# Big Batch Of Pickles



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 18, 2020)

Did a big batch of pickles yesterday. Have been using 

 SmokinAl
  garlic dill recipe for the last couple of years and always have gotten great results. Only difference is this time I used regular cukes instead of the pickling cukes. Pretty self explanatory but here are a few pictures.

Starting out.






Didn't get a whole lot of the pictures in the process. You add in the garlic, dill weed, dill seed, mustard seed, and alum into the jars and then pack the sliced up cukes in. I added several with jalapenos and habaneros because I like them hot. Then you heat up the brine which consists of water, vinegar, and pickling salt and then dump it over the cukes and close up the jars. 

Here are the spicy ones.






And the regular garlic dills.






Then I tried something new. 

 Steve H
 had posted a recipe several months ago for spicy pickled garlic so I knew I had to try that out too.






All together.











Close up of the spicy ones.











Check out the color difference. The jar on the right is the last of the batch I did in February 2019. 






Not a bad stock. Now the wait.






Last time I made these the spicy ones had a little tingle from the jalapenos and habaneros so I packed more in this time around. Had I of had some cayenne on hand I would have added that as well. Anyways cant wait for this batch to age up. Thanks for checking it out.

John


----------



## Smokin' in AZ (Feb 18, 2020)

Looks good John, waiting for the outcome.

I should try to do pickling like you and Steve and Robert do....

Maybe this summer.

Like!

John


----------



## Dirty Nails (Feb 18, 2020)

Oh my gosh! I hadn't thought about it in years, but in the late 2000's when we lived near Fort Gordon, Georgia I used to make pickles with the kids. We used what we grew. I remember one summer we made 65 jars of pickles - the kids had thrown cucumber seeds all over that spring! Great memories for sure. Thanks for sharing!


----------



## xray (Feb 18, 2020)

Nice haul of pickles John!!

There’s only one problem...you used up all your beer fridge space. Better send them to me for safekeeping.


----------



## tx smoker (Feb 18, 2020)

WOW!! You've been a busy little boy and those look great. I'm about out of the ones I did several months ago so maybe it's time to get some more going.

Robert


----------



## Steve H (Feb 18, 2020)

Niice! I bet them cukes have some heat!


----------



## Texas Cookin' (Feb 18, 2020)

Looking good.  How long before they are ready to eat?


----------



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 18, 2020)

Smokin' in AZ said:


> Looks good John, waiting for the outcome.
> 
> I should try to do pickling like you and Steve and Robert do....
> 
> ...



Thanks John! Yeah man you need to give it a shot. Pretty easy and way better than store bought!


----------



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 18, 2020)

Dirty Nails said:


> Oh my gosh! I hadn't thought about it in years, but in the late 2000's when we lived near Fort Gordon, Georgia I used to make pickles with the kids. We used what we grew. I remember one summer we made 65 jars of pickles - the kids had thrown cucumber seeds all over that spring! Great memories for sure. Thanks for sharing!



Sounds like a great time with the kids for sure!


----------



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 18, 2020)

xray said:


> Nice haul of pickles John!!
> 
> There’s only one problem...you used up all your beer fridge space. Better send them to me for safekeeping.



Soon as they age and are good I'll get a jar out to you! And don't worry I got plenty more space for cold beer...could never sacrifice that! That's why I got two garage fridges


----------



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 18, 2020)

tx smoker said:


> WOW!! You've been a busy little boy and those look great. I'm about out of the ones I did several months ago so maybe it's time to get some more going.
> 
> Robert



Thanks Robert! That was my problem...was down to two jars and the things go like hot cakes. Actually should have done these several months ago!


----------



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 18, 2020)

Steve H said:


> Niice! I bet them cukes have some heat!



Cant wait to try out the garlic. How long you think I should let them sit before I try them out? I didn't vac seal the jars.


----------



## Steve H (Feb 18, 2020)

I'm getting low myself. And I've thinking about a spicy pickle myself. Though, not volcanic like these!


----------



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 18, 2020)

Texas Cookin' said:


> Looking good.  How long before they are ready to eat?



Usually 3-4 months. The longer you let them sit the better they are IMO!


----------



## Steve H (Feb 18, 2020)

SmokinVOLfan said:


> Cant wait to try out the garlic. How long you think I should let them sit before I try them out? I didn't vac seal the jars.



