Kosher full sour garlic pickles - in about 7-9 days


 
I have a range of testers for water, ph., TDS, and ORP. I read that as the fermentation progresses the ph goes down to be more acidic. 3-5 - 4.0 is good. Temp in house is 79°. Dried dill. I wanted these to be ready for bringing on a trip tomorrow. I may just bring them with me.
suggestion, try fresh dill weed, whole, instead of dried. very different flavor. IMO the fresh lends a very clean, dill note in the pickles. and dried doesn't impart nearly the same flavor. it's really the dill weed stem that has the most impact and flavor, not the small dill sprigs.
 
suggestion, try fresh dill weed, whole, instead of dried. very different flavor. IMO the fresh lends a very clean, dill note in the pickles. and dried doesn't impart nearly the same flavor. it's really the dill weed stem that has the most impact and flavor, not the small dill sprigs.
Would love to. I am working on my wife to plant some for next year;-)
 
20230918 wrap up note here. this last batch I made and served for Rosh Hashanah 2023 got rave reviews by fam and dinner guests.

so if anyone is seeking to try to and make these garlic sour pickles, go for it. the recipe as it's written is solid science, made multiple times and replicated and should deliver you some great pickles!
 
This batch got a little funky. Maybe because it was warmer in the house since the AC was off? They still smelled and tasted OK so I have been eating them. Have you ever had this happen?
1695073306943.png1695073340063.png
 
@Brett-EDH is there a retail version that is close to the end result of the ones you make ?

My reason for asking is if I were to make these, it would be good to have a baseline flavor to try and get.

I tend to buy and like the flavor of vlasic kosher dill spears, and vlasic fresh pack ovals for sammies, yet I think those are different.
 
This batch got a little funky. Maybe because it was warmer in the house since the AC was off? They still smelled and tasted OK so I have been eating them. Have you ever had this happen?
View attachment 79391View attachment 79392
As long as there isn’t any mold you should be good, but yeah, they’re pretty cloudy and bubbly. My last batch wasn’t quite up to par, much less crispy. Some were actually mushy, didn’t do anything different. Same cucumbers from the same farm. Tasted fine but not pleasant to eat. First bad batch out of four.
 
@Brett-EDH is there a retail version that is close to the end result of the ones you make ?

My reason for asking is if I were to make these, it would be good to have a baseline flavor to try and get.

I tend to buy and like the flavor of vlasic kosher dill spears, and vlasic fresh pack ovals for sammies, yet I think those are different.
The first ones that come to mind are Bubbies. They are naturally fermented and I believe are available in supermarkets nationwide. There are other brands available online as well. I like Ba-tampe but I think they’re only available in the Northeast
EE3F5285-D046-496A-A847-368A0AB408AB.jpeg
 
This batch got a little funky. Maybe because it was warmer in the house since the AC was off? They still smelled and tasted OK so I have been eating them. Have you ever had this happen?
View attachment 79391View attachment 79392
observation: i don't see any pickling spices nor any bay leaves. the bay leaves (broken up) are needed as tannins to help keep the pickles crunchy.

depending how long/far in your pickling is, the color doesn't look dark enough.

question, are you measuring salt be weight per the recipe? also, i weigh down my pickles using a ziplock baggie filled with brine so as to ensure the pickles remain submerged in the brine. you cannot have pickles exposed to air during the pickling process.

i will post a pic of my brine later when home. i saved mine as i like to drink some of it (probiotics). this way you can see the color.

also, what is in this jar? is that celery at the top? if so, i'd recco NOT placing celery in the brine when making pickles. it is outside the scope of my recipe and i do not know how celery pickles over time and in this brine.
 
The first ones that come to mind are Bubbies. They are naturally fermented and I believe are available in supermarkets nationwide. There are other brands available online as well. I like Ba-tampe but I think they’re only available in the Northeast
View attachment 79394
these are close. so are TJ's kosher sour pickles (in the fresh refrigerated box, not shelf stable) and of course Ba'Tampte.

the Bubbies are close but not exactly my reference. i don't use dill in my recipe. mine are garlic sours.

this is my exact recipe reference: https://www.gusspickle.com/

you can order online if you'd like. this is where i grew up getting and eating sour pickles so the flavor profile is engrained on my brain and tongue.

or: https://www.batamptepickle.com/


@DanHoo, text me and you can come over for a shot of pickle juice. i'm serious.
 
As long as there isn’t any mold you should be good, but yeah, they’re pretty cloudy and bubbly. My last batch wasn’t quite up to par, much less crispy. Some were actually mushy, didn’t do anything different. Same cucumbers from the same farm. Tasted fine but not pleasant to eat. First bad batch out of four.
the mushy has to do with possibly the pickle being too full of water, as in the outside was more smooth than bumpy. i've had this in the past and overgrown cukes were the problem for me, then.
 
@Brett-EDH is there a retail version that is close to the end result of the ones you make ?

