How to pickle cucumber

kylith

I got a present of three cucumbers, which would be great except I don't like them I love gherkins though, but I can't seem to find any pickling recipes that aren't American. Does anyone have a decent recipe that'll give me some nice crunchy, tangy gherkins?

Dizzyblonde

I haven't pickled cucumbers before, but I've used recipes from allotment.org. They tend to be simple but very good. I always use their recipe for beetroot chutney.

http://www.allotment-garden.org/recipe/357/pickled-cucumber-recipe/

They have a choice of spiced vinegars to make too: http://www.allotment-garden.org/food/spiced-pickling-vinegar.php

kylith

Thanks so much! I've bookmarked that site now. All the recipes I found called for sugar and pickling spice, whatever that is.

CJhaughey

Ballymaloe have a good recipe for pickled cukes.
Its sweetish though but thats the advantage of doing it yourself, you can adjust for your own taste.
MYRTLE ALLEN’s QUICK CUCUMBER PICKLE

• 900 g cucumber, thinly sliced unpeeled
• 3 small onions, thinly sliced
• 350 g sugar
• 1 tbsp salt
• 225 ml cider vinegar, or white wine vinegar

Combine cucumber and onion slices in a large bowl. Mix sugar, salt and vinegar and pour over the cucumbers and onions. Cover the bowl and refrigerate. The pickle will be ready to eat in an hour, it will keep more than a week in the refrigerator, but will soon lose its green color.

the beer revolu

I pickle lots of stuff.
I bring the vinegar, sugar and salt to the boil and pour over the vegetables. I reckon it keeps better this way as the vegetables are kinda sterilised but they don't get cooked.

I've done chillies, ginger, cucumber, radish, cucumber, beetroot and garlic this way with good results. I also resuse the pickling liquid a couple of times.

katydid

kylith wrote: »

Thanks so much! I've bookmarked that site now. All the recipes I found called for sugar and pickling spice, whatever that is.

You can get a packed of pickling spice in Julian Graves, but it's basically just a mixture of stuff like mustard seeds, coriander etc. But really you can make up a mix with any spices you have yourself.

My husband makes pickled gherkins all the time - he's German, and knows his gherkins. He just uses a basic recipe, and they always turn out nice.

Tabitharose

Only starting off pickling too, pickling spice is also available in Avoca, and The Gourmet Shop in Rathgar, did a cooking club class last week, learned to make sauerkraut & apple cider vinegar, which has set me off looking at pickling cucumber, and making blackberry vinegar, as well as attempting apple cider vinegar

katydid

Tabitharose wrote: »

Only starting off pickling too, pickling spice is also available in Avoca, and The Gourmet Shop in Rathgar, did a cooking club class last week, learned to make sauerkraut & apple cider vinegar, which has set me off looking at pickling cucumber, and making blackberry vinegar, as well as attempting apple cider vinegar

Raspberry vinegar is very easy to make too, and great on salads or in savoury dishes

Tabitharose

katydid wrote: »

Raspberry vinegar is very easy to make too, and great on salads or in savoury dishes

Yes - strawberry vinegar too this is the first year in the last few years that I haven't made both, just sticking to the blackberry one this year

yannakis

I've been keeping these videos in my bookmarks for a while, but didn't get the chance to try them yet
https://youtu.be/hQgYj6y0IBg
https://youtu.be/0yOA1WnlpWY