Cucumbers are in season and it’s time to make pickles!
Vinegar is a key flavor component in home-preserved pickles, salsa and other acidified foods and is critical for food safety too. Research-tested recipes specify vinegar with 5% acidity. For example, a USDA tested family favorite recipe for Bread and Buter Pickles includes cucumbers and onions in a brine of vinegar (5 percent) and sugar, along with spices. Be sure to read the label to ensure that it states the vinegar you are using is in fact vinegar with 5% acidity. Most vinegars will say they are diluted with water to a certain percentage.
Why is the acidity of vinegar important?
If you choose vinegar with 4% or lower acidity, it may not be strong enough to safely preserve food. White and cider vinegars acceptable for home preserving are standardized to 5% acidity. But, increasingly, store brands of vinegar have 4% acidity. Be sure to read the label!
What about other types of vinegar?
Wine vinegars with 3 – 6% acidity should not be used in home preserving; safe recipes have not been developed. Other types of vinegars may have 6% acidity, or higher, but these vinegars are intended as household cleaners and should not be used in cooking or preserving. Vinegar plays a critical role in safe home canning. Together with heat processing, the amount and type of vinegar are critical for controlling harmful pathogens.
Sources of research-based recipes
Recipes from the National Center for Home Food Preservation and Extension sources have both been research-tested to ensure both safety and quality.
UW-Madison Division of Extension offers the booklet titles “Homemade Pickels and Relishes” in the Wisconsin Safe Food Preservation Series. It is available to download for free at www.learningstore.extension.wisc.edu or you may request a copy by calling the UW-Extension office at 715-478- 2212.
Bread-and-Butter Pickles
6 lbs of 4- to 5-inch pickling cucumbers
8 cups thinly sliced onions (about 3 pounds)
1/2 cup canning or pickling salt
4 cups vinegar (5 percent)
4-1/2 cups sugar
2 tbsp mustard seed
1-1/2 tbsp celery seed
1 tbsp ground turmeric
1 cup pickling lime (optional- for use in variation below for making firmer pickles)
Yield: About 8 pints
Procedure: Wash cucumbers. Cut 1/16-inch off blossom end and discard. Cut into 3/16-inch slices. Combine cucumbers and onions in a large bowl. Add salt. Cover with 2 inches crushed or cubed ice. Refrigerate 3 to 4 hours, adding more ice as needed.
Combine remaining ingredients in a large pot. Boil 10 minutes. Drain and add cucumbers and onions and slowly reheat to boiling. Fill jars with slices and cooking syrup, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Adjust lids and process according to the recommendations in for more information see Table 1 or use low-temperature pasteurization treatment. The following treatment results in a better product texture but must be carefully managed to avoid possible spoilage. Place jars in a canner filled half way with warm (120º to 140ºF) water. Then, add hot water to a level 1 inch above jars. Heat the water enough to maintain 180 to 185ºF water temperature for 30 minutes for pint or quart jars. Check with a candy or jelly thermometer to be certain that the water temperature is at least 180ºF during the entire 30 minutes. Temperatures higher than 185ºF may cause unnecessary softening of pickles.
Variation for firmer pickles: Wash cucumbers. Cut 1/16-inch off blossom end and discard. Cut into 3/16-inch slices. Mix 1 cup pickling lime and 1/2 cup salt to 1 gallon water in a 2- to 3-gallon crock or enamelware container. Avoid inhaling lime dust while mixing the lime-water solution. Soak cucumber slices in lime water for 12 to 24 hours, stirring occasionally. Remove from lime solution, rinse, and resoak 1 hour in fresh cold water. Repeat the rinsing and soaking steps two more times. Handle carefully, as slices will be brittle. Drain well. With this option, the onions are not limed.
Storage: After processing and cooling, jars should be stored 4 to 5 weeks to develop ideal flavor.
Variation: Squash bread-and-butter pickles. Substitute slender (1 to 1-1/2 inches in diameter) zucchini or yellow summer squash for cucumbers. Do not use the liming variation.
For more information and tips for pickling, please visit https://forest.extension.wisc.edu/.
