I’ve been blessed with an abundance of pickles in my garden. Our favourite way to preserve them is to make my mother in-law’s Sweet Pickles. It’s a great no fuss recipe that you don’t even need to use a canner. It’s not fancy, but trust me these pickles are tasty!!
Cucumbers galore.
First wash your Cukes. I just use a veggie brush and water, but I’m not the food safety police. If you want to feel better about dirt bugs etc, feel free to wash your cukes however you please.
Slice those cukes!
Slice those cukes up! I like a medium thickness about 0.5 cm thick slices. Too thin and you have a soggy pickle, to thick and they don’t fit your sandwiches…Fill up a big margarine container (the 3.8 kg size) or an ice cream bucket up 3/4 full with sliced cukes.
My fancy dancy pickle container- the Co-Op margarine tub.
In a 1 L measuring bowl (or whatever bowl you like) mix up the pickle juice. You’ll need:
4 cups sugar
2 cups vinegar
1 tbsp pickling salt
1 tsp mustard seed
1 tsp tumeric
1 tsp celery seed
Note that the salt and sugar doesn’t completely dissolve. Just mix vigorously and pour over the cucumbers. It will dissolve over a couple days in the fridge.
Pickle juice. Pickle Juice. Pickle Juice.
Pour over your cucumbers. The juice will not cover all the cucumbers. Pop them in the fridge. Have no fear, they will shrink down after a day or so. Mix them every day to have them all covered and cured. Let them cure about a week and then dig it! I like to transfer a small amount into a mason jar for easier storage in my kitchen fridge and store the rest in my spare garage fridge. Enjoy!
Grandma Lois’ Pickles
10 cups slice pickles – give or take.
Juice:
4 c sugar
2 c vinegar
1 tbsp picking salt
1 tsp celery seed
1 tsp mustard seed
1 tsp tumeric.
Slice cucumbers into an ice cream bucket or 3.8 kg margarine container. Mix together juice. Pour over cucumbers (it won’t cover all of them). Refrigerate. Mix daily. Let cure 1 week in the fridge. I do NOT recommend canning these pickles afterward, they get very soft if you do. Store in the fridge.
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