Cucumbers are a real treat, especially in summer. Pickle your cucumbers and you can enjoy them all year round.
The supermarket shelf is full of pickled cucumbers. So why bother? Sure, of course. Cucumbers from your own garden and then pickled by yourself taste a lot better than from the supermarket. You can also vary the ingredients and make your own 1A gherkins.
There are years when cucumbers grow like weeds. It would be a shame if you gave away so many cucumbers or let them go bad. When pickling, you have a different taste experience and can extend the shelf life of the cucumbers by a few months. If you then even cook the cucumbers, the shelf life is extended to up to two years.
Which cucumbers to use for pickling?
When pickling, don't use the normal cucumbers, but the small cucumbers. These are much better suited for this. Pickled cucumbers are also known as pickled cucumbers. They get their sour aroma from the fermentation of lactic acid.
Of course there are countless recipes for pickling cucumbers. Here everyone simply decides according to personal taste. Below is a guide with a few examples on how to pickle cucumbers yourself.
What do you need for the pickling?
What you put in the preserving jars apart from the gherkins is basically up to you. Popular ingredients include sprigs of dill, tarragon, onions, carrots, and bay leaves.
You can either buy a special cucumber spice in stores or make it yourself. For this you need:
- a kilogram of cucumbers
- 5 juniper berries
- 2 cloves
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- ½ teaspoon peppercorns
- ½ teaspoon ginger
- a pinch of coriander
If you like it hotter, you can also add some chili. You can change the flavor a bit by adding pieces of pepper.
For the vinegar brew you also need
- sugar
- Water
- Vinegar
- s alt (no iodised s alt!)
Instructions for pickling cucumbers
Preservedare the cucumbers through the fermentation process in the jar. Let the vegetables steep for at least 14 days. Only then are the gherkins really edible.
➛ Step 1:
Clean the cucumbers thoroughly with a vegetable brush.
➛ Step 2:
Now layer the cucumbers in a mason jar and add carrot chunks, tarragon, onions, dill, cucumber spice and a bay leaf to taste.
➛ Step 3:
Now, in four cups of water, add one cup of vinegar, 5 tablespoons of sugar, and 2 tablespoons of s alt. Bring this mixture to a boil.
» Tip: If you use special cucumber vinegar, the mixture may look slightly different. It is best to read the back of the bottle.
➛ Step 4:
When the vinegar has boiled, pour it over the cucumbers so that they are completely covered with liquid. If you don't want to preserve the vegetables, the broth needs to be really hot when it pours over the cucumbers. (Reading tip: Canning cucumbers - That's how it's done)
➛ Step 5:
Now close the preserving jars tightly and turn them upside down to cool. This creates a vacuum and the jars are tightly closed. If you pickle your cucumbers this way, they will keep for at least six months to a year.
As I said, this recipe is just one of many variations. There is a huge selection on the Internet, so you can always try new flavors. Here is a colorful selection of different recipes for pickling cucumbers.