We are having a bumper crop of cucumbers this year and I'm in serious need of a good pickle recipe stat! If you have any that are tried and true and you don't mind sharing, I'd be extremely grateful. Thanks!
we have the same problem here. especially because we put in cukes and we also planted two melon plants that ALSO ended up being cukes. And none of them are pickling cucumbers. So we're stuck.
Can you pickle (or preserve in any way) cucumbers that aren't "pickling" cucumbers?
(maybe one of your blog readers has an answer for me?)
Check out www.flythroughourwindow.com. It's not my blog, but she made pickles either in June or July and everything this lady touches seems to turn into gold, so it's got to be good?!
I make the following changes:
* totally omit the sugar (I am not into sweet)
* leave the sprigs of dill whole (much less messy)
* 2 cloves of garlic will be MORE than enough, trust me on this one
* leave the dill whole (chopping it is just too messy)
* most of the time I don't have pickling spices, so it's fine to leave those out
* and if you're impatient like me, cut your cucumbers into chips or spears. Your pickles will be ready within 2 days.
I have made these a dozen times or more. They're amazing. Enjoy!
These are the two recipes that are delicious and successful among my children:
Raita:
1 cup whole milk plain yogurt
a grated cucumber
1 clove garlic, pressed
1/2 t. coriander
salt to taste
optional: fresh mint
Mix and enjoy as a topping on most anything! ;) My kids eat it alone or with rice dishes, chicken, etc.
Refreshing/cleansing smoothie:
1/2 cucumber
1 green apple (or other tart apple)
1 c. or more pineapple juice (we use the juice and fruit from the can - make sure it's unsweetened)
Puree or put through juicer. We don't own a juicer but my kids enjoy the pulp through a straw.
Can't wait to see more recipes! Our CSA cucumbers are overflowing as well!
There is a recipe in the current issue of Better Homes and Gardens (July 2010) for canned, pickles--they are done with a water bath to seal the jars (like making jam) and must sit for a week before being tried, but we like them! I used the variation with garlic and hot peppers--I used crushed red pepper.
Don't forget about benedictine. I don't have a recipe but it's a yummy dip with cucumbers and cream cheese. It will make for a nice change from all the pickles.
As for pickles, I usually make the basic Swedish refrigerator pickles. Peel and slice thinly. Add onion if that's your thing. Then mix up a 2-1 mixture of white vinegar to sugar. Add a few teaspoons of salt and dill weed. Pour over cucumbers and refrigerate for a few hours or overnight before eating. You can reuse the brine for a week or so. My grandma's recipe says indefinitely but these days I think the recommendation is a week.
We've had a slight cuke lull here maybe due to the extreme 110 degree heat? But after checking today it seems my cuke plants are back at it and this recipe is just what I've been looking for!!
I've been making a simple cucumber salad too for the husband, Onions, cukes, vinegar and salt mmmm!
There are a million suggestions, eh? I thought i would submit a recipe to you of an internet acquaintance with a super simple, yet flavourful recipe. She's known to have excellent taste like yourself, yet the recipe takes less than 10 minutes work! Hooray!
here's mine: http://oldgeorgiahouse.com/?p=2163
so far i've canned 4 dozen dills and 1 dozen bread 'n butters and have about 20lbs of cucumbers sitting in a box staring at me.
I'm glad you posted your plea for help. I am not in that situation but found some great ideas. I may have to beg for the abundance of cucumbers or run to the store. :-)
oh, and to the previous commenter...
they don't have to be pickling specifically. i actually use half pickling and half burpless and they turn out just fine.
I'm guessing you want to can the pickles not just make refrigerator ones. And I can offer no help. I've tried 3 or 4 recipes over the year and I'm never happy with them. I've had a lot of luck with recipes from Marisa at Food In Jars and she has a pickle recipe although I've never tried it (http://www.foodinjars.com/2009/08/11/garlic-dill-pickles/).
You might also consider making relish, like the kind for hot dogs. That could use up a lot of cucumbers as well.
Excellent recipe for Bread & Butter
Bread and butter pickles:
(Called thus because they are good enough to eat at every meal)
7 slim medium cukes
5 crisp medium onions
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 small sweet red pepper (chopped)
¼ c salt
cracked ice
Pickling solution:
2½ c white vinegar
2 ½ c granulated sugar
1 Tbsp mustard seed
1 tsp celery seed
½ tsp whole cloves
¾ tsp turmeric
Mix veggies, mix in salt and cracked ice. Put in fridge or a cool place and let stand for at least three hours, then drain.
