Pickles is one side dish that changes the mood and taste of every cuisine. Although it’s mostly a part of cuisines that have quite a number of spices in them and if you are a person of this liking then you will love to learn how to make pickles all by your own. Homemade pickles are always better than the commercial ones because they are healthier, fresher, and because you make it yourself and put just the right amount of spices that suit your taste buds. Read the instructions given below to learn how to make pickles.
Complexity level: Moderate
Time required: 30 minutes
Resources required:
1.Medium cucumbers
2.Glass jar
3.Onions
4. Salt
5. Sugar
6. Vinegar
Instructions:
1. Doing the vegetables:
Wash and cut your vegetables. Put them in a large bowl, add salt according to taste and now mix gently. Add crushed ice or ice cubes to this. This two-inched ice should cover the vegetables well. Refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours. Then add some ice again to maintain the two inch level of ice. Wait till the ice water accumulates in the bowl.
2. Preparing the utensils:
Wash your jars, ladles, lids and rings in the dishwasher. Alternatively, Boil the four in a huge vessel, covered well, and simmer the flame after a few seconds and keep the utensils that way for around 5 minutes. Now drain all these on clean kitchen towels. Now mix the vinegar, sugar and all the other spices in the non-reactive jar and cook for 10 minutes.
3. The initial set up:
Drain the ice water from the cucumbers and the onions and add them to the vinegar mixture. On, simmer, bring it to boil and then switch your stove off.
4. The main steps:
Use your ladle and slowly drop your cucumbers and onions into the jars. Over this, pour the vinegar mixture. Fill the whole jar, just make sure you leave ½ an inch on the top. There can be air in between the whole mixture of the jar, so move it a little to make it settled in the container or just knock it a little on the table top. Clean the jars and the rings for any spills and hand lock them. Now in the caners, boil these sealed jars for around 10 minutes. These should be covered with minimum an inch of water while boiling. If you think the waterâs reducing and you need to add a little, make sure you add hot water to it instead of cold water.
5. Set aside for completion:
Lastly, remove these jars from hot water and set aside for cooling. Check if they are well sealed and if using later, refrigerate them.
Frequently asked questions:
1.How to make sweet pickles?
All ingredients remain the same instead of the sugar. Add a lot more sugar to any pickle, according to your taste to make it a sweet one.
2. What are the best utensils for storing pickles?
Always use a glass container. Your pickles will stay fresh longer in glass containers.
3. Why are homemade pickles better?
These are always better because they are relatively good in taste and freshness.
Quick tips:
- Add two fresh grape leaves to each jar for crisper pickles.
- The best taste comes after a few weeks. So try and stay patient for at least 2 weeks to relish it.
- If you want, you can shake the jar to mix the spices well till the day you open it.
Things to be watch out for:
- Make sure you don’t use utensils that aren’t thoroughly clean.
- After opened once, store your pickle in the refrigerator.
