Dill Pickles

I love pickles.  So much so that the first thing that I did today at the Renaissance Festival today was throw a dollar at a wench and receive a pickle in return.  On my way out I almost bought another one, but then I realized that I already had a vat of pickles at home waiting for me.

I think that my love for pickles started because of my big sister.  Everything that she liked, I would like too.  That meant that I devoured enormous pickles like crazy when I was a kid, even though they were too sour for my taste buds.  My extended family also likes pickles, which is why I decided to take a shot at making my own for my grad party.  For the record, these were never served because I deemed them insufficiently aged by the time that my party rolled around.  However, the pickles are in their prime a week later.

The worst part of making pickles is dealing with the fresh dill.  I don't have any growing, so I had the option of going with dried dill or buying an enormous hunk of it from the grocery store.  I didn't know what to do with the hunk since I didn't want it to dry out, but I didn't want it to stank up my fridge either.  Anyway, aside from that making pickles is painless and relaxing in an old school way.

Make these pickles now.  Rating 10/10.

Recipe from Prevention RD

Supplies
2 1-quart mason jars (one for the brine and one for the pickles- or use just one jar and a glass that is a similar size)

Ingredients
4 pickling cucumbers- quartered into spears
8 sprigs of fresh dill
3 cloves of garlic- chopped
1 tbsp coriander seeds
1 tbsp white sugar
1 1/2 tbsp kosher salt
2/3 cup white vinegar
1 cup water

Begin by sticking as many cucumber spears as possible and the fresh dill in your mason jar.
Make the brine by mixing up the garlic, coriander, sugar, salt, and vinegar.  Shake vigorously until the salt and sugar have dissolved.
Pour the brine over the cucumber spears.  If some of the spears are still not submerged, fill with up to 1 cup of water until submerged.
Tightly screw on the lid and place in the fridge for at least 24 hours.  These babies improve drastically over time, so try not to inhale them all in one day.

I made these in bulk by making several batches with the above measurement of ingredients and then dumping them in a big stock pot.