Mix pickling solution. Add to drained veggies in kettle. Bring mix to boiling, remove veggies to clean, sterilized jars immediately. Pour hot liquid over to cover leaving ½-inch of headspace (no more). Wipe jar rims, checking for nicks, with a clean damp cloth, then place hot, sterilized lids on and screw the rings on firmly-tight. Place filled jars on a dry folded towel. Quickly repeat this process with the rest so that the veggies do not cool down. If pickles in the kettle are allowed to boil, they will soften. These pickles are very crisp and fresh tasting. Our favorites. (I also slice a batch of smaller cukes lengthwise for spears, and use the same recipe with great results).
My husband loves the cold Klaussen pickles you find in the deli case. These are his next favorite. (I've made these and have kept them in the fridge for up to six months. They only get better. However...good luck keeping them!)
SUN DILL PICKLES
In a 1 gallon glass jar (or a few small ones), pack 2-3 cloves of garlic, 2 stalks of dill and small cucumbers. (Or, cut larger ones into spears.)
In a pot, bring to a simmer: 6-1/2 cups of water, 3-1/4 cups white vinegar, 2/3 cup Kosher salt and 1 teaspoon alum.
Pour water mixture over the pickles. Screw on the jar lids and set the jars in the sun for 2-3 days. Refrigerate for up to six months.
I have two excellent recipes which were passed to me last year and were HUGE hits - one for canning, one called "refrigerator pickles" which you throw right in the fridge. I would be happy to share with you (I'll send you my MS Word doc) or anyone who emails me at [email protected].
No pickle recipe, but I love creamy cuke salad:
8 oz greek yogurt
8 oz sour crm (I used less)
tarragon vinegar to thin out/ to taste
1 tblspoon sugar (or to taste)
4 thinly sliced cucumbers
1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion
s & p to taste
there are plenty of recipes here, so I won't dig up mine, but I do know that putting a grape leaf (stolen from my neighbors vine) is supposed to make them extra crunchy.
Food in jars is an excellent blog to add to your google reader if you are into canning, BTW. :-) I've been enjoying it for awhile now, even though this year I was only able to do strawberry jam due to health problems.
We do our share of pickling and haven't found our favorite recipe yet so I'm excited to try some of these suggestions. What we did discover ..... is cucumber soup! Super easy, super yummy, and we even threw some in the freezer for later. Here it goes:
2 lb. cucumbers (about 6-8 inches long)
1/2 cup shallots, minced
3 T. butter
6 cups chicken broth
2 t. white wine vinegar
1 t. fresh dill or tarragon, finely chopped
4 T. quick Cream of Wheat
salt and white pepper to taste
1 cup sour cream
peel cucumbers, discard large seeds and cut into 1/4-inch chunks (I throw it all in, seeds and everything). In a large saucepan, cook shallots in butter until soft (do not brown). Add cucumbers, broth, vinegar, and dill or tarragon. Bring to a boil, add cream of wheat slowly, stirring, and simmer 25 minutes. Puree and season with salt and pepper. May be served hot or cold. Before serving add sour cream. Makes 6-8 servings.
i posted about my pickle making last summer: http://minecreations.blogspot.com/2009/09/pickles.html
the spicy polish dills are amazing!!
Posted by: julia | July 12, 2010 at 09:10 AM
we have the same problem here. especially because we put in cukes and we also planted two melon plants that ALSO ended up being cukes. And none of them are pickling cucumbers. So we're stuck.
Can you pickle (or preserve in any way) cucumbers that aren't "pickling" cucumbers?
(maybe one of your blog readers has an answer for me?)
Posted by: mommycoddle | July 12, 2010 at 09:20 AM
Check out www.flythroughourwindow.com. It's not my blog, but she made pickles either in June or July and everything this lady touches seems to turn into gold, so it's got to be good?!
Posted by: Leslie | July 12, 2010 at 09:49 AM
I like this one a lot: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Dill-Pickles/Detail.aspx
Nothing fancy, but they're very good "classic" dills.
