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Dill Pickles

This recipe guides you through traditional lacto-fermentation to make crisp, sour dill pickles. Cucumbers are packed with spices in a crock, submerged in a salt brine, and allowed to ferment at room temperature for about a week before being refrigerated to slow the process and store.
Print Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Course lunch/dinner
Cuisine Mediterranean
Servings 3 people
Calories 281.7 kcal

Equipment

  • 1 1-Gallon Crock Food-grade fermentation vessel
  • 1 Pitcher For mixing brine
  • 1 1-Gallon Ziptop Bag For weighting pickles
  • 1 Measuring Cups and Spoons
  • 1 Knife or Scissors For trimming cucumber ends

Ingredients
  

Main

  • 5 1/2 ounces pickling salt approximately 1/2 cup
  • 1 gallon filtered water
  • 3 pounds pickling cucumbers 4 to 6-inches long
  • 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
  • 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
  • 2 cloves garlic crushed
  • 1 teaspoon dill seed
  • 1 large bunch dill

Instructions
 

  • Combine the salt and water in a pitcher and stir until the salt has dissolved.
  • Rinse the cucumbers thoroughly and snip off the blossom end stem. Set aside.
  • Place the peppercorns, pepper flakes, garlic, dill seed and fresh dill into a 1-gallon crock. Add the cucumbers to the crock on top of the aromatics. Pour the brine mixture over the cucumbers in order to completely cover. Pour the remaining water into a 1-gallon ziptop plastic bag and seal. Place the bag on top of the pickles making sure that all of them are completely submerged in the brine. Set in a cool, dry place.
  • Check the crock after 3 days. Fermentation has begun if you see bubbles rising to the top of the crock. After this, check the crock daily and skim off any scum that forms. If scum forms on the plastic bag, rinse it off and return to the top of the crock.
  • The fermentation is complete when the pickles taste sour and the bubbles have stopped rising; this should take approximately 6 to 7 days. Once this happens, cover the crock loosely and place in the refrigerator for 3 days, skimming daily or as needed. Store for up to 2 months in the refrigerator, skimming as needed. If the pickles should become soft or begin to take on an off odor, this is a sign of spoilage and they should be discarded.

Notes

Use pickling salt which is free of anti-caking agents and iodine, as these can affect fermentation. Filtered water is essential; chlorine can inhibit beneficial bacteria needed for fermentation. Always ensure cucumbers remain fully submerged under the brine using the weight bag to prevent mold growth. Skimming off the harmless white scum daily is part of the natural fermentation process. The duration of fermentation can vary based on ambient temperature; warmer conditions speed it up, cooler ones slow it down. Use fresh, firm pickling cucumbers for best results.