Old-Fashioned Russian Dill Pickles – No Canning

Homemade Dill Pickles / Домашние Малосольные Огурчики

This Russian classic recipe for малосольные огурчики (malosol’nuye ogurchiki) is a breeze to make and oh-so-tasty.  The combined smell of cucumbers, fresh dill, and garlic is taking me right back to my mom’s kitchen when I was helping to make these.  My job was to line up the jars on the counter and fill them with cucumbers.

One of my favourite summer dinners was a meal of pan-fried potatoes with malosol’nuye ogurchiki and fresh black bread (чёрный хлеб).

BTW, don’t throw out that pickle juice which is full of natural healing salts and minerals.  According to the popular Russian remedy it cures the worst hangover!
Ingredients:

• cucumbers, whole or slices
• 3-4 garlic cloves, sliced
• 4 sprigs of fresh dill (ideally – the flowered heads if you can find them)
• 1 tsp pickling spices (mixtures of coriander seeds, mustard seeds, crushed bay leaves & pepper flakes)
• 10 whole black peppercorns
• 4 cups water
• 2 tbsp salt

Optional (to make your dill pickles crispy & extra flavourful):

• Fresh grape, raspberry, black currant, or cherry leaves or 2-3 pieces fresh horse radish root.  I didn’t have any this time.

Directions:

1. Bring water to a boil, add salt and let it simmer.
2. Wash cucumbers in cold water and cut the ends off (about ¼ inch)
3. Add pickling spice, peppercorn, bay leaves, 2 sprigs of dill and some garlic to a clean jar.
4. Pack the cucumbers and pour the simmering water over and top it with the remaining dill sprigs. Leave about an inch of space between the water and the top of the jar
5. Put a top on your jar and leave it on the counter.  Wait at least 24 hours; for best flavor – 1 week.
6. Test a pickle on day 3. If it is to your liking, put the jar in the fridge to stop the fermentation process.
7. They can keep in the fridge for up to 6 months.  Garlic may turn blue or green in the jar but don’t get  alarmed  –  it is only the effect of fermentation.