Patrick's Irish Pickles

We had finally amassed enough cucumbers to justify a canning attempt, so I broke out my dad's pickle recipe. We then proceeded to drive all over Tempe in a frustrating effort to find a water bath canner. My advice to you if you ever find yourself in a similar situation: try the dinkiest, local-est hardware store you can. After we tracked down the supplies and I brushed up on canning techniques I went out and cut some fresh dill from the garden:

Next I got out all the herbs, spices, salt, and vinegar (I don't know if this recipe is supposed to be some sort of family secret, so until I get dad's permission I won't post it on here.)

Canning is pretty simple, as long as you are careful to follow all the steps. If you are slapdash you risk broken cans, unsealed lids, and botulism (no fun). First we put a brine mixture of water, vinegar, and salt on to boil, and boiled the jars, lids, and rings. Meanwhile we washed and sliced the cucumbers and garlic.

Next we put the spices in the jars and loosely packed in the cucumbers. My father warned me not to pack them in too tight because you can crack the jars otherwise.

We only had a small cucumber crop, so we used pint jars instead of quart jars. After we packed in the spices and cukes into the (hot) jars, we poured the hot brine mixture in. Apparently headspace (the amount of air left at the top of the liquid) is important, and I'm afraid I may have left too much air. We'll see.

While the jars and brine are still hot, wipe down the jars, work out any air bubles, and fit the lids on. Loosely cap with the rings, then lower into the water bath on a rack and put on the canner lid. It's important to never shock the jars by putting cold jars into hot water or hot jars onto cold surfaces. Unless, of course, you like shattered glass everywhere.

steamy

Once the water came to a boil I started the timer and let the cans cook for 10 minutes. Next, we carefully removed the jars and let them cool off for several hours. The lids made nice "plink" noises and appear to be concave and well sealed, so hopefully the cans are all right.


All in all, it was a good first try; we got four pints out of that batch. Nate was very helpful for the whole "lifting pots of boiling water" part, and it seems like something that's a lot easier with two people. Any suggestions on what to can next time?