It is difficult to pinpoint the exact cause without many more details. But in general, when liquid levels fall in jars that were full to begin with there are 2 causes:

(1) jars over-filled with under-hydrated solids and they absorb much of the liquid duringand after processing

(2) boil-over during processing where liquid leaves the jar and goes into the water in the canner

So if the water in the canner was discolored or had a vinegar odor then it was likely boil-over. The cause is usually improperly applied rings - not tight enough - and over aggressive boiling.

If no discoloration or odor then it most likely was over-paced jars with under-hydrated cukes. If that is the case then either the cukes were too old and dry, or something was done wrong when making them, or the recipe instructions used were wrong. Would need more details.

As to safe to consume: if it was a safe recipe in the first place then yes, those in the liquid would be safe but those above the liquid will discolor with time and should be tossed.

As to salvage - they can be opened within 24 hours, reheated, more brine added and reprocessed with new lids and clean jars but the double processing will make them softer and less quality.

Dave

Thank you for responding. This is good information. I can't remember what salt brine or canning brine they used, but will ask when I see them. I think it was more likely they were packed a little tight. The brine is is about 1/2 " low on most, and maybe 3/4" low on a few. I think it might be better to leave them as they are, rather than reprocess. What do you think? It has been more than 48 hours since they were processed. I appreciate your help.

I have never made pickles, my daughter just tried for her 1st time, she brought them to me cause they didn't Pop to seal like tomatoes do, so I opened them and they are very vinegary and soft, what should I do?

Causes of common pickle problems

There could be several different causes so much more info would be needed about how she made them, what specific recipe she used (failure to use an approved and tested recipe is the most common cause of problems) , how old the cukes were (cukes need to be less than 24 hours old for ideal pickles), how she processed them and for how long, etc.

Taste-wise are they worth trying to saving at all? I mean are they at all edible? If so then all you can do at this point is keep them in the fridge but they will have a very short storage life (3 weeks max). With some foods that don't seal you can reprocess them from scratch within 24 hours but with pickles they just turn to mush.

Dave

She just picked the cukes yesterday, made pickles immediately. She used this recipe from Ball https://www.freshpreserving.com/kosher-dill-pickles-%7C-kosher-pickle-recipe---ball-fresh-preserving-br1270.html

She processed them 15 min as it says to

Ok that is a frequently used recipe with few reports of problems. But it can be confusing because it gives you a choice of 2 different methods for how to make them - for the fridge or for canning and processing, In the past some have mistaken the instructions and tried to combine the 2 approaches - done the hot brine soak AND the processing. That results in very soft pickles.

The excess vinegar taste, assuming the instructions were followed, is because the pickles are usually ready to eat for about 6 weeks. It takes that long for the water in the cukes and the vinegar in the brine to trade places. The vinegar gets diluted by the water and is absorbed into the cukes.

The recipe only makes 2 quarts so they can easily be stored in the fridge - if they are edible. But the link I posted above recommends against keeping soft pickles because something was either a) done wrong or b) bad cukes to begin with.

Soft pickles can also be caused by using overly ripe cukes or cukes that were left on the vine too long, The best pickles come from picking young immature cukes before the seed cavity forms.

Why they didn't seal is just a guess as there are so many steps in the process that can be done wrong if inexperienced - bands on too tight, not enough water covering the jars in the canner, jars overfilled so they boil over, bad jar rim or lid, etc. But the bottom line is if they don't seal you have to either redo them or toss them. With pickles that usually means toss them or what many of us do is grind them up to turn them into relish and then reprocess them.

Hope this helps some.

Dave

Thanks, I opened one, they are very soggy and vinegary tasting, I'll have her decide if she wants to keep or use them as relish. Thanks. Do you happen to have a good dill pickle recipe that is easy?

raccoon, I don't want to be pessimistic here, but I never can dill pickles anymore. I've been canning them for 55 years, I'm 62 and started canning on my own at about age 7. I've never been able to make a decent batch of crunchy dill pickles. I used to make dills for Dad, he insisted on the "open kettle" method which did not get water bath canned. It's absolutely not recommended, is considered unsafe and each year resulted in me losing several jars due to bad seals anyway. After Dad passed away (it wasn't the pickles, I promise!), I went back to the water bath canning method. I promptly remembered why I quit canning dill pickles, they just aren't crunchy enough.

That said, if you refrigerate them and eat them cold, they are a bit crunchier...

Annie

" Do you happen to have a good dill pickle recipe that is easy?"

Like Annie I quit making any quick pack dills the past few years. Primarily because we prefer fermented dills and Bread & Butter ones. They take more time to make but the end result is so much better.

Quick-pack recipes simply have so many issues involved that it is difficult to end up with a real good quality if you aren't meticulous about all aspects. And that includes NOT using any of the packaged mixes.

Adding Pickle Crisp to the recipe helps some and so does doing 12-24 hour presoaks in iced salted water if she wants to give it another go.

Check out the NCHFP instructions for making them: http://nchfp.uga.edu/how/cucumber_pick.html

Dave