Being used to the Indian pickles, I was taken by complete surprise the first time I saw the pickled cucumbers in a big jar in the stores. We have bought it once from the store because my son wanted it and of course we had to be behind him to finish it. I had posted a version of cucumber pickle here and a few other pickles here.

During one of my recent conversations with my neighbor Rachel, she mentioned dill pickle and also showed me a big jar of the same. Dill is a herb that has a distinct flavor and I have used the dry seed for this salsa. By now, I am used to the vinegar taste in pickles and I immediately wanted to try it out. She also offered me some baby cucumbers from her garden and fresh dill. The baby cucumbers wilt very quick and I was all set to make the pickle the same day I got them from the garden.

Unlike our Indian pickles, these pickles require absolutely no time to make. Can you boil water? If so, you can make these. The color of the cucumbers started to change in a few minutes after I poured the hot liquid over them and the next day the bottle was empty. My son requested me to make a big jar of these pickles .

Depending on the quantity of the cucumbers, adjust the vinegar, water and salt. Onions, garlic and dill lent their flavors to this crunchy pickle and thanks Rachel for providing me with fresh vegetables from you garden and also for the recipe. Off to the recipe.

Dill seed looks like this. I have used it as a garnish in the picture.

Yummm .. can you feel the crunch?

I also pickled a big cucumber by slicing it. I love how the the onions gave a beautiful pink color. I felt these sliced ones had a much sharper flavor and I preferred the ones with the skin.

Refrigerator Dill Pickle

By Vardhini, September 2, 2012

Cucumbers pickled using vinegar, water, salt and alum.

• Total Time: 20 minutes
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook time: 10 minutes
• Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients:

• vinegar - 1 cup
• water - 2 cups
• salt - 1/4 cup - pickling salt preferred - I used regular salt
• alum - 1/8 tsp - to firm and crisp pickles - optional
• cucumber - I used 10 small and 1 large
• garlic - about 15 cloves
• onion - one small onion - sliced
• dill - few sprigs - II used the dill seed bunch that was still green

Instructions:

Take vinegar, water, salt and alum in a pot and bring to a boil.

Pack the vegetables and dill in a glass jar and pour the hot liquid over it. I have used the dill seed that was still green.

Refrigerate after it cools. It is ready to eat once it cools down.

My Notes

1. Alum is used to firm and crisp pickles. I also read that if the ingredients are fresh, then alum is not needed.
2. I packed bunches of dill seed along with the veggies, so it was easier to discard later.
3. The jar needs to be stored in refrigerator once cooled.

Pictorial

Aren’t the baby cucumbers looking cute? They were tasty and were gone in no time. Store the jar in refrigerator.

Enjoy!