Easy Pickle Recipe

Cucumber season is here, and that means, it’s the season to make pickles. I love pickles. And I have a houseful of mini-me’s who love pickles too!

This pickle recipe come from my Grandma, and it the recipe my Mom uses, and now all of my sisters and I use this same recipe in our homes. The tried-and-true method of making pickles is  favorite not only because of its cherished family roots, but because it is so easy and hands on time is so short.

Yes – preparing these pickles takes a short amount of time. Usually, I can do the whole process – from pick my cucumbers out of the garden, washing them, wash my jars, heat my vinegar solution, pack my jars, heat my lids, etc. – all within a single hour.

That’s right. Just one hour in the kitchen prepping pickles. That’s it!

That is what makes this recipe so easy. Getting everything prepped can happen so quick that you never have to schedule out a day on your calendar just for canning pickles. All you need is one hour.

Short Prep Pickles

One hour to make pickles sounds like an extremely short amount of time. Afterall, canning anything in an hour or less is – though awesome – rare!

I love canning, but even I have to admit that all too often, canning anything means scheduling hours of time dedicated for canning.

But not these pickles. Why?

The answer: they don’t require a water bath seal.

No water bath time – time heating up water, boiling, then cooling down – is a lot of time saved.

Now I know, I know, many of you readers are starting to get skeptical about not water bath sealing your pickles. As always, I will always remind you that if any recipe you read on the internet sounds unsafe or unhealthy, you are under no obligation to make or try it. And that goes for this recipe as well as all recipes on this blog.

BUT, if you are willing to bare with me and give this recipe a try, here are a few things to note:

First – This pickle recipe is a tried-and-true recipe made by multiple generations in my family. Dozens and dozens of people in my family and generations of family friends have made and eaten these pickles without any adverse reaction. For me, in describing this recipe to friends and neighbors on the street, I would say “yes, this recipe is safe to eat.” (Again, though, refer to our website’s Liability Disclaimer).

Second – This recipe is sealed. Though this recipe does not require a water bath process in order to seal the jars, hot liquid is poured into the jars and then lids are immediately tightened, sealing the jars and preserving its contents. Like all canning items, though, lids should be checked regularly to ensure seals are still good.  And if seals have broken and lids “pop”, toss the contents (Right? That’s just common sense).

Third – This is a brined pickle recipe, not a fermented pickle recipe.

Fourth – This recipe comes together quickly, and all hand-on time in preparing these pickles is very short. However, these are not “quick pickles”. They do take time to fully brine in the salt and dill before the cucumbers transition into pickles (I’ll talk more about this below).   

Fifth –  Starting with fresh ingredients is often key for successful canning, and it is no different with this recipe. Use freshly pickled cucumbers, fully dried and clean dill, quality pickling salt, and sanitized mason jars to help insure your best success when canning.   

Not a “Quick Pickle”

As I mentioned earlier, this method for making pickles is easy and hands on time is short. However, like many pickled/brined foods, the cucumbers used in this recipe do not transition into pickles “quickly”.

These pickles are not your quick, store in the refrigerator type.

These pickles are stable in a cool space, like a basement or pantry, and do not need to be refrigerated, but they do require TIME in order to fully brine or “pickle”. Grandma always said to wait at least 8 weeks after canning before pickles are ready to eat.

That is a rule I stand by. And an emphasis on “at least 8 weeks”.

Getting into these jars just two or three weeks after canning will not give you the desired pickle texture or flavor. You really need to be patient and wait, giving these pickles 8 or more weeks to brine.

MAKING PICKLES

Prep your kitchen with a large stock pock for boiling your brine, sterilized mason jars (or old pickle jars), and gather all of your ingredients.

NOTE: Yes, I absolutely re-use my pickle jars – and lids – when making homemade pickles. In fact, making homemade pickles is a great way to use those store bought pickle jars or sauerkraut jars rather than tossing them into the waste basket.

Wash cucumbers so they are ready for slicing. I have canned pickles by slicing with a simple pairing knife plenty of times, but I’ve recently discovered that using a slicing attachment on my stand-up mixer makes the process an absolute breeze.

Fill jar with cucumbers. If using garlic or grape leaves, I like to first place a handful of sliced cucumbers at the bottom of the jar, then add my garlic cloves and grape leaves before filling the remainder of the jar with sliced cucumbers. If using the whole umbrella head of a dill plant, I like to add that nearer to the bottom of the jar as well.

NOTE: This recipe works great for baby dill pickles as well as pickle spears. If making baby dill pickles, you would simply pack your jar with the full baby cucumbers (not slices). In the case of spears, you would simply pack the jars with “spears” instead of “slices”.

By “packing” your jars, you don’t need to cram slices in your jar as tightly as possible. Remember, you want the brine to be able to work around each slice of cucumber. You also don’t want to bruise your cucumbers in the process of canning pickles. Fill your jars, but don’t smash your cucumbers in the process.

Sprinkle dill seed over top of pickles (if not already added).

Once jars are filled, start your brine by pouring vinegar, water, and salt into a large stockpot. Cook over medium heat, stirring so salt fully dissolves, until it comes to a boil.

While waiting for liquid to boil, start your lids in a small water bath over medium or low heat until water comes to a gentle simmer. Allow to simmer for 2-5 minutes to allow lids to get fully warm.

NOTE: Allow your lids to warm in a low simmer, but do not boil them over high heat. Doing so may damage the wax seal of the lid, preventing them from sealing properly.

Pour hot brine liquid over cucumbers, place hot lids onto jars, and tighten to seal. I like to start boiling my lids on a low simmer at this time so they are ready to seal as soon as the brine is ready.

Rest and check. Allow jars to rest at room temperature 6-8 hours, or overnight. Then check seals to make sure all jars sealed correct. Again, there is no water bath step in this recipe, so once all seals have been checked, the jars are ready to store in a cool, dark place.

NOTE: Like recipes that use a water bath process, jars often need to cool down and come to room temperature before they fully seal. The same is true with this process.

Wait. Waiting is critical as these cucumbers must rest in their brine for a minimum of 8 weeks before they are ready to eat.

BEST TIPS FOR THE BEST PICKLES

TIP #1: Use Fresh Cucumbers. Using fresh, perfectly ripe cucumbers is key to firm, crunchy pickles. Using even day-old cucumbers will result in a less crunchy pickle (though I have absolutely made pickles using cucumbers that sat in my refrigerator overnight, even two or three days in the refrigerator, before I canned them, and they do turn out to be yummy pickles. Though, they are just not quite as crunchy as fresh from the garden.) If purchasing cucumbers from the store or local farmers market, select the firmest cucumbers to create the firmest pickles.

TIP #2: Using the full head of dill makes for the best pickles, in my opinion. However, all forms of dill can work with this recipe. Whether you are using dried dill weed from your very own garden, store bought crumbled dillweed, or dill seeds – all can work to make delicious pickles. But, I think the full head of dill (stem and all) gives the best flavor for these pickles.

TIP #3: Using a pickling cucumber will often result in a firmer pickle. I know we talked about how important using fresh cucumbers is above, but the variety of cucumber you use also matters. Pickling cucumbers have been bred specifically for pickling, and they are superior. However, I have canned plenty of slicing cucumbers, and even lemon cucumbers, and have had delicious tasting pickles from all of those (they just weren’t firm or crunch, but rather soft).