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Pickled Cucumbers

Well, the seasons have officially changed! The sun is coming up later each day, and although it isn’t cold yet, there is a chill in the air in the morning and evening. In the garden, the vegetables are ripening quickly and although not all our crops were a success, we have more than enough fruit and vegetables to be dealing with.

We’ve made about 40 jars of tomato passata, ready to be used in sauces and curries until next summer, and lots of plum jam. In the dehydrator, we’ve had apples and plums drying ready to be snacked upon by hungry children.  Still to be done is some jars of pickled garlic, and possibly a little more jam.

On Sunday I tackled the pickled cucumbers. They are a favourite around these parts, and there was not a single jar left in the pantry – a dire situation indeed. Our cucumber crop was pretty dismal this year, and I wasn’t sure that we were going to be able to make any pickles at all. I was contemplating buying some cucumbers to alleviate our pickle shortage, but on Saturday, CB bought in a couple of kilograms of cucumbers in from the garden and I knew what my weekend job would be. So on Sunday afternoon, with the help of our small chap, we made pickled cucumbers. A perfect way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

The closest thing I can liken these to is the pickles at Mcdonalds, except these ones are a million times more delicious. They are crisp on the edges and sweet, salty, and sour all at once. I often have them on crackers with cheese, or on a sambo with leftover roast meat – delicious.

Pickled Cucumbers
 
Print
Prep time
30 mins
Cook time
10 mins
Total time
40 mins
 
Author: Jo @ Country Life Experiment
Ingredients
  • 2kg continental cucumber
  • ¼ c salt
  • 500ml white wine vinegar
  • 500ml water
  • 1½c sugar
  • ¼ t cayenne pepper
  • 2t yellow mustard seeds
  • 2T peppercorns
  • 1 cup dill fronds
Method
  1. Thinly slice the cucumbers - I use a mandoline slicer to get them super thin.
  2. In a saucepan combine the salt, vinegar, water, sugar, cayenne pepper, and mustard seeds. Bring to the boil and stir to allow the sugar and salt to dissolve.
  3. Pack the cucumber into sterilised jars. Layer pinches of dill fronds and peppercorns throughout the cucumber. Make sure you pack the cucumber in quite firmly.
  4. Pour the hot vinegar mixture slowly into the jar, allowing the mixture to seep in between the layers. Tap the jars to help any air bubble escape.
  5. Place the lid on the jar while the mixture is still hot, and allow to cool. Sealing the mixture while hot is very important to preserve the pickles.
  6. Sit the pickles on a shelf for at least a week before opening to allow the flavours to infuse.
3.5.3229

This quantity made us eight smallish jars – not enough for an entire year, but a good start. Fingers crossed we get a few more cucumbers off the plant before the frosts hit, so I can make enough pickles to last us until next year.

If you want some hints on how to effectively clean and sterilise jars, check out this post of mine. There are lots of other preserving recipes found hereP as well.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Lauraine Jean Dick says

    November 13, 2020 at 9:00 pm

    can you use normally white vinegar instead of white wine as i cant use anything with wine in it

    Reply
  2. Elizabeth says

    June 11, 2020 at 4:40 pm

    Hello a does t mean teaspoon or tablespoon? And does capital T mean the same?
    Thanks

    Reply
    • Jacibee says

      September 4, 2020 at 8:19 pm

      How much is 1c

      Reply
      • Jo@CountryLifeExperiment says

        September 12, 2020 at 3:51 pm

        I cup is 250ml

        Reply
  3. Robert Booth says

    February 28, 2020 at 2:21 pm

    Hi Jo, love the pickled cucumber recipe. However, I’m finding that they are starting to effervesce after about 6 weeks in the pantry! Still taste and smell fine but I’m concerned. Have you any thoughts? Maybe yeast growth?

    Reply
    • Jo@CountryLifeExperiment says

      April 14, 2020 at 11:19 am

      Hi Robert – not sure why that is happening??? My guess is that there was some air trapped in the jar, or the hot fill was not hot enough?