Posted by: Meryl | July 12, 2010 at 10:00 AM
Smitten Kitchen had a great bread and butter recipe. I thought they were simple and delicious!
http://smittenkitchen.com/2010/06/bread-and-butter-pickles
Posted by: Melissa | July 12, 2010 at 10:02 AM
I'm telling you: MAKE THESE. People will befriend you to get a piece of this pickle: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Spicy-Dill-Pickles-2318
I make the following changes:
* totally omit the sugar (I am not into sweet)
* leave the sprigs of dill whole (much less messy)
* 2 cloves of garlic will be MORE than enough, trust me on this one
* leave the dill whole (chopping it is just too messy)
* most of the time I don't have pickling spices, so it's fine to leave those out
* and if you're impatient like me, cut your cucumbers into chips or spears. Your pickles will be ready within 2 days.
I have made these a dozen times or more. They're amazing. Enjoy!
Posted by: Sara | July 12, 2010 at 10:27 AM
Erin, A few weeks ago we had the same problem.... pounds and pounds of cukes! I made Sweet Cruncy Dills {refrigerator pickles) that were DELICIOUS. I posted the recipe and process here:
http://www.flythroughourwindow.com/2010/06/getting-ready-sweet-crunchy-dills/
Happy pickle-making!
Posted by: Darby | July 12, 2010 at 10:27 AM
These are the two recipes that are delicious and successful among my children:
Raita:
1 cup whole milk plain yogurt
a grated cucumber
1 clove garlic, pressed
1/2 t. coriander
salt to taste
optional: fresh mint
Mix and enjoy as a topping on most anything! ;) My kids eat it alone or with rice dishes, chicken, etc.
Refreshing/cleansing smoothie:
1/2 cucumber
1 green apple (or other tart apple)
1 c. or more pineapple juice (we use the juice and fruit from the can - make sure it's unsweetened)
Puree or put through juicer. We don't own a juicer but my kids enjoy the pulp through a straw.
Can't wait to see more recipes! Our CSA cucumbers are overflowing as well!
Posted by: V | July 12, 2010 at 10:51 AM
There is a recipe in the current issue of Better Homes and Gardens (July 2010) for canned, pickles--they are done with a water bath to seal the jars (like making jam) and must sit for a week before being tried, but we like them! I used the variation with garlic and hot peppers--I used crushed red pepper.
Posted by: Beth Ellen | July 12, 2010 at 11:04 AM
Don't forget about benedictine. I don't have a recipe but it's a yummy dip with cucumbers and cream cheese. It will make for a nice change from all the pickles.
As for pickles, I usually make the basic Swedish refrigerator pickles. Peel and slice thinly. Add onion if that's your thing. Then mix up a 2-1 mixture of white vinegar to sugar. Add a few teaspoons of salt and dill weed. Pour over cucumbers and refrigerate for a few hours or overnight before eating. You can reuse the brine for a week or so. My grandma's recipe says indefinitely but these days I think the recommendation is a week.
Posted by: Jenn | July 12, 2010 at 11:05 AM
Oh, and mommycoddle, pickling cukes taste best, but regular cukes work just as well. I think the pickling ones refer more to size than anything else.
Posted by: Jenn | July 12, 2010 at 11:11 AM
We've had a slight cuke lull here maybe due to the extreme 110 degree heat? But after checking today it seems my cuke plants are back at it and this recipe is just what I've been looking for!!
I've been making a simple cucumber salad too for the husband, Onions, cukes, vinegar and salt mmmm!
Posted by: christina | July 12, 2010 at 11:18 AM
I just made these last week and they were a huge hit, even with some people who hate pickles... http://annies-eats.com/2008/08/20/dill-pickles/.
Posted by: Amy | July 12, 2010 at 11:22 AM
There are a million suggestions, eh? I thought i would submit a recipe to you of an internet acquaintance with a super simple, yet flavourful recipe. She's known to have excellent taste like yourself, yet the recipe takes less than 10 minutes work! Hooray!
http://oodlesandoodles.typepad.com/my_weblog/2009/08/in-a-pickle.html
Posted by: whit | July 12, 2010 at 11:30 AM
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Dill-Pickles/Detail.aspx
This is a fantastic dill pickle recipe...I make it every year. They are good, crunchy, and super yummy!
Posted by: Slack | July 12, 2010 at 01:17 PM
I can't help you with pickles, but I make the Thai Cucumber Salad from Sundays at Moosewood all the time and the whole family loves it. http://www.bigoven.com/28852-Thai-Fresh-Cucumber-Salad-%28Taeng-Kwa-Brio-Wan-recipe.html
Posted by: colleen | July 12, 2010 at 01:21 PM
here's mine: http://oldgeorgiahouse.com/?p=2163
so far i've canned 4 dozen dills and 1 dozen bread 'n butters and have about 20lbs of cucumbers sitting in a box staring at me.
Posted by: natalie @ our old southern house | July 12, 2010 at 01:41 PM
Love this bread and butter pickle recipe from Elise at Simply Recipes!
http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/bread_and_butter_pickles/
Posted by: Jacquie | July 12, 2010 at 01:49 PM
I'm glad you posted your plea for help. I am not in that situation but found some great ideas. I may have to beg for the abundance of cucumbers or run to the store. :-)
Posted by: Suzanne | July 12, 2010 at 01:53 PM
I have the same problem -- I made this last week and it was a big hit:
http://smittenkitchen.com/2008/01/viennese-cucumber-salad/
Posted by: Beth | July 12, 2010 at 02:09 PM
oh, and to the previous commenter...
they don't have to be pickling specifically. i actually use half pickling and half burpless and they turn out just fine.
Posted by: natalie @ our old southern house | July 12, 2010 at 02:23 PM
I'm guessing you want to can the pickles not just make refrigerator ones. And I can offer no help. I've tried 3 or 4 recipes over the year and I'm never happy with them. I've had a lot of luck with recipes from Marisa at Food In Jars and she has a pickle recipe although I've never tried it (http://www.foodinjars.com/2009/08/11/garlic-dill-pickles/).
You might also consider making relish, like the kind for hot dogs. That could use up a lot of cucumbers as well.
Posted by: Mama Urchin | July 12, 2010 at 03:22 PM
I was just looking at some recipes the other day...these looked yummy:
http://thepioneerwoman.com/tasty-kitchen/recipes/sidedishes/chilled-asian-cucumbers/
http://thepioneerwoman.com/tasty-kitchen/recipes/sidedishes/bread-and-butter-refrigerator-pickles/
Posted by: Amber | July 12, 2010 at 03:33 PM
Excellent recipe for Bread & Butter
Bread and butter pickles:
(Called thus because they are good enough to eat at every meal)
7 slim medium cukes
5 crisp medium onions
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 small sweet red pepper (chopped)
¼ c salt
cracked ice
Pickling solution:
2½ c white vinegar
2 ½ c granulated sugar
1 Tbsp mustard seed
1 tsp celery seed
½ tsp whole cloves
¾ tsp turmeric
Mix veggies, mix in salt and cracked ice. Put in fridge or a cool place and let stand for at least three hours, then drain.
Mix pickling solution. Add to drained veggies in kettle. Bring mix to boiling, remove veggies to clean, sterilized jars immediately. Pour hot liquid over to cover leaving ½-inch of headspace (no more). Wipe jar rims, checking for nicks, with a clean damp cloth, then place hot, sterilized lids on and screw the rings on firmly-tight. Place filled jars on a dry folded towel. Quickly repeat this process with the rest so that the veggies do not cool down. If pickles in the kettle are allowed to boil, they will soften. These pickles are very crisp and fresh tasting. Our favorites. (I also slice a batch of smaller cukes lengthwise for spears, and use the same recipe with great results).
Posted by: aseemlylife | July 12, 2010 at 04:07 PM
http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/dill-pickle-spears
Quick, easy, yummy!
Posted by: Account Deleted | July 12, 2010 at 05:47 PM
And once you make said pickles and find that you have some extras, you can always bring 'em to me at the Knit Nook!
Posted by: Kristin | July 12, 2010 at 06:08 PM
My husband loves the cold Klaussen pickles you find in the deli case. These are his next favorite. (I've made these and have kept them in the fridge for up to six months. They only get better. However...good luck keeping them!)
SUN DILL PICKLES
In a 1 gallon glass jar (or a few small ones), pack 2-3 cloves of garlic, 2 stalks of dill and small cucumbers. (Or, cut larger ones into spears.)
In a pot, bring to a simmer: 6-1/2 cups of water, 3-1/4 cups white vinegar, 2/3 cup Kosher salt and 1 teaspoon alum.
Pour water mixture over the pickles. Screw on the jar lids and set the jars in the sun for 2-3 days. Refrigerate for up to six months.
Posted by: Lisa Kirker | July 12, 2010 at 08:11 PM
One part white vinegar, one part water, and one part white sugar....dill, garlic and salt to taste!
AMAZING.
