Homemade Gherkins

Homemade Gherkins

Homemade Gherkins are easy to make, they sweet and tangy baby pickles that are fermented then canned.

Plan Ahead 

The entire process takes 6 days but only take a few minutes of work each day.

They start off with a salt water soak for 2 days. Then they soak in a pickling spice infused vinegar, sugar turmeric brine adding sugar and vinegar to the boiled brine for 3 days. On the 6th day they are canned.

Making 6 day fermented gherkins in the Nutmeg Disrupted kitchen

Homemade Gherkins

Homemade Gherkins
 
Recipe type: Preserving
Ingredients
  • 8 pounds of baby cucumbers
  • ½ cup of pickling salt
  • 8 cups of sugar
  • 6 cups of 5% vinegar
  • ½ tsp of turmeric
  • 2 tsp of celery seed
  • 2 tsp of pickling spice
  • 1 tsp of allspice (whole not ground)
  • cheese cloth to make a spice bag
Instructions
  1. Day one:
  2. Scrub cucumbers well using scrub brush.
  3. Trim a small amount off each end of the cucumbers.
  4. Rinse well and place in a large glass or plastic bowl.
  5. Dissolve 4 tablespoons of pickling salt in 24 cups of water and bring to a boil.
  6. Pour hot liquid over the cucumbers.
  7. Let stand over night.
  8. Day two:
  9. Drain the cucumbers discarding brine.
  10. Dissolve remaining in salt in 24 cups of water and bring to a boil.
  11. Pour hot liquid over cucumbers.
  12. Let stand over night.
  13. Day three:
  14. Drain cucumbers and discard brine.
  15. Poke the cucumbers with a fork.
  16. Build a spice bundle with the spices in a few layers of cheese cloth and secure with a piece of butchers twine.
  17. Combine 3 cups of sugar with 3 cups of vinegar in a medium size saucepan, add the turmeric. Add the spice bundle to the vinegar and bring to a boil.
  18. Discard the spice bundle and pour hot liquid over the cucumbers, weight and let stand 6-8 hours or over night.
  19. Day four:
  20. Drain cucumbers reserving the brine.
  21. Place the brine in a medium saucepan add 2 cups of sugar and 1 cup of vinegar.
  22. Bring to a boil. Pour hot liquid over the cucumbers, weight and let stand over night.
  23. Day five:
  24. Drain cucumbers reserving the brine.
  25. Place the brine in a medium saucepan add 2 cups of sugar and 1 cup of vinegar.
  26. Bring to a boil.
  27. Pour hot liquid over the cucumbers, weight and let stand over night.
  28. Day six:
  29. Sterilize the number of jars needed.
  30. Place lids and screw bands in a small saucepan and heat no the burner keeping warm until needed.
  31. Drain cucumbers reserving brine.
  32. Place the brine in a medium saucepan and add 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of vinegar.
  33. Bring to a boil.
  34. Pack cucumbers into hot jars to within a ½ inch of the opening.
  35. Using a canning funnel top each jar with hot pickling brine.
  36. Add lids and screw bands only until finger tight.
  37. Place in a hot water canner and process 20 minutes.

 

Food Safe Practices 

As always be sure to sterilize all your jars and have them hot and ready to fill. Warm all lids and screw bands in a small saucepan keeping warm until needed.

All pickles are processed in a hot water bath, be sure to check on times for your specific elevation. And to keep things clean and efficient I always use my canning funnel to aid in the addition of any liquids which I am using during canning.

Use A Light Hand

Remember to only put screw bands on finger tight, put them on too tight and you risk a possible broken jar or having jars not seal properly. One jars are completely cooled you can remove the rings before storing an pickles or preserves. It is the lid that creates the seal, not the ring.

Store pickles someplace dark and cool.

These fermented pickles are worth the bit of time they take to make. The recipe makes two jars of pickles. Make the job worthwhile and triple or even quadruple the recipe!

If you love Dill Pickles we have a no fail recipe that will become your go to option when making Dills.

Published by Redawna

Garden & Food Writer/Educator/Photographer. NFT artist. Management Professional. Community Builder. Entrepreneurial spirit.

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