I have never met a person who was indifferent to all kinds of homemade pickles. And now I’m not talking about the process of sterilization and sealing jars, but about a plate of pickled or salted delicacies. Here you can only argue - some people like it sour, while others like more sugar.
But pickled cucumbers (not salted or pickled!) stand out in a special way; they are also called barrel cucumbers. This is where all the lovers of winter treats from a jar split into two camps - some love these cucumbers until their knees tremble, while others, excuse me, stink, and generally ugh!
I'm among the first! Crispy, vigorous, filled with juice, only such a cucumber is delicious to snack on a shot of vodka, and only such a cucumber is worthy of a vinaigrette.
While I was a city girl and only had a refrigerator at my disposal, I often visited the market in a tent from a local state farm - in addition to sweet onions and juicy carrots, sauerkraut and real cucumbers in barrels were always sold there. I bought 10 pieces at once and ate half of them right in the car, sprinkling brine all around)))
And when we got a cellar, I started thinking - is it possible to prepare just as tasty cucumbers at home?
Of course, at first I tried to get an oak barrel for pickling, but then I realized that I was starting completely on the wrong side! First of all, you need a recipe! And I got it! All the details of preparing barrel cucumbers were told to me by the woman at the market from whom I always bought these cucumbers. True, having revealed this secret to me, she lost me as a buyer - after all, now I can make both barrel cucumbers and sauerkraut myself)))

Although, I wrote down the recipe with doubt, and my head was spinning: “It can’t be that simple!” Well, really, I couldn’t believe that in order to get such deliciousness on a plate, cucumbers must first turn sour (roughly speaking, go bad!), and then magically turn into a delicacy!
Indeed, the recipe is so primitive that if the cucumbers have already been selected, consider that half the battle is done!

Which cucumbers to choose? Of course, tasty, strong, without flaws, straight from the garden.
It is believed that cucumbers with thick skin and black thorns—special pickling varieties—are best suited for pickling and fermentation (breeders even developed the common variety “Mashenka”). These cucumbers store well (last year a couple of buckets easily lasted in the cellar until March) and remain crisp and vigorous.
But the tender ones, with a velvety fluff, are best in salads. They do not store well in pickling, and if such cucumbers are fermented, they quickly turn into soggy soap. Although, if you do not plan to store the preparations until spring, you can try this recipe with any cucumbers.

What about the size? Yes, when you're making barrel cucumbers, size matters! It has been verified that the larger the cucumber, the more smoothly the magical processes occur inside it. Of course, you need to understand that the cucumber has not grown to the size of a zucchini, it is covered with a thick peel, yellowed on one side, and there are huge seeds inside, there are simply large-fruited varieties - a cucumber can be at least 30 centimeters in length, but remain juicy, tender and not overripe.
One problem with such long cucumbers is what to ferment them with? Here, an ordinary three-liter jar, and a cucumber sticking out of the neck... And how many of these copies will fit into the jar - three, four?

Therefore, my choice is plastic bucket containers. They come in different sizes (from half a liter to 12!), with airtight lids, the walls are transparent enough to peek at what is happening inside (it’s easy to control the turbidity of the brine and its level), but most importantly, the diameter of the bottom and neck do not differ much.
This container is a four-liter container. And here is that cucumber that was sticking out of a three-liter jar - yes, you could stack at least a dozen of these cucumbers there!

But no matter what type of cucumbers you choose for pickling, all of them must be washed and soaked in cool, clean water for at least 2 hours, and preferably overnight. Cucumbers will absorb water and “drink” less brine.

In the meantime, let's get to the delicious accents! Let's collect aromatic herbs in the beds - dill (tender branches and hard stems, flowers and ripe umbrellas), garlic (both heads and green feathers), horseradish leaves, parsley (whole with roots or just leaves), cilantro (leaves, flowers, green seeds), sprigs of mint, basil, thyme. Don't forget about blackcurrant leaves.
If you don’t have your own garden beds, and your grandmother is far away in the village, there is a direct route to the market, where they sell fragrant “brooms” with everything you need.
Bay leaves, hot peppers and peppercorns also go well with cucumbers.

It's also a good idea to add cherry leaves. In our region, such cherries are called cherry or “cherry on a leg”; its leaves are small, but there is plenty of aroma.
I visited my friends at the dacha with garden shears and brought a real cherry bouquet - the leaves were prepared, the branches were chopped into chips for hot smoking, and the berries were eaten!
By the way, if you didn’t use all the leaves at once, put them in a bag and store them in the refrigerator - they will last for several weeks; You can also save “extra” blackcurrant and horseradish leaves.

But that’s why real cask cucumbers are cask - they have the taste of a barrel, ideally oak. Let's "cheat" - add dry oak leaves to the bucket. Of course, they are not as fragrant as fresh ones, but what can we do if we don’t have real oaks growing here. After all, do we use dry bay leaves in the kitchen?
There are almost no problems with dry oak leaves - you just need to buy an oak broom. Just don’t buy it in a beautiful package in the supermarket (in case it’s been treated with something or is old), look near the city baths - they always sell brooms made of birch, fir, juniper, and sometimes you can find brooms made of oak. I know that oak brooms are specially brought to one guy from the Far East.
This broom is enough to pickle a few buckets of cucumbers and you’ll be left to steam in the bathhouse))

Well, I’ll also tell you about salt! Take large salted and NOT IODIZED! Iodized preparations do not stand and quickly turn sour.