Posted by: Kelaine | July 12, 2010 at 08:16 PM
I made these for the first time last year...and then made them again and again and again. Super easy and super yummy.
http://kateflaim.com/2009/08/csa-week-7-refrigerator-pickles/
Posted by: C.E.R. | July 12, 2010 at 08:41 PM
Victory Garden. Hooray - the tradition continues.
Dad
Posted by: KRB | July 12, 2010 at 10:51 PM
I have two excellent recipes which were passed to me last year and were HUGE hits - one for canning, one called "refrigerator pickles" which you throw right in the fridge. I would be happy to share with you (I'll send you my MS Word doc) or anyone who emails me at [email protected].
Posted by: Karen | July 13, 2010 at 01:27 AM
Thanks for the offer, Karen! I'd love the canning one.
Posted by: Erin | house on hill road | July 13, 2010 at 08:47 AM
if i could only figure a way to keep them for more than a week, then i'd bring them along....
Posted by: Erin | house on hill road | July 13, 2010 at 08:48 AM
Love your wellies! I could use a pair for sloshing through the rain, sleet and snow in So.Cal.
Your cucumbers look delicious!.
Posted by: Pat Sieler | July 13, 2010 at 10:00 AM
No pickle recipe, but I love creamy cuke salad:
8 oz greek yogurt
8 oz sour crm (I used less)
tarragon vinegar to thin out/ to taste
1 tblspoon sugar (or to taste)
4 thinly sliced cucumbers
1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion
s & p to taste
Posted by: Samantha | July 13, 2010 at 10:24 AM
ooooo I want some... our garden was a major flop this year. Boo!
Posted by: brittney | July 13, 2010 at 03:03 PM
there are plenty of recipes here, so I won't dig up mine, but I do know that putting a grape leaf (stolen from my neighbors vine) is supposed to make them extra crunchy.
Posted by: meg | July 13, 2010 at 07:40 PM
Hey Erin, I saw this link this morning on food in jars and thought of this post:
http://thepauperedchef.com/2010/07/dont-waste-time-how-to-make-quick-pickles.html
Food in jars is an excellent blog to add to your google reader if you are into canning, BTW. :-) I've been enjoying it for awhile now, even though this year I was only able to do strawberry jam due to health problems.
Posted by: Sarah | July 14, 2010 at 08:58 AM
We do our share of pickling and haven't found our favorite recipe yet so I'm excited to try some of these suggestions. What we did discover ..... is cucumber soup! Super easy, super yummy, and we even threw some in the freezer for later. Here it goes:
2 lb. cucumbers (about 6-8 inches long)
1/2 cup shallots, minced
3 T. butter
6 cups chicken broth
2 t. white wine vinegar
1 t. fresh dill or tarragon, finely chopped
4 T. quick Cream of Wheat
salt and white pepper to taste
1 cup sour cream
peel cucumbers, discard large seeds and cut into 1/4-inch chunks (I throw it all in, seeds and everything). In a large saucepan, cook shallots in butter until soft (do not brown). Add cucumbers, broth, vinegar, and dill or tarragon. Bring to a boil, add cream of wheat slowly, stirring, and simmer 25 minutes. Puree and season with salt and pepper. May be served hot or cold. Before serving add sour cream. Makes 6-8 servings.
Enjoy!
Posted by: Kim | July 14, 2010 at 09:13 AM
Can I just say those are the CUTEST shoes!
Posted by: Caroline | July 14, 2010 at 11:57 AM
Here is a link to a recipe that sounds and looks refreshing. I hope it gives you a new idea!
http://www.acozykitchen.com/cucumber-juice/
Posted by: Susanne | July 14, 2010 at 01:24 PM
Don't keep us in suspense any longer... which pickle recipe did you end up using?!
Posted by: ~Heather | July 16, 2010 at 11:08 AM
V: I tried the smoothie this morning. It's great! Very refreshing. Thanks for posting.
Posted by: Natalie | July 16, 2010 at 11:47 AM
Both recipes you chose sound fantastic. We're partial to live-fermented around here. I posted about them last week here:
http://lusaorganics.typepad.com/clean/2010/07/in-my-kitchen.html
Or you can cut to the chase with the recipe here (explained for dilly beans, but the same for quick pickles. Just throw in a few cloves of garlic):
http://lusaorganics.typepad.com/clean/2009/08/livefermented-dilly-beans.html
Great probiotics in these.
Peace,
Rachel
Posted by: rachel wolf | August 01, 2010 at 10:14 PM