Recipe - Fermented Or Brined Pickles

10 Percent brine solution made
by dissolving 1 cup salt in
2 quarts

"Pickle making begins with the brine and to make carelessly or to maintain
carelessly a brine is the reason for most of the soft and unfit pickles.

Remember these key points; Use clean stone or glass jars; use only a
recommended pickling variety of cucumbers; use only canning and pickling
salt; and do not use hard water. Pickles must be placed in a brine and
fermented for approximately 6 weeks before the addition of the final and
last brine."

1. Wash cucumbers carefully. Use only freshly harvested, slightly immature
pickling variety. 2. Weigh cucumbers. Put in a clean pickling container and
cover with a water. (Cucumbers may be added during the first day or two of
curing process if enough brine is added to cover them and if salt is added
in definite amounts to maintain a 10% brine. 3. Weight cucumbers under
brine 4. Store in a cool dark place. 5. Next day, add 1 cup salt for each 5
pounds of cucumbers. This is necessary to maintain a 10% brine solution.
Salt must be added on top of plate or clean cloth (and not directly on the
cucumbers) for even distribution throughout the brine. 6. Remove scum when
it forms on top of brine. The scum will destroy the acidity of the brine
and result in spoilage of the product, if left on. 7. At the end of the
week, and for 4 or 5 succeeding weeks, add One fourth cup salt for each 5 pounds
of cucumbers. Add in the same manner as No.5. 8. Fermentation resulting in
bubble formation should continue about 4 weeks. Test for bubbles by tapping
container on the side with your hand. As a second test, cut a cucumber in
half; if it is the same color throughout and has no noticeable rings or
white spots, fermentation is complete. 9. Cucumbers may be kept in this 10%
brine solutionno additional salt is added after they are cureduntil
made into pickles. The best temperature for brining cucumbers is about 70
to 75.

From: Ball Blue Book Shared By: Pat Stockett

From Gemini's MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini