Easy traditional recipe for canning pickled dill cucumbers
Our canning recipe guides you in making classic pickled dill cucumbers full of flavor and crunch. Often referred to as Russian pickles, these dill pickles are ubiquitous all over Eastern Europe.
Equipment
- large pot with a heavy bottom
- measuring cup and measuring spoons
- potholders, oven mitts, trivets for hot dishes
- ladle or funnel
Ingredients
- Pickling Cucumbers: 3 pounds 2.5 kg
- *Note: The required amount of marinade (brine) is determined by the number of 32 oz. 1-liter Mason jars used, not the weight of the cucumbers. We made 2 liters of brine for this recipe. (see 'Yeild' below)
Pickling Brine ingredients (per one liter):
- 1 liter 32 oz. water for each 1-liter (32 oz.) jar
- 1 tbsp. pickling salt per 1-liter (32 oz.) jar
- 1 tbsp sugar per 1-liter (32 oz.) jar
- 1 tbsp 7% Pickling vinegar per 1-liter (32 oz.) jar
- 2 garlic cloves per 1-liter (32 oz.) jar
- 1 dill head per 1-liter (32 oz.) jar
- 1 bay leaf per 1-liter (32 oz.) jar
- 6 whole black peppercorns per 1-liter (32 oz.) jar
- 2 slices of horseradish root per 1-liter (32 oz.) jar (optional but highly recommended)
Instructions
- Begin by washing the cucumbers and soaking them in cold water for 2 to 5 hours. Then drain and trim the cucumber tail ends.
- Ensure the mason jars are clean and properly sterilized before starting to pack cucumbers into them.
- Pack the cucumbers tightly into sterilized, cooled jars. Aim to minimize empty space. If necessary, slice cucumbers into halves or quarters. Add dill heads, or you can place them at the bottom or between the cucumbers. Slice garlic cloves into halves or quarters, adding 2 cloves to a 32 oz. jar or 1 clove to a 16 oz. jar. Include peppercorns, bay leaves, and optionally sliced horseradish root. Leave head space at the top of the jars.
- Measure out 1 part cold, clean water for each 1-liter (32 oz.) jar filled with cucumbers. Pour measured out water into a pot and add the measured out salt and sugar.
- Bring water to a boil and continue boiling until the sugar and salt are fully dissolved, about 5 minutes. Just before turning off the heat, add the pickling vinegar. Immediately turn off the heat; this is your pickling marinade, also known as brine.
- Carefully pour the brine into the jars with the pickles, leaving ½-inch headspace. Cover with the lids right away and securely tighten the lid bands.
- The pickles are now ready to be processed in a hot water bath or atmospheric steam canners.
Notes
Depending on the size of cucumbers used and whether you want to slice larger cucumbers or keep them intact, you may end up using either two 1-liter (32 oz.) Mason jars or one 1-liter (32 oz.) Mason jar paired with one half-liter (16 oz.) Mason jar to fit the weight of cucumbers specified in this recipe.
The required amount of marinade is determined by the number of 32 oz. (1-liter) Mason jars used, not the weight of the cucumbers. This is because a pound of cucumbers that are large in size will require more space in your jars than a pound of cucumber that are small.