Half Sour Pickles Deli Style Recipes

DELI PICKLES - HALF SOURS

Steps:

• Wash cucumbers. Remove blossom ends carefully to remove soil.
• Place cucumbers in large crock. Distribute the dill heads evenly. Make a brine of the remaining items and add to the cucumbers. Covr with a heavy plate and weigh down with a glass jar filled with water.
• Store at moderate room temperature (70 to 75 degrees F). If scum forms, remove it daily. Pickles may be eaten after third day, but to be at their best pickles need a one week fermentaion. After one week, pack the.
• pickles into clean jars and refrigerate to halt fermentation. These pickles must be kept in the refrigerator.

HALF-SOUR PICKLES (QUICK, SMALL-BATCH)

Steps:

• Gently scrub the cucumbers under running water to remove dirt and any particularly prominent spines on the nubs. Drain. Trim a thin slice from the blossom end and pack the cukes into a one-quart non-reactive container, such as glass or food-grade plastic. You may cut then into halves, slices, or spears if desired.
• Stir the salt and water until the salt dissolves. Add the aromatic/seasoning ingredients to the container with the cucumbers. Put the container on a plate to contain any possible dripping once fermentation begins.
• Pour in enough brine to cover the cucumbers. Push a sandwich-sized Ziploc bag into the container's aperture, fill it with the remaining brine, and seal the bag. The brine-filled bag serves to weigh down the pickles so they remain submerged and seals off the top of the jar while still allowing bubbles to escape. It is filled with brine instead of water, so any possible leakage will not dilute your solution. Cover with cheesecloth and secure it with a rubber band to keep out fruit flies or other flying little beasties you may discover are drawn to this stuff.
• After a few days, the brine may begin giving off tiny bubbles. Keep an eye on it and skim off any white foam that rises to the surface, giving the bag a rinse if necessary. The cucumbers will begin turning darker and to taste, well, brined after just two days. Let them go for a week and they should turn olive green throughout. Remove the bag, skim any new foam, close container fast, and put in the fridge.

HALF SOUR PICKLES DELI STYLE

Steps:

• 1. Wash the cucumbers well and place in a wide mouth container. I have a little stock pot, about 8 inches across and 10 inches deep that's my go to. You need to be able to weigh the cucumbers down so they don't float, I use a saucer.
• 2. Add the garlic and peppercorns to the container. NOTE - it's not traditional, but some like to add a teaspoon of picking spices, or a sprig of fresh dill.
• 3. Mix the water and salt and stir until dissolved.
• 4. Pour over the cucumbers. If they are not covered make more salt water with the same proportion of salt to water.
• 5. Weigh down the cucumbers so they are not floating. If exposed to air they will rot.
• 6. Partially cover and let sit on the counter for 3 days. You'll see little bubbles starting to form. This means they are fermented and ready. Chill and enjoy!