Easy Fermented Pickles

Prep Time:

20 Minutes

Cook Time:

5 -7 Days

Serves:

10 Servings

Level:

Intermediate

About the Recipe

This recipe makes lacto-fermented dill and garlic pickles that last ages and are so full of flavour.

Ingredients

4 tablespoons sea salt6 cups chlorine-free water

5 or 6 grape, oak, horseradish, or bay leaves

8 cloves of garlic

2 large heads of fresh or dried dill (or 1 heaping tablespoon dill seeds)

1 teaspoon black peppercorns

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional

Enough small cucumbers to fill a half-gallon jar (about a pound)

Round stone to use as a weight that fits in the jar or a fermenting lid kit½ gallon glass canning jar or 2 wide mouth quart glass canning jars (instructions below are for using a ½ gallon jar, if you use 2 quart jars then split the ingredients equally between the two jars)

Preparation

Make a brine by adding the sea salt to the water and stirring to combine. Stir until the salt dissolves into the water.
Add 2 of the leaves to the bottom of the clean glass jar.
Add half of the garlic, half of the dill, half of the peppercorns, half of the mustard seeds, and half the red pepper flakes (if using), to the bottom of the jar.
Add half of the cucumbers to the jar. I like to pack them in nicely but not so tightly that they are going to bruise each other.
Add 2 leaves on top of the cucumbers.
Add the second half of the garlic, dill, peppercorns, mustard seeds, and red pepper flakes (if using) to the ½ gallon jar.
Add the remaining half of the cucumbers to the ½ gallon jar.
Fill the jar with brine so that it covers the cucumbers and comes about an inch from the top of the jar.
Add the last leaf to the top of the jar and press it down and around the cucumbers so that it helps to cover them in the brine.
Wash your stone well and place it on top of the leaf. The purpose is to help weigh down the cucumbers and leaf so that all of the cucumbers, leaf, and rock are kept under the brine. You can also use a brining cap for your jar. I have a Kraut Source lid and love it. If you use a rock make sure that it is fully submersed or it will grow mold.
If you are using a stone, cover the top of the jar with a cloth and screw or tie something around the cloth (like a canning ring or a rubber band) to keep the cloth in place. This will help to prevent flies and dust from getting in your pickles.
Place the prepared cucumbers in an out-of-the-way place, out of direct light.
After a few days the brine will get a little cloudy and you’ll see a few bubbles starting to form on or around things in the jar. This is a great sign that the cucumbers are turning into pickles.
Taste your pickles after 5-10 days. If you’d like them more sour continue letting them sit for up to 4 weeks, tasting as you go along, until desired sourness is achieved. Once the pickles taste to your liking place them covered in your fridge or in cold storage for long term storage. They can stay in your fridge for up to a year.