I'd say a few weeks. Then try them.


----------



## Steve H (Feb 18, 2020)

Texas Cookin' said:


> Looking good.  How long before they are ready to eat?



At least a month. But if you vacuum seal the jar. Then about a week.


----------



## gary s (Feb 18, 2020)

Nice !!!   We love Al's Pickle recipe, kids do, grand-kids do, neighbors do  Heck everyone does

Gary


----------



## Steve H (Feb 18, 2020)

gary s said:


> Nice !!!   We love Al's Pickle recipe, kids do, grand-kids do, neighbors do  Heck everyone does
> 
> Gary



Boy, are they ever. I've only bought store pickles once in the last couple of years.


----------



## smokerjim (Feb 18, 2020)

they sure do look good John, that should hold ya for a little bit.


----------



## jcam222 (Feb 18, 2020)

They look awesome! I know I’d like those hot ones. Are they canned or frig pickles?


----------



## SmokinAl (Feb 19, 2020)

Excellent John!
You should have enough pickles to last a couple of weeks!  
Al


----------



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 19, 2020)

smokerjim said:


> they sure do look good John, that should hold ya for a little bit.



Thanks Jim yeah I need to make a few jars every month to get a steady supply going!


----------



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 19, 2020)

jcam222 said:


> They look awesome! I know I’d like those hot ones. Are they canned or frig pickles?



Thanks Jeff! They are just frig pickles I didn't can them or vac seal them. That's why they take so long to age. Al noted if you use the vac seal containers they are ready in 3 days but don't have those yet.


----------



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 19, 2020)

SmokinAl said:


> Excellent John!
> You should have enough pickles to last a couple of weeks!
> Al



Thanks Al! Yeah your recipe is killer on these as others have said. Need to keep a steady supply going like you!


----------



## 73saint (Feb 21, 2020)

I'm doing this today.  It's something I've been wanting to do for years but for whatever reason I haven't.  Does anyone know if there are generic vacuum canisters that can be bought locally?  I can't find the big ones like the one's Al has in his original thread.  If I cannot find them I will just go with canning jars.


----------



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 21, 2020)

73saint said:


> I'm doing this today.  It's something I've been wanting to do for years but for whatever reason I haven't.  Does anyone know if there are generic vacuum canisters that can be bought locally?  I can't find the big ones like the one's Al has in his original thread.  If I cannot find them I will just go with canning jars.



I'm not sure. You might check Wal-mart I think they sell a lot of vac sealing stuff. I think you can also buy the attachment to vac seal the canning jars which would also speed up the process.


----------



## 73saint (Feb 21, 2020)

SmokinVOLfan said:


> I'm not sure. You might check Wal-mart I think they sell a lot of vac sealing stuff. I think you can also buy the attachment to vac seal the canning jars which would also speed up the process.


Ok one more ?...I couldn’t find the small pickling cukes so I bought the regular sized ones, but I picked about 4 lbs of big, firm and dark cucumbers.  Will these work?  I don’t want a mushy pickle!!  Lol


----------



## 73saint (Feb 21, 2020)

Sorry I just re-read and you mentioned using the regular ones.


----------



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 21, 2020)

73saint said:


> Ok one more ?...I couldn’t find the small pickling cukes so I bought the regular sized ones, but I picked about 4 lbs of big, firm and dark cucumbers.  Will these work?  I don’t want a mushy pickle!!  Lol



Yeah man that's actually what I used on these. Cut the ends off then cut the cukes in half and then quarter each half. Much cheaper this way too. I use alum in mine to keep them crisp. Let me know how they turn out!


----------



## 73saint (Feb 21, 2020)

SmokinVOLfan said:


> Yeah man that's actually what I used on these. Cut the ends off then cut the cukes in half and then quarter each half. Much cheaper this way too. I use alum in mine to keep them crisp. Let me know how they turn out!


Awesome.  I’ve got the alum also.  Can’t wait, starting now.


----------



## 73saint (Feb 22, 2020)

And now the wait begins.  Why did I wait so long to make these!?  Oh and I ordered a 3qt foodsaver vac canister so when that comes I’ll do a speed batch!


