Old Fashioned Fermented Pickles

Here’s my favorite way to use up cucumbers from the summertime garden. My dear hubs gave me this 1-gallon crock for my birthday one year, and it is the perfect pickle crock. I always double this recipe, and it always turns out great. After fermentation, I store my pickles in the fridge in these beautiful half gallon jars. 

These are not vinegar pickles. This recipe produces pickles which are naturally fermented with delicious spices including fresh dill, much like the process for fermenting sauerkraut. There is no boiling or cooking involved, so your pickles turn out fresh and crisp. They are totally addicting, and totally wholesome. In fact, these homemade pickles are naturally packed with tons of probiotics. These fresh and crunchy pickles taste amazing and give your immune system a natural boost! 

Ingredients 

• 2 lbs of pickling cucumbers, under 5 inches long
• 6 cups of water, filtered (nonchlorinated)
• 2 ½ tablespoons sea salt
• 10 cloves of garlic, sliced or smashed
• 1 teaspoon mustard seed
• 1 teaspoon peppercorns
• 2 teaspoons dill seed
• 2 whole dried cloves
• ½ teaspoon allspice berries 
• ½ teaspoon coriander seed
• Pinch of cinnamon
• Pinch of nutmeg 
• Pinch of red pepper flakes
• 1 bay leaf
• Large handful of fresh dill
• 1 hot pepper, whole or sliced (optional)
• Fresh grape leaves

Wash cucumbers and trim off the blossom end (this removes an enzyme that can soften pickles.) Soak cucumbers in an ice water bath for 10 minutes to crisp them. Drain crisped cucumbers on a clean towel. 

To make brine, stir and dissolve salt into one cup of the filtered water. In a large, clean two quart jar or crock, layer the cucumbers, garlic, fresh dill, and spices. Pour the brine and enough remaining filtered water to cover cucumbers. 

Cover all with grape leaves. Weigh down grape leaves and cucumbers with fermentation stones to keep everything fully submerged in the brine. Cover crock loosely with the lid. Place in a cool place for no longer than 7 days. If you use a clear jar, choose a dark place. 

On day 3, check to make sure cucumbers are still submerged. Check each day after that for good signs of fermentation. When the brine has become cloudy and/or bubbly, store your pickles in the refrigerator to slow down fermentation. Fermenting at room temperature for longer than 7 days will develop an even more sour flavor, but will also result in a less crisp pickle. We find 6-7 days of fermentation to be the perfect blend of crisp and sour. Pickles can store in the refrigerator for several months, but ours never last that long!