Almost hands-free dill pickles

 

 

Got cukes? Pounds of them? I found an AMAZING, simple dill pickle recipe that does not involve fancy canning techniques...just jars and a refrigerator!  I found this recipe YEARS ago in Real Simple Magazine, but I've never tried it.  Last year, when I made dill pickles, I used a pre-packaged mix found in the canning/freezing section of my supermarket. This recipe was almost that simple, but I could "tweak" it a bit.  I left out the sugar and increased the garlic-oh yum! I also threw in some dill heads from my garden, which makes the jars look super pretty! The pickles were VERY garlicky and crunchy; just like I like 'em!

 

 

                      

 

Refrigerator Dill Pickles 

For Each One-quart Jar, you will need:

a pound, or so, cucumbers, peeled, seeded and sliced any way you like (I made spears and chunks)
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 small onion, sliced thinly
2 cloves garlic, smashed
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon dill seed
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
2 teaspoons Kosher salt (it dissolves better than table salt)
3/4 cup hot water

Place the cucumbers in jar with tight-fitting lid.  In a bowl, combine the vinegar, onion, garlic, sugar, dill, peppercorns, salt and hot water.  Stir until the sugar and salt dissolve.  Pour the vinegar mixture into the jar with the cucumbers, cover and refrigerate for at least one day before serving.  The pickles will last up to one week.  

Don't they look BEAUTIFUL in my fridge?