The Best Recipe for Kosher Garlic Sour Dill Pickles Using Lacto-Fermentation!

Beth Rosen, RD kosher garlic sour dill pickle recipe.jpg

Watch out!  This is the best recipe for Kosher Garlic Sour Dill Pickles ever!  Well, according to my daughter who told me that my new recipe reminded her of the pickles she eats at Ben’s Kosher Deli in New York.  What a compliment!! Last year, I posted a pickle recipe which received rave reviews from my friends and family, but to tell the truth, it didn’t completely do it for me.  And after my trip to the Lower East Side this spring, I have been craving an authentic Kosher garlic sour dill pickle that I could make at home with the cucumbers from my garden.  So I set out on a hunt for the perfect ingredients to blend together to give me the right mix of garliciness (yes, that is a new word) and spiciness.  After a bit of experimenting (and some yucky batches), I believe I have the most delicious Kosher garlic sour dill pickles this side of…Connecticut.

What was also of importance to me this time was making sure my pickles weren’t just a delicious treat, but also a functional food.  I used the process of  lacto-fermentation.  Lacto-fermentation occurs when good bacteria grows in the presence of a brine and naturally occurring sugars in plant products (in this case, cucumbers), while preserving the plant product in the process.  Basically, I made pickles and probiotics!  The trick to the process is to make sure that the cucumbers are completely submerged in the brine so that oxygen does not interfere with the lacto-fermentation process.  That might entail using a “weight” inside the container.  For instance, in the plastic gallon container I used (my whole cucumbers were not fitting in my jars), I weighed my cucumbers down with a small plate.  It kept them submerged and didn’t interfere with the lacto-fermentation process the way a metal container might.

A few more tips before you begin to create your batch of the best Kosher Garlic Sour Dill Pickles ever! (Insert echo here).

1.  Use small, whole pickling cucumbers.  I sliced a few batches – some into spears and some into chips – and both turned out very mushy and slimy.  Smaller cucumbers have fewer seeds and stay crisper than the large ones.

2.  Burp your containers every 24 hours for the entire lacto-fermentation process.  Open your jars up a little but keep the lid on, let the gas escape, and close them quickly.  I read that some jars can burst, and I have experienced leaky jars that weren’t sealed tight enough.

3.  Layer the top of the jar or container with a grape leaf or an oak leaf.  Yes, you read that right.  If you have a grape vine plant (I have a friend with one!) or an oak tree, rinse the leaves off and add them to the top of the container.  The leaves contains tannins that preserve crispness.

4.  Make sure your containers and lids are clean.  We only want to grow the good kind of bacteria.

5.  When it’s finally time to eat your pickles, use a clean fork to fish them out, not your fingers.  These pickles have not been cooked, so any addition of bad bacteria (from your fingers or your mouth) can contaminate your brine, causing your pickles to spoil (and probably give you a stomach ache).

Okay, now that I have shared my tips, it’s time to share my recipe!

The Best Kosher Garlic Sour Dill Pickles

Makes 1 gallon of pickles

Enough cucumbers that can be completely submerged in the brine (this varies depending on their size)

1 gallon distilled water

1/4 cup Kosher salt

1 bunch of dill

1 head of garlic, peeled

4 pearl onions, papery skin removed

1 Tablespoon whole peppercorns

1 teaspoon whole mustard seed

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

4 grape or oak leaves

In a large pot, combine the water and salt and mix until the salt dissolves. If it does not dissolve, heat it until it does and let it cool to room temperature before using.  This will be your brine and you will have some left over.  Find a gallon-sized plastic or glass container and start layering ingredients.  Start with two of the grape leaves at the bottom.  Then add the dill, garlic, pearl onions, peppercorns, mustard seed, and red pepper flakes.

Beautiful grape leaves, courtesy of Christine K.

Beautiful grape leaves, courtesy of Christine K.

Layering dill, garlic, onions, and spices.

Layering dill, garlic, onions, and spices.

Next, arrange as many cucumbers on top of the other ingredients as you can fit.

I could only fit six in this container. My cucumbers are huge!

I could only fit six in this container. My cucumbers are huge!

Pour the brine over the cucumbers to the top of the container and place the other two grape leaves on top.  If the cucumbers are floating to the top, use something to weigh them down, like a small plate or a plastic bag filled with marbles, or whatever you can MacGuyver together.  Put the lid on and place in a room-temperature spot where you will have access to it daily.

Can you see my plate in there? It really keeps everything submerged.

Can you see my white plate in there? It really keeps everything submerged.

Beth Rosen, RD kosher garlic sour dill pickles

Here’s another view.

Allow the brine to work its magic on the cucumbers for two to five days.  “Burp” the container to remove excess gas so that the carbon dioxide produced by the good bacteria doesn’t cause you to blow your top off – literally!  After five days,it’s time to enjoy your pickles!  You will see the color of the cucumbers change from bright green to an olive green and the brine turn cloudy.

Olive cucumbers + cloudy brine = delicious, lacto-fermented pickles!!

Olive cucumbers + cloudy brine = delicious, lacto-fermented pickles!!

Once you have finished the main part of the fermentation process, you can remove the weight and move your pickles into the refrigerator.  The fermentation process will continue in the cold, but at a slower rate.  They should keep for a few months; they won’t spoil but they may get too mushy to be palatable.  Remember to keep your hands out of the brine so that only good bacteria grow.  If you see mold, it’s time to throw them out.

Delicious and nutritious!

Delicious and nutritious!

Enjoy making your Kosher garlic sour dill pickles!  Let me know how they turn out!

 

xo

B

 

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Beth Rosen

Eating Attitudes™ & Gut Expert

Beth Rosen, MS, RD, CDN is a Registered Dietitian and owner of Beth Rosen Nutrition. She practices a non-diet philosophy and is a Health at Every Size" practitioner. Her goal is to end the pain of diet culture, one person at a time. Beth's techniques and programs empower chronic dieters, and those who consider themselves emotional and /or stress eaters, to ditch the vicious cycle of dieting, eat fearlessly by removing Food and diet rules, and mend their relationship with food and their bodies. Beth's works face-to-face with clients in Southbury, CT, and virtually with clients, worldwide.

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