A recipe for DIY pickles

Next time you reach for a jar of pickles, consider making your own instead. Homemade pickles are as easy as one, two, three! Cucumbers can be transformed into crunchy, flavorful pickles in just three days with this homemade pickles recipe.

Pickling isn’t just for cucumbers. Make all of your gorgeous spring garden bounty last by pickling and canning the fruits of your labor. Carrots, ramps, fiddlehead ferns, green onions, rhubarb and even watermelon rind all make easy, delicious pickles that will add acidity and bite to everything from sandwiches to salads.

This pickle recipe takes about five minutes of hands-on time and three days to ferment in a cool, dark place. After that, they need to be refrigerated and will keep for about one week. The best part is that it’s easily customizable. If you like dill, then add a big bunch, or if you don’t like garlic, then omit it. Make it from just cucumbers or add some carrots and other vegetables as well.

Quick cucumber pickle recipe

Makes 7-8

Ingredients:

• 2 cups bottled or filtered water
• 2 tablespoons coarse salt
• 7 small cucumbers
• 5 cloves garlic, peeled
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon whole mustard seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon whole allspice berries
• 1/4 teaspoon whole cloves

Directions:

1. Set aside a medium-sized jar that holds 4-1/2 cups liquid, or just over one quart.
2. In a small pot, heat 1/2 cup of the water with the salt and stir until the salt dissolves. Add the remaining water.
3. Pack the cucumbers and carrot, if using, vertically into the jar, making sure they’re tightly packed.
4. Add the garlic, bay leaves, mustard seeds, allspice berries, cloves and sumac. Pour the salt water brine over so it comes to the top of the jar; the cucumbers should be fully submerged. (If they are not, then add a bit of filtered water until they are covered.)
5. Cover the jar and store in a cool, dark place (do not refrigerate).
6. After three days, taste one. The pickles can ferment from three to six days. The longer the fermentation, the more sour they’ll become.
7. Once the pickles are to your liking, refrigerate them. They will keep in the fridge for up to one week.

More pickle recipes

The joy of pickling
Pickled vegetable basics
Homemade pickles