Pickle recipe needed

[PunkRotten]

Hi,


I have been making refrigerator pickles for awhile but now wanna can some for long term storage. I am interested in making Dill pickles. If possible, I would like measurements by the bottle. I don't know if I will have an abundance of cucumbers I usually make fridge pickles by the bottle.

Thanks

[cynthia_h]

Every canning recipe I've ever seen gives the ingredients measured out as a bunch, then has them cooked, then poured into their sterilized/clean jars, and then processed. Not sure what you're looking for with "by the jar" ingredients, but [url=https://recipefinder.nal.usda.gov/]this recipe database[/url] is sure to give you safe canning guidelines.

Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9

[PunkRotten]

Could you make up a brine and save some for later? Like a found a recipe that is for like 3 lbs of pickles. So if I make it and only use like 1/3 of it, could I save the brine for later and just reheat it?

[PunkRotten]

I found a recipe 3 cups water, 2 cups vinegar, and 1/4 cup salt. Did all the instructions with sterilizing, and after I packed everything I water bathed it for 20 mins. I don't think it sealed. I never heard the pop sound. Is there a way to tell if it sealed or not? If it didn't seal could I still eat it?

[gumbo2176]

I found a recipe 3 cups water, 2 cups vinegar, and 1/4 cup salt. Did all the instructions with sterilizing, and after I packed everything I water bathed it for 20 mins. I don't think it sealed. I never heard the pop sound. Is there a way to tell if it sealed or not? If it didn't seal could I still eat it?

If you can press on the top of the lid and it gives under a little pressure, it isn't sealed. When a jar forms a vacuum, the lid sinks in the center toward the bottom of the jar and it has very little play if poked.

If it isn't sealed, put them in the fridge and use them in a couple weeks after they've been in the brine to pickle.

[gumbo2176]

Could you make up a brine and save some for later? Like a found a recipe that is for like 3 lbs of pickles. So if I make it and only use like 1/3 of it, could I save the brine for later and just reheat it?

Just make the brine as you need it. This is what I do for brine. I'll pack the sterilized jars with the vegetables I want pickled, pour slightly over 1/3 the jars with vinegar and finish filling the jars with water. I'll then pour the water/vinegar mixture in a pot, add my salt and other seasonings depending on what I'm pickling, bring it to a boil and let it simmer for several minutes to get all the things well blended. Then I'll pour this brine into the jars leaving about 1/4 inch head space, wipe the top of the jar clean and put on the lid and ring and tighten it down.

For pickled beans, okra, cucumbers etc. I do not put these jars in a water bath since I find it makes them not near as crisp as just cold packing.

[cynthia_h]

For pickled beans, okra, cucumbers etc. I do not put these jars in a water bath since I find it makes them not near as crisp as just cold packing.

These are refrigerator pickles, yes?

Cynthia

[gumbo2176]

For pickled beans, okra, cucumbers etc. I do not put these jars in a water bath since I find it makes them not near as crisp as just cold packing.

These are refrigerator pickles, yes?

Cynthia

I only cold pack my pickled cucumbers, okra, green beans, vegetable mix of cauliflower/carrots/celery/onions and garlic. Almost all jars will seal the way I described doing it. However, if a jar doesn't seal, they go in the fridge when they come to room temperature to be used first. The ones that seal go into my pantry for later use.

I do not like to hot water bathe the above vegetables since it tends to make them less crisp in the long run.

[PunkRotten]

I found a recipe 3 cups water, 2 cups vinegar, and 1/4 cup salt. Did all the instructions with sterilizing, and after I packed everything I water bathed it for 20 mins. I don't think it sealed. I never heard the pop sound. Is there a way to tell if it sealed or not? If it didn't seal could I still eat it?

If you can press on the top of the lid and it gives under a little pressure, it isn't sealed. When a jar forms a vacuum, the lid sinks in the center toward the bottom of the jar and it has very little play if poked.

If it isn't sealed, put them in the fridge and use them in a couple weeks after they've been in the brine to pickle.

It seems like it is sealed. I pushed on the lid and it is pretty intact. I had read that the lid should be convex and not concave. Mine is neither really, sorta just flat. The one thing that worries me is some of the pickles are slightly sticking out of the brine in the jar. When I poured the brine in all pickles were below the liquid and I left about 1/2 inch head space. After water bathing it it seems like it loss some of the brine cause now some are sticking out a little.

[PunkRotten]

For pickled beans, okra, cucumbers etc. I do not put these jars in a water bath since I find it makes them not near as crisp as just cold packing.

These are refrigerator pickles, yes?

Cynthia

I only cold pack my pickled cucumbers, okra, green beans, vegetable mix of cauliflower/carrots/celery/onions and garlic. Almost all jars will seal the way I described doing it. However, if a jar doesn't seal, they go in the fridge when they come to room temperature to be used first. The ones that seal go into my pantry for later use.

I do not like to hot water bathe the above vegetables since it tends to make them less crisp in the long run.

Could you explain what cold packing is? I make pickles where I don't heat. I just mix water and salt, add some spices and pour in a jar of veggies. Let this sit for about 10 days on the counter. Over the days I wait the bottle gets lots of bubbles from microbe activity. But from what I understand these are beneficial bacteria. Kinda like when you make sauerkraut. I have been eating pickles like this for awhile and never got sick. Although after about the 10-14 days I stick it in the fridge. Is this kind of the way you do it with "cold packing"?

[applestar]

The pop sound comes later after you take the jars out of the pot, and they start to cool. You would hear them if you start canning after the family have gone to sleep, and collapse on the couch after you've pulled all the hot jars out and lined them up on towel-lined counter to cool, and lay there in a daze in the quiet house with no tv on.

And yes, while canning, the internal pressure can push out some of the brine. The way I understand it, the canning process pushes all the air out but if you don't leave enough headroom the brine gets pushed out too, so it's the jars that started with a little more brine that tends to LOSE the brine. Sometimes this causes things to get stuck under the rubber seal and prevent solid seal from forming. So obviously lower brine level ones should be kept under observation and probably eaten first even if the seal seems to be good.

BTW the kind you describe made with natural fermentation and lactic acid is supposed to be very healthy for you. I like making those too.

"Cold pack" is different canning term for packing uncooked "cold" vegetables or fruits in jars, then filling with brine or syrup and canning, as opposed to starting with cooked "hot" vegs/fruit. (although it does sound like gumbo isn't hot water bath or pressure canning them at all).

[cynthia_h]

Convex lids are a danger sign. If commercially canned foods *or* home-canned foods have convex lids, throw the food out without tasting it. Dispose of it in such a way that pets also cannot get into it.

Concave lids result from a complete seal, as achieved through hot-water-bath canning or (when needed) pressure canning.

Cynthia