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Kosher-Style Dill Pickles

Servings: 3 quarts

Ingredients

PICKLES

  • 15 medium cucumbers (just shy of 1.2 pounds per jar, after trimmed and sliced)

BRINE

  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup canning salt
  • 1 quart vinegar (half white vinegar and half apple cider vinegar)
  • 1 quart water

ADDITIONAL FLAVOR, PER QUART JAR

  • 1 t dried dill (and/or a dill seed head)
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1/2 hot red pepper
  • 1/2 t mustard seed
  • 1/4 t Pickle Fresh

Instructions

  • Sterilize your jars - Fill your water bath, and add the empty jars. Boil for 10 minutes to sterilize the jars. Add your tongs, ladle, and strainer to the boiling water to sterilize as well.
  • Prep the cucumbers - Place a large bowl on kitchen scales, set to measure in pounds. Wash each cucumber, trim the ends, cut into spears or slices, and add to the bowl. Set aside when you have just shy of 1.2 pounds. Repeat twice more, so that you have three piles of cucumber spears, equally apportioned.
  • Assemble the flavor elements - Set out 3 ramekins or small bowls. Add the dill, bay leaf, garlic, pepper, mustard seed, and Pickle Fresh to to each of the bowls. Set aside.
  • Make the brine - Combine the water, vinegars, salt and sugar in a medium saucepan. Stir over medium heat to dissolve the salt and sugar into the brine.
  • Pack the jars - Pour the flavor elements into the bottom of each jar, then pack the cucumbers into the jars. Ladle the brine into jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace.
  • Process - Process 15 minutes in a boiling water bath, measured from when the water returns to a boil after adding the jars. Let rest for 5 minutes off the heat before removing the jars from the water.