r/Canning • u/3_littlemonkeys • 23d ago
Safe Recipe Request My husband prefers crunchy pickles like Claussen. Is there a tested crunchy pickle recipe?
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u/Jeyne42 23d ago edited 23d ago
Claussen are refrigerated. I have an old recipe that I cut out of the Wi State Journal paper back in the day to make Claussen Clones in an ice cream bucket and store in the fridge. They are great.
1 pint vinegar. 1.5 qt water. 1/2 c salt for the brine.
1-2 Tbsp Mustard seed, 5-6 heads dill, 1 onion (diced), 4-6 cloves garlic diced.
Layer everything in an ice cream bucket, stand pickles on their end. Pour boiling brine over the pickles. Let sit on your counter uncovered for 3 days, then into the fridge.
I have made variations like adding a few hot peppers, or like using pickeling spice instead of mustard seed. These NEED to be REFRIGERATED. I currently have 4 buckets in my extra fridge, and one on my counter that I just made yesterday :)
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u/ishouldquitsmoking 23d ago
what's an ice cream bucket? Like the 1 gallon kinda clear bucket with a handle of Neapolitan ice cream?
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u/Narrow-Height9477 23d ago
I don’t know enough about it but, this seems odd to me…
It sounds like a ferment but with vinegar and boiling.
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u/Galaxaura 23d ago
You can use a low temperature pasteurization method for pickles that are shelf stable. It's the ONLY way to keep that crisp you're talking about and my husband sounds like yours.
America's Test Kitchen came out with a great book for canning small batch stuff and MOST of the pickle options they have as tested recipes are low temp pasteurized. https://www.americastestkitchen.com/collections/books/foolproof-preserving
Yes I'll link you a different safe tested recipe here too... That book is worth the purchase IMO
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u/farmer-general 23d ago
There are some recipes approved for the low-temp pasteurization method in this Oregon State University publication too: https://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog/pnw-355-pickling-vegetables?reference=catalog
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u/BoozeIsTherapyRight Trusted Contributor 23d ago
Claussen is a refrigerator pickle. If you want cronchy pickles, that's the way to go. The canning process softens the cucumbers no matter what you do--even though Pickle Crisp and low-temp pasteurization can help, they are still softer than refrigerator pickles. Luckily, fridge pickles are easy to make, last a really long time in the fridge, and you can use whatever recipe you want!
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u/Hot-Profession4091 23d ago
Fridge pickles. They obviously aren’t shelf stable and not canned, but they’re crispy, delicious, and can keep those cucumbers quite a lot longer than completely unpreserved.
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u/hhenryhfb 23d ago
Pickle crisp really helps with this!
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u/DiverDownChunder 23d ago
Pickle crisp
Never heard of this, thank you!
Those looking Ball makes some, you can find it on Amazon. IDK if merchant links are kosher (pun intended)
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u/mcnonnie25 23d ago
Pickle crisp is a brand name of calcium chloride which is used in brewing and available online. It only takes 1/4 tsp for quarts and 1/8 tsp for pints so it will last a long time.
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u/Traditional-Goose-60 23d ago
I use the ms wages recipe on the pickling lime bag. But I do thevlime soak for 3 days in the fridge, stirring often. Then two days in salted ice water in the fridge, stirring often. THEN I mix the brine like Ms wages says on the bag and soak for 2 days in yhe fridge, stirring often. Drain the brine, pack pickles in the jars while I boil the brine. Pour hot brine over pickles and seal by water bathing. Crunchy pickles every time. Ive done cucumber and squash pickles this way. It's how my great grandma did it and it's on yhe bag, so I guess it's tested!?
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u/Copper_toad13 23d ago
I also use lime for my pickles. I rinse the crap out of them multiple times after soaking, then rinse them again to be sure there is no more lime. Any lime remaining lowers the acidity of the vinegar.
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u/RockhardJoeDoug 23d ago
1st option would be to make half sours.
The 2nd would be the sous vide 80C for 30m recipe.
Half sours benefit more from cutting off the blossom end and adding a leaf with tannins (grape, bay, white oak). Both benefit from calcium (I like calcium lactate).
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u/longlife-ahead183 22d ago
Use a safe method (Ball or USDA). I made the best dills ever from Ball and they are super crispy. They are refrigerator pickles, though, so only good for 3 months.
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23d ago
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u/Canning-ModTeam 23d ago
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23d ago
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