Dill Pickles

I'm not a big fan of dill in general, but I do love dill pickles. Go figure.

This year I planted some cucumber seeds and found that the cukes were perfect for making pickles. They are between three and five inches long and about an inch and a half in girth. Their skin is thin but bumpy. I'd planted enough so that we were getting a couple or three cucumbers a day during the spells when it wasn't blazing hot, then it would ease off a bit while very hot, then more would set when it cooled a bit. What that meant was that I didn't want to can pickles because the whole thing with a boiling water bath, etc. doesn't make sense for one jar of pickle.

Refrigerator pickles, on the other hand, work well. I searched recipes and finally figured out one that worked for me. Most had white vinegar and some mustard or mustard seed, but I wanted to use apple cider vinegar and skip the mustard.

My final recipe is below. It made enough brine for a quart jar full of raw pickle quarters, plus dill weed and a few peppercorns. After a week in the fridge I tried one and was delighted that it was a true dill pickle spear; sour and crunchy and fully dill flavored. That it was also easy meant that I was able to do it a couple more times when we have an abundance of cukes. These pickles are only meant to last about three months or less. My first batch, which I finished today, lasted about three weeks!

Dill Pickle Spears

Fresh pickling cucumbers, washed under cold water and drained
fresh dill
a few black peppercorns, whole
brine

For the brine:
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon sea salt
1 teaspoon granulated sugar 

Trim the ends off the cucumbers and cut into spears by cutting in half lengthwise, then cutting each half in half lengthwise.

In a clean quart jar place the quartered cucumbers, standing on a cut end, packing them in tight. I used three fairly long cucumbers. Push pieces of the fresh dill down among the quarters and add a few black whole peppercorns to the jar. They will end up at the bottom. That's OK.

In a small pot bring the apple cider vinegar, water, sea salt and sugar to a boil and stir until mixture is boiling and the salt and sugar are dissolved. Pour over the cucumbers in the jar. If liquid doesn't come up to cover the tops of the cucumbers, add enough boiling water to do so.

Let mixture cool. Tap the jar lightly on the counter to dislodge any air bubbles. Once almost room temperature, Seal jar with a tight lid and put into the refrigerator. Every day shake the jar. Keep in the fridge for six or seven days, then open the jar and taste to see if it's pickled enough for you. Jar can be kept in the fridge, tightly closed, for up to three months.