With all the fermentation going on does anyone use or have used a recipe for fermenting cucumbers? I had seen some recipes and it looks the same as saurkraut - in a crock or foos safe bucket and add a brine weighed down and covered with cheese cloth and skim mold or foam until desired tartness. Just curious as to what ya'll have done or may have a recipe for. I am expecting a lot of cukes soon for pickeling so I am setting my feelers out.
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recipe Fermented Pickle Recipe
- Thread starter LUCKYDOG
- Start date
Lucky Dog....
Here's my "hot & spicy" version of my Grandma's recipe for brine pickles.(but,she used well water,I use distilled)
Brine solution
1 Quart distilled water
12 oz. vinegar
4 TBS Pickling salt
Juice of 1 fresh lime
Cukes and spices
Fresh dill
Whole cucumbers (pickle variety and size)
Course Chopped fresh garlic
Dried pepper flakes (Plus I add a few whole dried "HOT" peppers)
(Pickling spice can also be included)
Using a very clean crock and weights (or gallon jar *)
Layer fresh dill on the bottom and lots of chopped fresh garlic, then some dried hot peppers (flakes and/or whole)
Tightly pack whole cucumbers, then add more dill,garlic and peppers.
Pour brine solution in container until cukes are covered completely.
place weights on top to hold down cukes.Cover and store in a dark location at room temperature(below 80 degrees) for 2-3 days, then store in refrigerator (Grandma used the root cellar). They will keep for months.
Note:
Alum can be added instead of lime juice for crisp pickles.
But,if fermented at 80 degrees or above,the pickles can still become soft.
Make sure cukes are cleaned thoroughly, and totally free of any blossom remnants, or the entire batch may spoil.
*(Personally,I use a re-cycled gallon size pickle jug with an air lock and plastic lid)
Enjoy !!
CM
Here's my "hot & spicy" version of my Grandma's recipe for brine pickles.(but,she used well water,I use distilled)
Brine solution
1 Quart distilled water
12 oz. vinegar
4 TBS Pickling salt
Juice of 1 fresh lime
Cukes and spices
Fresh dill
Whole cucumbers (pickle variety and size)
Course Chopped fresh garlic
Dried pepper flakes (Plus I add a few whole dried "HOT" peppers)
(Pickling spice can also be included)
Using a very clean crock and weights (or gallon jar *)
Layer fresh dill on the bottom and lots of chopped fresh garlic, then some dried hot peppers (flakes and/or whole)
Tightly pack whole cucumbers, then add more dill,garlic and peppers.
Pour brine solution in container until cukes are covered completely.
place weights on top to hold down cukes.Cover and store in a dark location at room temperature(below 80 degrees) for 2-3 days, then store in refrigerator (Grandma used the root cellar). They will keep for months.
Note:
Alum can be added instead of lime juice for crisp pickles.
But,if fermented at 80 degrees or above,the pickles can still become soft.
Make sure cukes are cleaned thoroughly, and totally free of any blossom remnants, or the entire batch may spoil.
*(Personally,I use a re-cycled gallon size pickle jug with an air lock and plastic lid)
Enjoy !!
CM
I don't normally use a starter with pickles.
It's really optional anyway. After the natural fermentation gets going in those 48-72 hrs, the refrigeration just slows the process.
Its probably just a personal preference, but I think the texture of the pickle sorta changes in a way,(...especially noticeable over time),and I find the taste to be sour versus tart.
My Grandma did her brine pickles in the cool temps of a root cellar, using an open crock covered with an old piece of sheet. It held better than a bushel of pickle size whole cukes.In that temp,the fermentation was slow to begin, yet we ate crunchy pickles until they were gone... well into the winter months.
(she never garlic either, said it attracted mold.)
This is what I wanted to know as well FD - A lot of the recipes I had seen for Brine pcikles, Half sours, Dill used this method it just varied of what you put in it. We love Ba Tampte half sour pickles and they seem to have been brined/fermented as seen when opened it kinda fizzed. I do make refridgerator pickles when the cukes slowly start coming in then its "on" and put up a few quarts.
Thanks CM
I've never tried Ba Tampe before, but if they "fizz", you could use some of the Ba Tampe juice as your starter if you choose to go that route.
In the past I have used juice from Calussens, commercial brands of Kim Chi, etc. as starters when I wanted to jump start the process, and they work just fine.
EDIT:
Here's a Claussens half sour recipe I saw recently on a gardening blog.
Its has a little different fermenting schedule than my regular one, but I might give it a try if I come across a good deal on pickling cukes this season.
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/harvest/msg050804156137.html
With any luck I hope to try a few different recipes - Thanx againI've not used plastic bag liners before, but have read about it.
Here's the USDA site that says its ok to do so...as long as it is food grade plastic bag.
http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/can_06/container_cover.html
I might suggest that you go to a local pizza joint and ask for some buckets/containers. Many get their sauce and cheese in 3.5 or 1 gallon containers and pickles in 5 gal.food grade plastic, and normally throw them out when empty.
Most of the time you can also get them "with air tight lids", which is really a plus for fermenting.
I collected over 100 (3.5 and 5 gal) for my pepper plants this season, and I'm planning to use some 1 gallon size for both Kim Chi and pickles later on.
(A local Chick-fil-A is more than happy to save their 5 gal pickle buckets for me...and all I had to do was ask)
edit:spelling
LD,
yes...you will still need some air space above the brine.
And I wouldn't suggest sealing the bag....because withing 24 hours or so the pressure will build and it will probably pop the bag open anyway.
The bag should work fine as a liner inside a container that's serving as your crock. What you'll have with that set up is commonly referred to as the "open crock" method (aerobic).
When using this approach you're not creating an air tight container for the ferment(anaerobic)with air tight lids or airlocks.
You create a brine environment for your cukes, making sure they remain submerged a couple inches below the brine surface(throughout the process) by using a weight of some sort, and cover the container with some cloth to keep out bugs and flies. ( This is the way our ancestors made pickles using an open crock in the root cellar)
With this approach, you'll more than likely have some growth on top of the brine liquid, as the surface is exposed to oxygen.
If the vegetables float to the top and remain exposed to air, they are likely to develop mold.
Sometimes, especially in hot weather, your ferment may develop a film of white mold on its surface. This is very common and will not hurt you or the vegetables. Scrape off the mold as best you can, don’t worry about particles that mix into the vegetables.
While the growth looks pretty "yucky" it will not cause your batch to spoil if removed.
After working a few days,you can begin enjoying the delicious ferment beneath.
They can remain in the room temp container or they can be refrigerated,and the fermentation becomes very slow.
I did a couple small batches of dills on Saturday (1 using whey...the other only salt) that are working like crazy. I'll probably seal and put them in the fridge either tonight or in the morning before work.I'll try and post some pics soon.
You are very welcome LuckyDog....I enjoy talking about fermenting as much as doing it myself (well...almost anyway).
I find each and every batch to be an interesting experiment, regardless of who is doing it.
Here is the link to Sandor Katz's recipe for NY style sour pickles...(along with some dialog)...that you might find helpful
Enjoy !!
CM
http://www.wildfermentation.com/resources.php?page=pickles
OK I did some guesstimating and used the base as an idea - the last recipe link you gave I used as I had mostly everything down to the grape leaves - which reminds me to look for a stuffed grape leaf recipe - I used a 1/2C pickling salt to a gallon of water which I was hoping to achieve a brine of 3.6% for the half sours - my one cluge is the recipe calls for sea salt I dont have a small scale to weigh the difference between the two -
Is this enough salt in the brine?
Is this enough salt in the brine?
Here are some pics of the pickles ( with some Habs,Jalapeno,garlic,and onion) I sealed with airlocks on Saturday afternoon.
I tried two variations of a recipe from Nourishing Traditions,to compare for texture and flavor.
