Canning Your Own Dill Pickles
Pickles aren’t just for pregnant women 🙂 Dill pickles are a great ‘condiment’ in my opinion. They go great on a veggie tray, a sandwich, in salads, or just to eat plain! Pickles are just another form of a veggie to introduce your kids to different flavors, and textures. This recipe makes a crunchy, tangy pickle with ingredients that you can pronounce all of the names of!
To make these pickles begin by slicing your cucumbers. You can use pickling cucumbers, but if you just have regular, those will work good too! I slice mine about 1/4 inch thick. Place your sliced cucumbers in a large bowl of ice water. Cover and put in the fridge overnight. This is what helps to make then super crunchy.
Once they have soaked in ice water, drain and then pack into your jars. If you haven’t ever canned at home before, this is a great Canning Basics to read through first.
Next you will combine vinegar, 2 Tbsp salt, sugar and 1 quart water in a pot. Add mixed pickling spices tied in a clean white cloth. Heat to boiling.
In each jar add 1 tsp mustard seed and 1 1/2 heads of fresh dill (for a pint jar). Pour your boiling liquid over the top leaving 1/2 inch headspace.
I found this awesome lid lifter on Amazon. Instead of putting them in your pot one at a time, and then getting them out one at a time, you can do them all at the SAME time! It has changed my world.
You will process your jars in a water bath according to this table:
| Process Time at Altitudes of | 0 – 1,000 ft | 1,001 – 6,000 ft | Above 6,000 ft | |
| Style of Pack | Jar Size | |||
| Raw | Pints | 10 mins | 15 mins | 20 mins |
| Quarts | 15 mins | 20 mins | 25 mins |
That is it! If you are like me and have a million cucumbers, this is a great way to preserve them. I always grow Armenian cucumbers which are super crunchy, and non-bitter no matter what size they grow to. They have a much lighter color than other cucumbers, and so turn a vibrant yellow when they are canned.
If these are properly canned, they will stay good for up to 1 year. Now that I can all my own pickles, it is hard for me to go back to eating store bought!
Products Used in this Post:
Canning Your Own Dill Pickles
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp canning or pickling salt
- 3 cups white vinegar 5 percent
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 quart water
- 1 tbsp whole mixed pickling spice
- about 1 1/2 tbsp whole mustard seed 1 tsp per pint jar
- about 7 heads of fresh dill (1½ heads per pint jar) or 2 ½ tbsp dill seed (1½ tsp per pint jar)
Instructions
- Rinse cucumbers and slice to 1/4 inch thick.
- Combine vinegar, 2 Tbsp salt, sugar and 1 quart water in a pot.
- Add mixed pickling spices tied in a clean white cloth. Heat to boiling.
- In each jar add 1 tsp mustard seed and 1 1/2 heads of fresh dill (for a pint jar).
- Pour your boiling liquid over the top of your cucumbers, leaving 1/2 inch headspace.
- Adjust lids for each jar.
- You will process your jars in a water bath according to this table:
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Natalie Monson
I'm a registered dietitian, mom of 4, avid lover of food and strong promoter of healthy habits. Here you will find lots of delicious recipes full of fruits and veggies, tips for getting your kids to eat better and become intuitive eaters and lots of resources for feeding your family.
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Is pickling spice the same as pickling salt?
This winter I want to get back into making Kombucha, Sauerkraut, and pickles. Yum!! Thanks for the recipe.
When I make pickles, or pickle jalapenos or okra or green beans, I don’t even mess with the water bath. I also don’t use pickling spices. WAY TOO MUCH SALT. I pack my jar full of crispy cukes (or whatever) and add smashed clove of garlic, fresh dill, a pinch of sea salt, a jalapeno (if you like them spicy like I do) etc. Then I boil the heck out of the vinegar, pour it into my jar and close the lid. 99% of the time it “pops” and make the seal tight. I have NEVER had an issue with a bad batch and they turn out so much crispier than when you do a water bath or pressure can them.
Emily, do you store them in the fridge or the cabinet after that?
Hi there, I like the recipe you`ve shared, and I thought that you may like this summer recipe, for not preserved pickled cucumbers, you can make in few minutes, and can last up to 2 or 3 weeks. fill up a jar with gherkins, or if you have bigger cucumbers, just cut them on their length in 2 or 4 pieces , you may add dill and few cloves of garlic if you wish, pour water to cover the cucumbers, add a slice of bread, and leave it in aside for couple of days till they pickle, then remove bread, and store in the fridge. they can last few weeks. Enjoy
Usually the cabinet, unless the either don’t “pop” or once they are opened of course. When I make my pickled green beans I have to BEG those who receive them to wait a month before eating them. Then they are normally gone within a day. lol
Could you make the dills from whole cucumbers about an inch/inch and a half around and four to five inches long?
Yes definitely!
No it is not the same. Pickling salt is actual salt that is used for canning because it does not make the liquid in your jars cloudy.
How soon are these ready to eat? Do they need a couple weeks or are they ready right away?
Generally you’ll want to wait at least a week for them to cure- you can eat them sooner, but the taste will improve the longer they sit. 🙂