Author Notes
I should start by saying that this recipe requires turning on the stove for all of two minutes, just enough time to dissolve the salt in the water. To make it truly "raw" (and to qualify it as necessary for the "dish in the raw" contest, you can skip this by shaking the water and salt vigorously in a sealed jar. Depends how strict the guidelines are...
Making pickles is about the easiest thing in the world.
This pickle recipe takes about 5 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 1 week. If they last that long. But then you have delicious, crispy pickles, perfect for a barbecue or to eat right out of the fridge. You’ll never buy a supermarket bottle again.
To make dill pickles, just add a big bunch of dill to the mix. And the sumac is totally optional, I just had it around. Homemade pickles are fun because you can really play around with the seasoning and make them to suit your tastes. For my husband and I, these were just perfect. —kmartinelli
Ingredients
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2 – 2½ cups
bottled or filtered water (for a jar that holds 4½ cups liquid, or a little over 1 quart)
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2 tablespoons
coarse salt
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7
small-medium cucumbers (or however many fit in your jar)
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1
carrot (optional)
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4-8
cloves garlic (based on preference)
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2
2 bay leaves
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½ teaspoons
whole mustard seeds
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½ teaspoons
whole allspice berries
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¼ teaspoons
whole cloves
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¼ teaspoons
whole sumac
Directions
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In a small pot heat ½ cup of the water with the salt and stir until the salt dissolves. Add the remaining water.
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Pack the cucumbers vertically into the jar, making sure they’re tightly-packed. 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.
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Cover the jar and store in a cool, dark place (do not refrigerate). After 3 days, taste one. The pickles can ferment from 3 to 6 days. The longer the fermentation, the more sour they’ll become. Once the pickles are to your liking, refrigerate them.
A native New Yorker, I recently moved to Be'er Sheva, Israel with my husband while he completes medical school. I am a freelance food and travel writer and photographer who is always hungry and reads cookbooks in bed.
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