In the 1/2gal jar, I used whole cukes, 2-TBS whey,1-TBS pickling salt/1-Qt Distilled water.
In the Quart jar, I used half cukes,2-TBS pickling salt/1-Qt Distilled water.
Fermenting time approximately 50 hours at 80 degrees(f)
Both batches began showing some activity after about 12-15 hours, and the brine became a little cloudy at about 24 hrs.
While you can see a bunch of bubbles accumulating at the top of the brine only batch, the Whey/salt batch had much less bubble action even though the fermentation process was active.
Removed the air locks and moved them to the fridge.
I sample tasted a small piece from each with dinner last night.
Observations:
Both versions have a nice fresh pickled cuke flavor, with a pleasing level of garlic & spice/heat.
The Whey version also has a complimentary sourness that blends well with the salt brine flavor.
I'm a little disappointed in the texture of both, which I believe is due in part to the room temperature versus length of time they fermented. The optimum temp is around 72 degrees, so I should have reduced the ferment time and increased the salt in the brine solution.
Another contributing factor to the texture, is that the cukes were at least 2-3 days old, which I knew would probably affect the crispiness.
They will continue to ferment slowly in the fridge, and would keep for several months...that is, if I left them alone.
My guess, is that they'll be gone by the end of the month....so I'll probably try to get some more cukes at the farmers market this weekend and get another batch going.
I tried two variations of a recipe from Nourishing Traditions,to compare for texture and flavor.
In the 1/2gal jar, I used whole cukes, 2-TBS whey,1-TBS pickling salt/1-Qt Distilled water.
In the Quart jar, I used half cukes,2-TBS pickling salt/1-Qt Distilled water.
Fermenting time approximately 50 hours at 80 degrees(f)
Both batches began showing some activity after about 12-15 hours, and the brine became a little cloudy at about 24 hrs.
While you can see a bunch of bubbles accumulating at the top of the brine only batch, the Whey/salt batch had much less bubble action even though the fermentation process was active.
Removed the air locks and moved them to the fridge.
I sample tasted a small piece from each with dinner last night.
Observations:
Both versions have a nice fresh pickled cuke flavor, with a pleasing level of garlic & spice/heat.
The Whey version also has a complimentary sourness that blends well with the salt brine flavor.
I'm a little disappointed in the texture of both, which I believe is due in part to the room temperature versus length of time they fermented. The optimum temp is around 72 degrees, so I should have reduced the ferment time and increased the salt in the brine solution.
Another contributing factor to the texture, is that the cukes were at least 2-3 days old, which I knew would probably affect the crispiness.
They will continue to ferment slowly in the fridge, and would keep for several months...that is, if I left them alone.
My guess, is that they'll be gone by the end of the month....so I'll probably try to get some more cukes at the farmers market this weekend and get another batch going.
looks good I usually have a gallon glass jar in the fridge that I keep a briny solution in and just when I pick a cuke I would throw them in. Which is ok but I wanted try something new. The recipe you had posted near the end says "Eventually, after one to four weeks (depending on the temperature), the pickles will be fully sour. Continue to enjoy them, moving them to the fridge to slow down fermentation." - Would I be able to hot pack these? Also, I have read to replace the brine solution with a fresh one in the canning process as well.
LD,
Looks like were were posting at about the same time....
The 3.6% brine should work fine...but you may want to reduce the length of ferment time (depending upon the room temp).
You can also bump up the brine solution ....I've found a good rule of thumb, cooler temps/less salt/longer initial ferment time....warmer temps/more salt/less initial ferment time.
CM
Looks like were were posting at about the same time....
The 3.6% brine should work fine...but you may want to reduce the length of ferment time (depending upon the room temp).
You can also bump up the brine solution ....I've found a good rule of thumb, cooler temps/less salt/longer initial ferment time....warmer temps/more salt/less initial ferment time.
CM
...Yes to both...
Here's link to a PDF from the Univ. of Wisconsin extension service
Its a very good resource ..and covers your questions specifically.