----------



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 23, 2020)

73saint said:


> View attachment 433241
> 
> And now the wait begins.  Why did I wait so long to make these!?  Oh and I ordered a 3qt foodsaver vac canister so when that comes I’ll do a speed batch!



Hell yeah those look awesome! I kicked myself for waiting so long once I tasted one of these. Let me know how the vac ones come out might be worth the investment.


----------



## 73saint (Feb 26, 2020)

Another question, what's the difference between a mini cuke, a pickling cuke and a burpless cuke?  I have found mini cukes but none that say pickling cuke.  The minis are $5 for a small bag of 6.  Seems high to me, but if they are better for pickling I will try them.  My vac canister is being delivered today and I want to do a speed batch while my jars wait patiently in the fridge.


----------



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 26, 2020)

73saint said:


> Another question, what's the difference between a mini cuke, a pickling cuke and a burpless cuke?  I have found mini cukes but none that say pickling cuke.  The minis are $5 for a small bag of 6.  Seems high to me, but if they are better for pickling I will try them.  My vac canister is being delivered today and I want to do a speed batch while my jars wait patiently in the fridge.



You know I am not totally sure. They sell pickling cukes around here 3 for $1 and I have seen the mini cukes but never bought them. Maybe 

 chef jimmyj
 might be able to chime in and give us a correct answer.


----------



## chef jimmyj (Feb 26, 2020)

Kirby Cucumbers, Pickling Cucumbers, grow to a perfect portion size, have small seeds, are lower in moisture than the common Cucumber and stay Crisper. Mini-Pickling Cucumbers are similar and work well because they are a small Seed variety also. Burpless or Hot House English Cucumbers, while having small seeds, are somewhat high in moister and like Common Cucumbers, also high in moisture, can get Mushy when pickled by Fermentation. They are ok for 24 Hour Refer Pickles, Vinegar Brined, but are best rested a short time, a couple of days, and eaten quickly. ALUM can help them maintain crispness longer...JJ


----------



## 73saint (Feb 26, 2020)

Well, I could not find pickling cukes anywhere.  Costco, restaurant depot, Winn Dixie, Rouses, none of them.  I finally gave up and got 3lbs of regular cukes, just hand picked as firm as I could.  Well see how it goes with the vac canister.


----------



## chef jimmyj (Feb 26, 2020)

They will be tasty. The skin is thicker and tougher than Kirby Cucumbers but the flavor is there. Common Cucumbers hold more water in large plant cells. Over time, Salt and Vinegar breaks the cell walls and the Pickles soften quite a bit. Not real fast but they don't keep as long as Kirby Pickles. They sure look good!...JJ


----------



## 73saint (Feb 26, 2020)

chef jimmyj said:


> They will be tasty. The skin is thicker and tougher than Kirby Cucumbers but the flavor is there. Common Cucumbers hold more water in large plant cells. Over time, Salt and Vinegar breaks the cell walls and the Pickles soften quite a bit. Not real fast but they don't keep as long as Kirby Pickles. They sure look good!...JJ


Thanks!  And thanks for this info jimmy!


----------



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 27, 2020)

Pickles look awesome Saint let me know how they turn out in the vac canister. Thanks for the info Jimmy!


----------



## 73saint (Feb 27, 2020)

SmokinVOLfan said:


> Pickles look awesome Saint let me know how they turn out in the vac canister. Thanks for the info Jimmy!


I am so impatient.  I tasted one from the week old batch in mason jars.  Still not pickled at all, but whoa, the garlic is HEAVY!  I’m not one to say anything has too much garlic but those are waay strong.  I hope that flavor settles down some.  Yuck, I have an awful taste in my mouth right now (not-yet-ready garlic pickles and black coffee, I wonder why lol)


----------



## SmokinVOLfan (Feb 27, 2020)

73saint said:


> I am so impatient.  I tasted one from the week old batch in mason jars.  Still not pickled at all, but whoa, the garlic is HEAVY!  I’m not one to say anything has too much garlic but those are waay strong.  I hope that flavor settles down some.  Yuck, I have an awful taste in my mouth right now (not-yet-ready garlic pickles and black coffee, I wonder why lol)



The garlic tones down as it sits over time. Black coffee and week old garlic dills sounds like a hell of a combo man lol. Be curious to see how your vac canister ones turn out.


----------

