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Dill Pickles

Homemade dill pickles just like the ones my mother used to make are on my 'to do' list every summer. There's just something about homemade dills that can't be found on the store shelf! This is my mom's recipe...the same pickles I grew up with.


Ingredients:
  • 10 pounds of pickling cukes (yield about 8 jars)
  • 5 cups white vinegar used for pickling
  • 13 cups water
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup pickling salt…coarse
  • garlic pieces (peeled and cut in half)…two pieces per jar
  • fresh dill
  • small dried red chili peppers…one or two pieces for each jar

Method:
  1. Wash cucumbers well and leave in tub of cold water while packing jars.
  2. Mix vinegar, water, sugar and the salt in a large pot. Stir the mixture well. Heat to a rapid boil on medium-high, then keep simmering while filling jars.
  3. Prepare wide-mouth 1-quart jars. In each jar, put 1 piece of garlic, one head of dill, two small chili peppers and then enough cucumbers to fill the jar. Then add one more garlic piece and another sprig of dill.
  4. Fill jars slowly with the hot brine and seal (being sure to clean all residue from the top of the rim of the jar first).
  5. Place the lidded jars in boiling water bath for about 15 minutes…water in canner should cover the tops of the jars.
  6. The pickles should be stored in a cool place for two months before serving. (So they say...I’m not sure we ever waited that long!)

    *If your water is hard, high in mineral content or has chlorine added, use bottled water.
    ** Pack the cukes into the jars really tight. They shrink as they are processed.
If you like a little zip to your pickles...be generous with the red chili peppers!


Enjoy!

34 comments:

  1. Judy. . .that is the most beautiful pickle jar recipe I have ever seen. . .ever. . .even in magazines and cookbooks.. .

    Your recipe sounds wonderful .. .can I order up some jars please? One for each month should just about do it?

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  2. There is something comforting about seeing a picture and a recipe for pickles. It brings back childhood memories of my Mennonite grandma and aunts having them in their houses when we'd make our summer trips to Canada. Thanks you! :)

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  3. My mouth is watering right now.
    They look so delicious, it makes me want to run out to the market and make the today. It's Labor Day right?

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  4. Homemade pickles..they look so deliciously wonderful,Judy. I would love to have a few dozen lined up on my pantry shelf.
    I need to find pickling cucumbers..would love to try a few jars!

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  5. Judy, you've been busy! They look great! I have peaches waiting for me.

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  6. I'm not so wild about dill pickles, but my sister in law makes wonderful bread and butter jalepeno pickels. She gave me a jar one Christmas and we loved them. Luckily I found some at a farmer's market here in town to get some more. I don't put up preserves because I have arthritis in my hands and it is difficult at times.

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  7. I have a question,what is the key to , the cuc's shrivel up on you?I do add quite a bit of suger,as we like them sweeter,and add alum,so any idea's?And Betty,you might be able to pick up jars at our local MCC thrift store.

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  8. I just love this post and the picture of the pickles in the jar - How beautiful.
    THIS is why I went out this weekend and got all the ingredients and actually canned my first pickles ever.
    THANK YOU THANK YOU. I can't wait to try them
    Robin
    SLC, UT

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  9. Just made pickles today with my sister-in-law. We sort of made it up as we went along and NOW I see your recipe! I hope ours are as good as yours look. We had some really tall jars that didn't quite fit in the canner and every last one of them sealed up even though some of the lids weren't covered in water. Do you think they'll unseal? We stuck garlic and onion and dill in each jar, but followed a recipe for the brine for "Polish Pickles". Sugar, vinegar, salt. I really wanted a spicy one, so I added some mustard seed and chili flakes to one of the jars...it was all a big experiment, but I'm looking forward to trying it again!

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  10. Laura...I'm sure they'll be great! If any jars aren't sealed...just put them in the fridge and eat those first. It doesn't actually take 8 weeks for them to pickle...that's just for maximum infusion of flavour.

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  11. Found this today and can't wait to try. It's very similar to a recipe I've been using for years. The main difference is I've never put mine in a water bath. Do your pickles stay crisp when you make them?

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  12. I've been wanting to make pickles since a friend gave a jar last year. These sound like they will fit the bill! Thank you for posting the recipe.

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  13. Hello,

    just made some pickles last week with a different recipe. I used "pickling vinegar" which, having tasted them today gives them quite a bite and, they are not crunchy!

    Any suggestions for a CRUNCHY pickle- does your recipe make pickles with a good crunch?

    -Mary

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  14. Hi, I havetried to make dill pickles before and they turn out slimmy, I think it is because I used regular tap water, What kind of water do you use?? thank you

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  15. Mary...we had a chlorinated water supply for years and I would purchase bottled water for the pickles. Any pure water supply seems is good for pickles.

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  16. Annette Neumann PresleyMarch 1, 2012 at 3:48 PM

    Just saw this recipe. Looking forward to trying it. Haven't had homemade dills since my Grandma died. This sounds like her recipe. she made them so hot!!!! My favorite.

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  17. Sounds yummy. I don't have pickling cucumbers, I am wondering if I can used sliced cucumbers like I would for seven day pickles (sliced with seeds removed)? Or should I really use the small pickling cucumbers? I have been blessed with a great cucumber crop and am trying to find some new recipes and my kids love dill pickles.

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  18. Margo...I have never tried pickling sliced cucumbers as dills, so I'm not sure how that would work out. Why not? Let us know if you give it a go!

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  19. Where do you find dried chili peppers? Thanks!
    Nancy

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    Replies
    1. I get them in the spice section at the grocery store.

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  20. Made these and they are way too salty. Tried doing slices and regular pickles, Ive never had such salty ones in all my life.

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  21. This is very close to the recipe I am going to be using tomorrow when doing my pickles, and I was even convinced by my local farmer to add in a slice or two of Jalapeno peppers for extra kick. Would be the first time I do this so I'm going to be half the batch with my regular recipe and half using yours, just with a different pepper! Can't wait to see how they turn out.

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  22. I just made these today and I am a little worried. This is the first time I have canned pickles and when I tasted the brine it seemed a little salty. Does this mellow out when it sits? Some other recipes I have seen only called for about 5 tblspns so I wanted to make sure I didn't do something wrong. Thanks

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    Replies
    1. This was my mom's recipe and the one I have always used. I guess we like salt over here...since we've never thought that they were overly salty. Hope you enjoy them!

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  23. I made these pickles last summer, and I am making another batch right now! Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe!

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  24. This is very close to the recipe my mom and I use. We also add mustard seeds and a slice of horseradish root. We seal ours in the oven (6 minutes at 450* and then 1 minute on broil). They stay sealed and are crunchy for the year. We never keep ours for longer, although they're usually gone before long! (My brother does 125+ quarts a year!!) There is also a product called "Pickle Crisp" put out by Bernardin (calcium chloride) that is supposed to keep pickles crispy. I love your recipes and lost my bread and butter recipe, so will try yours. Thank you!!

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  25. I am going to try this recipe, (first time making dill pickles) I was wondering how many jars of pickles does this make?

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  26. Yumm! I do love spicy dill pickles!

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  27. This is my fourth year making this recipe and I have line ups for a bottle. They are so good!

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  28. Hi do I need to pre soak in a brine solution?

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  29. Can you use frozen dill when pickling cucumbers?

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  30. Can you use frozen dill in pickling?

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