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Refrigerator Dill Pickles

Can we talk for a few minutes about pickles? Dill pickles, that is. Many people that I know love anything pickled, but I’m not one of them. I like pickled beets well enough, but I love dill pickles!! Years ago I remember helping my mother make pickles and it seemed like a lot of work. I know there was some cooking involved, the hot vinegar bath, I think. And I remember those little round dill seeds and black peppercorns. It has always seemed lots easier to just buy the kind I like at the grocery store.

So I’m very proud of myself when I say I made refrigerator dill pickles, and they were so easy. Nothing at all like what I remember. This recipe is so ridiculously simple, I wonder why I never heard of it until just this year. I can’t believe I got these fantastically crisp and fresh pickles with only a few ingredients.

Refrigerator Dill Pickles.

You can use traditional cucumbers or pickling cucumbers for this–whatever you like. Some of the pickling cucumbers end up being quite fat and round, so I used regular cucumbers because I wanted long spears. If you have 10 minutes you can make these pickles. Just watch me!

REFRIGERATOR DILL PICKLES

Yield: about 3 – 4 16.oz. jars of pickles

About the jars: They can be any jars saved from other products and repurposed, just be sure they are really clean with no lingering odors. It’s wise to wash them in the dishwasher prior to using again.

Ingredients:

1 bunch fresh dill
4 cloves garlic, peeled
3 – 4 medium-large cucumbers, washed well
3 cups water
6 Tablespoons distilled white vinegar
3 Tablespoons kosher salt

Directions:

1. Add 1 minced or pressed clove of garlic and a few sprigs of dill to the bottom of each jar. Don’t stress over exact amounts. They will be great.

Place sprigs of dill in bottom of jars. Add a clove of garlic.

2. Cut the cucumbers into spears or whatever shape you like. Add the spears to the jars, packing in as many as you can without having to force them in.

Pack the jars with cucumbers.

3. In a large liquid measuring cup or pitcher, combine the water, vinegar, and salt. Stir well until the salt is dissolved. Pour the mixture into each jar over the cucumber spears so they are completely covered. Top with an additional few sprigs of dill, if desired.

Add vinegar brine, then more dill on top.

4. Screw on the lids of the jars. Repeat with remaining cucumbers, making additional brine as needed (it only take a few seconds.)

5. Refrigerate for two days. Enjoy! Continue to store in the refrigerator….presuming there are leftovers, of course.

Oh my gosh–these are fantastic. As soon as you finish one your mouth wants another. We couldn’t stop eating them. Mr. D. says they are better than “real pickles”. What ever that means, I think it’s a compliment.

A great sandwich deserves a great pickle!

I will be starting my next batch before the first batch is gone, because I won’t be able to wait the two days for a second batch to “cure”. Ya gotta plan ahead when you love something this much!!!

SOURCE: Adapted from Delicious Meliscious via Annie’s Eats

The new refrigerator. YEAH!

Going through this experience of living without a refrigerator for almost a week has generally been a good thing. It was a challenge on several levels. The biggest was how to keep my frozen foods frozen. That was solved with coolers where I put the frozen foods immediately, and packed bags of ice around it all. I was amazed that most everything was still icy after a total of 6 days. The few items that did thaw, I used right away.

Because I have an unheated room where it has been very cold, I was able to save and use most all of my produce and fruits. I made salads for my husband’s lunches each day with added in cold cuts and cheeses or cooked meats left over from meals. Other perishables such as milk, cream, butter, eggs, cheeses, all did well in the cold storage room. So I didn’t really loose anything.

Inside the door; lots of storage for bottles and jars.

The bad was the inconvenience of not having my food source right at hand in the kitchen. It was a nuisance ( and chilly) having to go into the cold room for everything, and usually forgetting something and having to go back! Another inconvenience was not doing any grocery shopping for over a week, so my choices of foods to work with was limited. But that was also a good thing because it forced me to be creative and look at how some ingredients might work together. In fact it was kind of fun to see what I could come up with for meals.

The ugly? There were a few forgotten items that became, how shall I say it, Black and Furry? You know what I mean. Only a couple things, though. So in all, we did pretty well

What I’ve learned: not to save small amounts of things and then forget about them; like a marinade. When I found it I didn’t remember what it was or what it was for. Don’t save tiny bits of stuff in big jars. The jars take up too much space for what’s in them, If there is too little to use up, toss it. And finally—test my creativity now and then by not going to the market so often and using up what I have before buying anything new. That’s a must!

Inside, lower section; a full width deli drawer, and two deep crisper drawers

Inside upper section.

Freezer main compartment with ice maker. Roomier than it looks! And a light inside.

Freezer door; two deep shelves.

As I was writing the draft for this post the delivery service arrived with my new refrigerator. Hurrah! I thought since you all “saw me through” this disruption in my life I would give you a first look at it. Thanks, everyone, for hanging in there with me.

Delicious on a Dollar

Devoted to the preparation of healthy & economical foods that taste fabulous!

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Refrigerator Dill Pickles

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