Make Your Own Fermented Pickles

My kids LOVE pickles!  I love pickles! Even my husband loves pickles.  They aren’t all that expensive in the store, but what if I told you that you could make them at home with only about 10 minutes of active effort.  Not only that, but they would be healthier for you and taste even better than store-bought pickles AND they are CRUNCH, CRUNCH, CRUNCHY!

They have the added bonus that if anything catastrophic ever happened if you could grow mini cucumbers, you could always have pickles!

Why Fermented Pickles?

Why ferment pickles instead of letting them sit in vinegar?  When you ferment foods, you are growing healthy microorganisms which will, in turn, feed the good bacteria in your gut.  According to this article The Guardian, the microbiome in your gut affects everything from obesity to allergies, from overall well-being to emotional stability.

By consuming fermented vegetables, it is possible to help build back up your good gut flora and that it can help improve your overall health and well-being.  Besides building your good gut flora, it also provides enzymes and even more vitamins.

Making Pickles from Scratch

Ingredients

Enough pickles to fill your container – either a crock or mason jar

8-10 cloves of garlic

1 1/2 T dill seed

1 tsp black tea leaves (I learned this from Wardee here.  The tea leaves help keep the cucumbers stay crisp!)

So how do you go about making this healthy treat?

Recipe

1.) Start with pickling cucumbers.  I purchased mine at Aldi.

2.) Chill them in cold water for 20-30 minutes.  This helps them start out crunchy.

3.)  Cut the ends off of your cucumbers and layer them in your pickling crock (I purchased this one) or put them into a quart sized or half-gallon sized canning jar.

4.)  Every few layers sprinkle in some of each of your seasonings.

5.)  Make your brine.  Mix 1/2 gallon of filtered water – preferably without chlorine and fluoride – and six tablespoons of sea salt.

6.)  Once mixed, pour your brine over your cucumbers.

7.)  Put a weight over your cucumbers to keep them under the water.  Pickling weights are an easy way to keep your food under the brine.  Then cover your crock with its lid or cover the mouth of the mason jar with a piece of cloth and a rubber band.

8.)  Test one in 3-4 days.  See if you like the level of fermentation.  Are they salty enough?  You can always put the lid back on the untested ones and let it ferment a day longer and try them again.  Fermentation should take place between three and seven days.

9.)  Once they reach the perfect level of fermentation for you, you can store your pickles in a glass jar in your refrigerator, and it will keep them from fermenting further.

What about you?

Have you ever made your own pickles before?  Are there other foods that you have fermented?  Have you ever eaten a fermented pickle as opposed to pickles made with vinegar?  We used to buy them through Azure Standard.  Our favorite brand, hands down, was Bubbies.  I’d love to hear your experience with making your own pickles or fermented foods.  Tell us all about it in the comments.