Lola Rugula

The last of my cucumber plants got pulled up last week and, though I’m sad to see summer end, I have to admit that this year’s cucumber harvest was a bit overwhelming. I added diced cucumber to salsa (delicious) and threw together quick cucumber salad (sliced cukes and onions mixed with seasoned rice vinegar and marinated for a couple of days, stirring twice a day). I made our favorite salad – tomato wedges, sliced red onion and fennel, and cucumber chunks drizzled with unseasoned rice vinegar and sprinkled with salt and pepper – super refreshing in the summer and everything’s picked right from our garden except the red onion. I made my Salmon, Cucumber and Dill Bites more times than I can count (not that I’m complaining because they’re seriously delicious).

While all of these were great ways to use and enjoy my cucumber bounty, they weren’t nearly enough to use them all up. I’ve tried canning pickles but the only ones I truly like canned are bread and butter pickles; dill pickles just shouldn’t be cooked in my opinion. In summers past, I made at least a couple of batches of my fermented half-sour dill pickles but this year I decided to try and perfect an easy recipe for refrigerator dill pickles. I also decided the perfect recipe would be a refrigerator-pickle-by-the-jar recipe, so I could easily make them without waiting to have a certain amount of cucumbers on hand. Also, I may have mentioned how we have dill that shows up every year, so this is also a great way to use some of that while I’m at it. I finally nailed down a quick and easy recipe…give these babies a try. The cucumbers retain a nice crunch and the flavor is fantastic.

Quick and Easy Refrigerator Dill Pickles Recipe (by the quart jar)

Per Jar:

• 1 tablespoon canning salt
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 4-5 black peppercorns
• 3 heads fresh dill
• 1 tablespoon fresh dill weed
• 1/2 jalapeno, sliced (for hot refrigerator pickles, optional – adjust amount to taste or omit)
• 3-4 medium cucumbers, preferably the pickling variety, quartered lengthwise – make sure you remove the stem end and discard beforehand. (you’ll need more if smaller cukes and fewer if they’re on the large side)
• White vinegar (approximately 3/4-1 cup)
• Water

Place salt, garlic, peppercorns, dill, and jalapeno (if adding) in the jar. Add about 1/4 cup hot water, seal jar tightly with lid and shake vigorously from side to side for a minute or so. This not only helps the salt dissolve but also wilts and bruises the garlic, dill, and pepper, releasing some of their flavors into the brine. Remove the lid, add 1/4 cup of vinegar and then pile in your sliced cucumbers,  packing them in as tightly as possible. I find it easiest to hold the jar sideways and stack them in that way. Once you think you’ve packed as many in as you can, set the jar on the counter and push in a few more.

Now just top off the remaining airspace with 50% vinegar and 50% water, filling the jar as closely to the rim as possible. Wipe rim clean and seal tightly with lid. Give the jar a few shakes and then refrigerate for at least 1 week.

Yum!

Another beautiful aspect of this recipe is that you don’t have to cook a brine like a lot of refrigerator pickle recipes call for – the hot tap water is just enough to dissolve the salt and warm the herbs and spices.

If you like your pickles a little sweet, just add a little sugar when you add the salt. Also, play with the heat by adding more or different kinds of hot peppers, or add none at all. Remember, don’t be afraid to play with your food!