My reason for asking is if I were to make these, it would be good to have a baseline flavor to try and get.

I tend to buy and like the flavor of vlasic kosher dill spears, and vlasic fresh pack ovals for sammies, yet I think those are different.
see my reply below. yes, vlassic, if they have vinegar in them, are cooked pickles. very different than a naturally fermented pickle. we use vlassic for burgers as the vinegar cuts the fat of the beef and sweetness of ketchup. i've been know to have a 50/50 ratio of vlassic vinegar dill pickles to beef on my burgers. yes, i like pickles.
 
Last edited:
the mushy has to do with possibly the pickle being too full of water, as in the outside was more smooth than bumpy. i've had this in the past and overgrown cukes were the problem for me, then.
They taste good and have a crisp and I haven't got sick eating them so all good. There are bay leaves, garlic, hot peppers, mustered seed, 2TBSP salt / quart. Just a lot of bubbles, they even came out the top. The house was about 81°.
 
They taste good and have a crisp and I haven't got sick eating them so all good. There are bay leaves, garlic, hot peppers, mustered seed, 2TBSP salt / quart. Just a lot of bubbles, they even came out the top. The house was about 81°.
you have to use metric to get the salinity per the recipe. fermentation is science.

you can see the fermentation per day in the original pics of the post. you can see how the cloudiness progresses. the container must be burped starting at 24 hours or create a one way valve so the gas escapes automatically. this recipe is built like the natural fermenters do in NYC. they use large barrels and off-gas the pickles daily/ongoing depending how they seal their plastic barrels.



 
Day 7.

Today’s the sample day, I believe.

View attachment 59151

View attachment 59154

View attachment 59155

View attachment 59156

So I chose one of the less bumpy ones as they usually have more water in them versus the skinner, bumper cukes.

Color and nose are perfect. A little soft in the mid section (sounds like many of us here, I bet).

View attachment 59157

Definitely at half-sour status in the mid section. The hollowness is due to the excess water the cuke had being more mature when I bought it. It’s still good and safe to eat like this. I’ve seen this before.

The green areas are pickled. The white area have not fully brined yet.

View attachment 59158

Fully sliced

View attachment 59159

A closeup so you can see more details of how these look.

View attachment 59160

Taste is perfect. I’m very happy with the results. I’ll let these go another 2-3 days and then fridge them to slow the ferment. We’ll be eating these with a smoked brisket for Jewish New Years dinner.

Thanks for following along. Hopefully you learned something of value or new here.

Go Niners! Season opener is tomorrow morning.
Looking good Brett!

My cukes were duds this year :( My only ferments so far have been hot sauces.
 
you have to use metric to get the salinity per the recipe. fermentation is science.

you can see the fermentation per day in the original pics of the post. you can see how the cloudiness progresses. the container must be burped starting at 24 hours or create a one way valve so the gas escapes automatically. this recipe is built like the natural fermenters do in NYC. they use large barrels and off-gas the pickles daily/ongoing depending how they seal their plastic barrels.
I have the lids that have a 1 way valve so they should not have to be burped. I do swirl the jar once a day
 
In honor of National Pickle Day today. I started these a week ago Sunday using @Brett-EDH recipe. Moved them into the fridge yesterday. Tried one today, it’s a good batch!

View attachment 82034
Those look amazing. Going to have to make a batch as I’m out. And I’m thinking of some burgers coming up soon. And I just looked at this thread’s views count. Over 7,000 views. That’s insane. I hope others are making these too. And don’t throw the residual pickle juice out. It’s a probiotic and healthy to drink. I pop a shot every few weeks for a boost.
 
I need to make some pickles of my own. Rein's Deli is a 90 minute drive from me- some of the best pickles I've had.
I frequent the Pickle Jar Kitchen in Falmouth, MA. Amazing pickles- they also garnish their meals with pickled cauliflower, green beans, carrots, turnip, radishes, and celery.
PJK was featured on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives a few years ago. One thing they mentioned about pickles- they cut the ends off the cukes before brining- something about enzymes in the blossom and vine end contributes to making the pickles soft. Not sure if that's accurate or not, but their pickles are pretty crunchy.
 
I need to make some pickles of my own. Rein's Deli is a 90 minute drive from me- some of the best pickles I've had.
I frequent the Pickle Jar Kitchen in Falmouth, MA. Amazing pickles- they also garnish their meals with pickled cauliflower, green beans, carrots, turnip, radishes, and celery.
PJK was featured on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives a few years ago. One thing they mentioned about pickles- they cut the ends off the cukes before brining- something about enzymes in the blossom and vine end contributes to making the pickles soft. Not sure if that's accurate or not, but their pickles are pretty crunchy.
I have read the same myself.......tried both ways with mixed results.
It has to be something else I do wrong when I get a bad batch...I still have 4 big ones left my my batch above....might be soft bb now but maybe not.
 

 

Back
Top