24-Hour Pickled Cucumbers
Description
Perfect for winter pantry stocking. Ingredient amounts are calculated for a 500 ml container. For pickling, choose firm cucumbers of medium or small size—dense, with no seeds inside. Be sure to taste one of them, as they can be bitter. Optionally add other spices, seasonings, and cherry, currant, oak, or horseradish leaves. You can also add mustard seeds, cloves, coriander, and so on. Store the preserves in a cool pantry. Shelf life: 2 years. The preserves are ready for winter storage.
Instructions
- 1
Step 1
Prepare the listed ingredients. Sort through the purchased vegetables and discard any that are spoiled. You will need firm cucumbers with no dents and no dark spots.
- 2
Step 2
Place them in a bowl and pour in cold water. Rinse the cucumbers thoroughly to remove dust and dirt, scrubbing off the spines. If you like, you can trim the ends from both sides of the vegetables—they will pickle even faster.
- 3
Step 3
Rinse the jar or jars (if you are preserving a large batch of cucumbers), and pack the cucumbers into it as tightly as possible. Place the large ones first, then fill any remaining space in the container with small ones.
- 4
Step 4
Bring water to a boil in a kettle or pot and pour it into the container so the boiling water completely covers the cucumbers. Cover with a lid and let steam for 10 minutes. If you are preparing 1–2 liter jars of cucumbers, leave for 15–20 minutes.
- 5
Step 5
Then drain off the liquid and cover the jar with a lid so the steamed vegetables do not cool down.
- 6
Step 6
Pour salt and black peppercorns into a cauldron or pot, and add peeled garlic cloves cut into pieces. If desired, add other spices and seasonings as well.
- 7
Step 7
Pour in boiling water and bring the brine to a boil. Then turn off the heat and add the vinegar. Keep in mind that you must not pour vinegar into boiling brine — it will create a lot of foam! The foam will spill over the sides of the container. So proceed carefully.
- 8
Step 8
Pour the marinade into the jar with steamed cucumbers, filling to the top, and immediately screw on the lid by hand or with a canning jar wrench.
- 9
Step 9
Let the preserves cool for 24 hours at room temperature, then move them to the pantry for storage—or open them and enjoy the wonderful taste of pickled gherkins! Bon appétit!