A lot of people associate the word pickles with cucumber pickles. And that is what we are discussing today. I have also used the same recipe for jalapenos as well and it’s wonderful. Bread and butter pickles are different from dill pickles in the sense that they are a sweet along with sour. You need to start with buying some pickling cucumbers also known as Kirby. They’re smaller than salad cucumber. You should find them in your local market or at the farmers market in the summer months.

These pickles will stay good in the refrigerator for up to 3 months beyond that they don’t last around in our house, so I don’t know. But if you can them, they last much longer in the pantry.

These pickles are fantastic and ready to eat right away. Just makes sure that the pickles are under the pickling liquid, they do tend to float up. When storing pickles in the pantry, turn the jar upside down, so that the top pickles are soaking in the brine

ACTIVE TIME- 1 hour

Yields –  2 Jars (32 oz)

INGREDIENTS

• 1 kg pickling cucumbers, cut into chips/discs
• 1/4 cup pickling salt/sea salt /pink Himalayan salt
• 500 gms white onions, thinly sliced
• 1 cup white distilled vinegar (5% acidity)
• 11/4 cups apple cider vinegar (5% acidity)
• 2 1/4 cups sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 tablespoon yellow mustard seeds
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 3/4 teaspoon celery seeds
• 1 bay leaf
• 6 allspice berries
• 8 whole cloves of garlic cut in discs
• 2 trays of ice

 INSTRUCTIONS

1. Rinse the cucumbers very well to make sure there is no dirt stuck to the skin. Trim the edges and slice the cucumber in like chips about 1/4-inch thickness. Place in a very large bowl.
2. Slice the onions and add to the same bowl.
3. Sprinkle chemical free salt of your choice on top of the cucumber and onion. Use your hands to rub the salt in. Stir to make sure the cucumber and onions are evenly coated with salt.
4. Cover the salted cucumber and onions with a clean, thin tea towel. Add a good layer of ice on top of the tea towel.
5. Put the bowl covered with ice in the refrigerator and let it chill up to 4 hours. This helps to crisp up the cucumbers.
6. After chilling, discard the ice and rise the cucumber and onions thoroughly, then drain. Repeat the rinsing and draining once again.
7. Make the pickling syrup in a stainless-steel pot. Place the vinegars, sugar, garlic cloves cut into discs and the pickling spices. Stir occasionally to make sure the sugar dissolves.
8. Bring to a boil. Once the sugar has dissolved, add the sliced cucumbers and onions. Bring to a brief boil, this step also helps to keep the cucumbers crisp. Just don’t cook them too much.
9. Use a slotted spoon to carefully start packing the clean jars with the cucumber
10. If you are planning to can your jars to keep them in the pantry you can follow canning steps and put your jars in a hot water bath on a rack before filling it with the cucumbers.
11. When filling the jars with cucumbers and onions pack it to the top leaving only 1 inch space on top.
12. Add the hot pickling syrup on top of the cucumbers and onions carefully leaving ½ inch from the top rim of the jar. Make sure that the cucumbers are below the liquid.
13. Wipe the rim clean before securing the lids on the jar. Repeat with the remaining jars.
14. If you are canning the pickles, process the filled jars in hot water bath.
15. Let the jars cool down to room temperature.
16. If you are not canning transfer the cooled jars in the refrigerator. Canned jars should make a popping sound and that is how you know they have been processed well. The pickles can be eaten as soon as 24 hours- but they of course taste better if you let them sit for a week.
17. Canned jars can be stored in a cool dark place for up to a year but once you open a jar you should transfer it to the fridge where they last up to 3 months.