Tag: harvest

I know Bread & Butter Cucumber pickles aren’t exciting when you’re in the middle of a cucumber glut in summer.

But imagine how exciting they’ll be for that sandwich or salad you’re making in winter. The satisfaction of having grown and preserved a fridge ingredient, yourself.

Today’s recipe is one I’ve been developing for years. I’ve been developing it for taste, ease and simplicity… not complexity. You’ll see it has very few ingredients, but it’s flavourful and reliable. That’s how I like it when I’m in a preserving glut in my kitchen.

This process is not hard after your first time. If you’re not a confident cook, this process can be a little challenging on the first go. So be willing to make mistakes or have someone who you can call or be there to help. Never leave this process unattended and keep all children safely out of the kitchen – it’s hot work!

Important Reminders:

Jar sterilisation, jar sealing and refrigeration of your pickles are all vital steps to avoid serious illness, (especially botulism) with any preserves.

When you’ve cooked these pickles, make sure you reduce only so far that there is still enough boiled pickle liquid to cover the contents in the jar. This is what submerges the pickle in the jar, hopefully locking out air and the vinegar preventing bacteria and/or mould forming.

The jar sealing pop is what you need to hear for the air lock. That’s why you seal and cap in the hot mixture, rather than leaving it to cool.

Only glass jars should be used to store these pickles, because of the vinegar content.

If you’re repurposing glass jars, ensure you have new lids which can reliably do the safety pop seal. If you don’t hear the pop you can’t be sure.

I leave these in the fridge for a week to let flavours develop, before opening the first jar.

Always refrigerate these pickles from the day they are bottled, till consumed, and finished.

If it looks and/or smells wrong when you open a preserve, or you know/ don’t know if it has been stored properly-don’t eat it!

Educate yourself on food safety.

I’m not sure how long these preserves will last in your home and in your fridge – so that, and your safety, are up to you.

This is a delicious pickle. But if it’s not for you, Google a recipe that suits.

If this recipe is for you, and you’d like to share it great…but an attribution to Trish McGill  @vintagetrishgarden on IG, or this website link for other platforms, would be kind, and good manners.

Hope you enjoy these as much as my family and I do. I’ve just heard the first jar lid pop. One down, two to go 💚 Trish

Recipe Ingredients:

Makes approximately 3 medium sized jars

• 5-6 large cucumbers sliced
• 2 large onions sliced
• 1TB Salt (for salt rub/ overnight soak)
• 1 Cup white vinegar
• 1/2 Cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 Cup raw sugar
• 2 tsp mustard seeds
• Large pinch ground turmeric

Method: Follow the method steps outlined below.

**

Stage 1 Salting the Cucumber and Onions Overnight (Allow 8-12 hours)

This is as important as any of the other stages in the recipe. Slice the cucumbers and onions as coarse or fine as you prefer. Rub the 1TB of salt from the recipe ingredients through the cucumbers and onions until all is thoroughly mixed. Store in a covered glass dish overnight in the fridge.

In the morning, drain the liquid that has formed from the salt cucumber and onion mix. You don’t need that liquid any more. Rinse the cucumber/onion mix quickly. Set the mix aside.

Stage 2:

Bring mustard seeds, vinegars, sugar and turmeric to the boil in a pot on the stovetop, stirring till combined well. Reduce heat to medium and add cucumber and onion mix. Stir thoroughly.

Stage 3:

Add the rinsed cucumber/onion mix and simmer on medium heat until the cucumber and onion goes completely soft and the pickle juice goes a little syrupy.

Stage 4:

Simmer till the pickle juice just covers the mixture

Stage 5:

Use tongs and kitchen gloves to transfer the still hot finished mixture, into the sterilised jars

Stage 6:

Cap with sterilised jar lids (still using kitchen gloves) while still hot. Listen for ‘pop’ seal…that could take a while. Let cool, then refrigerate. Enjoy!

© Trish McGill 2020

Disclaimer… Please do your own research for your own needs and context. The author assumes no responsibility for any outcomes of anyone using this well researched and documented blog post. Enjoy making your Bread & Butter Cucumber Pickles.