Tarragon Pickles Recipe for Canning
Tired of same old same old dill pickles? This tarragon pickles recipe for canning gives you an opportunity to step outside the box of dill pickles and try something new for your next pickling project.
Servings: 2 x 1-liter (32 oz.) jars.
Ingredients
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. 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.
- Pickling Cucumbers: 4 pounds 1.8 kg
- 1 liter 32 oz. Water, per 1-liter (32 oz.) jar
- 1 ¼ 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 large yellow onion
- 1 tarragon sprig per 1-liter (32 oz.) jar
- 3 whole timut peppercorns per 1-liter (32 oz.) jar (optional but highly recommended)
- 2 whole black peppercorns per 1-liter (32 oz.) jar
- 2 slices of horseradish root , about ½ -inch each per 1-liter (32 oz.) jar (optional but highly recommended)
Instructions
Prepare the Vegetables:
- Begin by washing the cucumbers, then soak them in cold water for 2 to 5 hours.
- After draining, trim the ends of the cucumbers.
- Wash and slice the onions into 1-inch (2.5 cm) wide rounds, cutting them in half or quarters as needed.
Sterilize the Jars:
- Make sure to clean and sterilize the jars before you start on this step
- Slice the garlic into thin pieces.
- Divide the sliced garlic, timut pepper, horseradish root, and tarragon equally between the jars, using less for smaller jars.
- Start by placing garlic, pepper, tarragon, and horseradish root at the bottom of the jars.
- Top with a slice or round yellow onion.
- Pack the cucumbers tightly into the jars. The goal is to minimize empty space. If necessary, cut the cucumbers into halves or quarters.
Prepare the Pickling Brine:
- Measure out 1 part (32 oz.) 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.
Final Steps:
- 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 canner