The GüdDish Fermented Pickles

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Fermented Pickles. The GüdDish.

Serves 1 half–gallon jar · 25–35 min prep · 70–85 min total · 4 steps

Ingredients

  • 4 garlic ground cloves
  • 4 cups non-chlorinated water
  • 2 lb pickling cucumbers
  • 1 bunch fresh dill heads or sprigs
  • 1 tsp mustard seeds
  • 1 tsp black peppercorns
  • 3 tbs kosher salt or pickling salt

Method

  1. 1

    Use fresh pickling cucumbers. Rinse well and pack upright into a clean half-gallon jar with garlic, dill, and peppercorns. A grape leaf helps keep them crisp if you have one.

    4garlic ground cloves
    2lbspickling cucumbers
    1fresh dill heads or sprigs
    1tspblack peppercorns
    3tbskosher salt or pickling salt
    1tspmustard seeds
  2. 2

    Dissolve salt in non-chlorinated water to make a brine (about 3 tablespoons salt per 4 cups water is a common starting point). Pour brine over the cucumbers so they stay fully submerged. Weight them down if needed.

    4cnon-chlorinated water
  3. 3

    Ferment at cool room temperature out of direct sun. Taste after a few days; half-sours are usually ready sooner, full sours take longer (often 5 to 14 days depending on temperature). If the lid is tight, burp the jar daily to release gas. When the sourness is right, move the jar to the refrigerator to slow fermentation.

  4. 4

    This is a salt brine ferment, not a hot fridge pickle. Once they taste right, keep them cold so the sour does not run away from you.