      Reply
      • bobdebmol says

        April 29, 2020 at 1:45 pm

        Thanks for the reply Jo. Hot fill might have been not quite hot enough, I did have to make a bit extra at the last minute. Still taste fine, just have to watch when opening them. How long have you kept your before consuming?

        Reply
        • Jo@CountryLifeExperiment says

          June 6, 2020 at 12:59 pm

          I leave them a week or so… they go fairly quickly once they opened around here!

          Reply
  4. Jim McKenna says

    March 12, 2018 at 8:28 pm

    Hi Jo, would this work for grins. All the best,Jim.

    Reply
    • Jim McKenna says

      March 12, 2018 at 8:30 pm

      I should read gurkins. Sorry Jo. Auto spelling.

      Reply
      • Jo@CountryLifeExperiment says

        March 12, 2018 at 8:33 pm

        yes – gherkins are really just small whole pickled cucumbers.

        Reply
  5. Elisha says

    March 12, 2018 at 8:59 am

    A nice easy recipe here! Do these keep for a while I the pantry or fridge? Unfort we didn’t get lots of cucumbers like last year but I’ll file this one away.

    Reply
    • Jo@CountryLifeExperiment says

      March 12, 2018 at 9:56 am

      They last on the shelf for years. Once open refrigerator

      Reply

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Hi, I’m Jo

I'm a city girl turned farmer's wife, school teacher, ideas woman, and mum to three country kids. Country Life Experiment is all about simple country living, growing and making our own food, and life on our family farm in rural Australia. Join me as I give country living a try. Read more...
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Summer holidays seem a million years ago already. Summer holidays seem a million years ago already. It’s all systems go here as we try to get our rhythm going. School and work are busy, community events are coming back, and our harvest is in full swing. It’s a lot to manage. No matter how busy we are, I’ve been prioritising my evening walk. Sometimes C or the kids come with me and we talk and make plans, and sometimes I go alone, with a podcast for company. Either way, the golden hour is always breathtakingly beautiful and I snap way too many pics. None of them ever fully capture the magic, but I can’t help myself. I mean look!!! 😍
The kids have been wanting to build a raft for the The kids have been wanting to build a raft for the dam for a while. They collected some old barrels and pallets, and got some rope to lash it all together. This morning they put it together and floated it out into the middle of the dam. Plenty of magical days to be had playing on the dam ahead of us!
The orchard doesn’t stop. We’re getting basket The orchard doesn’t stop. We’re getting baskets and baskets of fruit each day and I’m running out of things to do with it all. I’ve taken quite a few to work to give away. I’ve made jams and pastes and chutney. I’ve cooked and frozen apricots and nectarines for fruit crumble this winter and dehydrated plums and apples for lunch boxes. The pantry and freezer are filling up.
I woke up yesterday and it was raining - a perfect I woke up yesterday and it was raining - a perfect time to deep clean. I dusted, de-cobwebbed, sorted, wiped, scrubbed, vacuumed and washed. Of course it will stay this way for 34 seconds, but it’s nice while it lasts.
We’re slowly (verrry slowly) getting back into t We’re slowly (verrry slowly) getting back into the swing of school and work. I think C might secretly be glad we’re leaving him each day so he can get through the many jobs that he always has at this time of year. He’s fencing and slashing thistles and drenching the lambs and a thousand other things that need to be done to keep the farm ticking over. In the evenings he often joins me on my walk and we talk about our plans for the garden and farm. We’ve had a lot of rain over the past few days and the air is so clear and the evening light is amazing. I keep stopping to take photos.
Late summer harvest is coming in. I’ve got tomat Late summer harvest is coming in. I’ve got tomatoes, stone fruit, corn, and even early apples sitting on my bench needing to be dealt with. I’ve got a big pot of tomato passata on the stove (I need to make at least 50 jars this year) and I went through our jams and pickles and made a list of what I need to make this year. Next week I will get out the dehydrator and start drying fruit for snacks and muesli. It’s all systems go!

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Hi, I’m Jo

City girl turned farmer's wife, school teacher, ideas woman, and mum to three country kids. Country Life Experiment is all about simple country living, growing and making our own food, and life on our family farm in rural Australia. Join me as I give country living a try. Read more...
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