needed to be peeled off. Can't say the same about regular cukes, as they would be like biting into a hard tough skin, and softer inside. Pickling cukes are the #1 choice and MUST be used immediately after picking!! to get the best texture. Chilling in ice water can help to recrisp them, but its short term only, and will not fix/replace an older cukes' texture, or to get to be crisp again for a longer time.

If sunken, rubbery, soft, old, they are not going to be as good for making crisp pickles. Long English cukes (sport), are usually sold in a shrink wrapped plastic. The reason is simple. If left out to air they dry out very fast and you end up with a poor texture again. They are bred to offer the softest skins that are found on all cukes. I wouldn't use any English cukes for pickles, but they are decent in fresh salads however.

As to the crocks, you may want to see if cheap the lead tst kits used for tsting paint might work. A tiny chip of the glaze may be a way to see if the sample shows positive for lead. I think crocks made before 1960-1970 are are questionable, but correct me if I am wrong.

I had mold growing in mine. Are the pickles still OK to eat? They were only in the brine 5-6 days. Should they be kept in the refrigerator during the fermentation process?

The scum and/or mold can be spooned out. If the mold is on the cukes too, it may have been due to them not having enough salt or brine covering them. Keep refrigerated and capped. If you are concerned even more, you can fish out all the pickles, rinse with water and then put them in the jar with a fresh brine. Mold can happen quickly if the refrigerator temps are above about 45 degrees. I like to keep mine down to about 6 degrees, so I don't usually see much mold.