As you can see, there are more words and theory here, let’s get down to business!

Wash plastic sealed buckets (or glass jars, if you happen to be using them) with baking soda; there is no need to sterilize them. The more correct bacteria remain, the better the fermentation process will go.
At the bottom we put a mixture of herbs, a few peppercorns, a horseradish leaf, and fill it halfway with cucumbers, placing them as tightly as possible. Again a layer of herbs, again cucumbers and more greens on top. Cover with a sheet of horseradish and tamp the contents without fanaticism.
Sprinkle salt on top - 1 tablespoon per liter of container (my 4-liter buckets means 4 tablespoons), and fill with UNBOILED filtered water, maybe from a bottle, maybe mineral water, maybe spring water, just without bleach. Leave for half an hour and add water if necessary.

We leave the buckets (jars) at room temperature; they must be carefully placed in a basin, on a large plate or baking sheet - they may leak. Cover loosely with lids or saucers (from dust and insects), shake a couple of times during the evening so that the salt is quickly distributed throughout the entire volume of the brine.

The next day foam will appear on the surface, someone will say “oh-oh, it’s sour!”, but in fact the process has started!

And after another day or two, the brine will become cloudy - close the lids tightly and put it in the basement or in the refrigerator if you made a small batch. Now the cucumbers should stand at a temperature no higher than 8-10 degrees for a month. They cannot be stored at room temperature!

Over time, the brine will lighten a little, but will still remain cloudy, and the bright green cucumbers will turn brown.
As I already said, such cucumbers last until spring, do not turn sour, do not become moldy, only the taste becomes more intense. The hare even joked that he would carry a fork and a glass with him, have a drink and a snack in the cellar, but going to heat the house was just on the way)))

Enjoy! Have a snack!

For pickling, you need to take late varieties of cucumbers. Cucumbers 8-15 cm long are best suited for pickling, that is, unripe fruits with small seed chambers and underdeveloped seeds. Freshly picked cucumbers are soaked, periodically changing the water (no more than 6 hours), and washed. The leaves are also washed thoroughly. Dill is cut into pieces 15-20 cm long. Horseradish roots and garlic are peeled. Prepared seasonings are placed on the bottom of the barrels and on top of the cucumbers. If the barrels hold more than 100 liters, then leaves and spices are also placed in the middle. The walls of the barrel are rubbed with garlic. Cucumbers are placed tightly in the barrels: the more cucumbers fit in the container, the higher the concentration of lactic acid during fermentation will be and the better the pickles will be preserved. If cucumbers are salted in barrels with a double bottom, then it is inserted after filling the barrel, and the brine is poured through the tongue hole. When pickling in open barrels, cucumbers are covered with a linen napkin on top, a wooden circle made of hardwood is placed and pressure is applied. To prevent dust from getting into the barrel, it is also covered on top. After filling with brine, the dishes with cucumbers are first kept in a room with a temperature of 18-20 ° C, at which the fermentation process takes place most quickly. After a few days, the cucumbers are transferred to a cold place where fermentation ends. In a conventional cellar, fermentation ends after 30-35 days. In the first days after the start of fermentation, a rapid release of gases occurs, and the brine level rises and then sharply decreases. You need to make sure that the cucumbers are covered with brine at all times. If necessary, the brine should be added (per 1 liter of water - 20 g of salt and 9 g of citric acid). Properly prepared cucumbers are light green or yellow-green in color; they are hard and crispy; easily break in half, and have no voids at the break; they have a pleasant sour-salty taste and the smell of seasonings. Failures when pickling cucumbers are associated primarily with the conditions of fermentation and subsequent storage. Pickled cucumbers have low acidity, so when stored, especially at elevated temperatures, they often soften and lose taste and smell. The lower the storage temperature, the less likely adverse events are. The optimal temperature for storing cucumbers is about 1 °C. The quality of pickled cucumbers sometimes deteriorates due to improper selection. Firstly, not all varieties of cucumbers are suitable for pickling. Both too small (less than 7-8 cm) and very large cucumbers are not suitable. Small cucumbers do not acquire the appropriate taste and quickly soften. Large cucumbers with developed seeds soften faster and begin to turn yellow. Voids in fruits occur both on the field during strong growth and during fermentation. The quality of pickled cucumbers largely depends on the water - the water should be hard. The quality of pickled cucumbers may suffer during storage due to the development of mold and filmy microorganisms on the surface of the brine. Mold quickly decomposes lactic acid, which is the preservative principle of pickles. In such an environment, putrefactive microorganisms quickly develop - cucumbers soften, becoming unsuitable for food. To prevent this undesirable phenomenon, the film is periodically removed, and the napkin, circle and oppression are thoroughly washed and scalded with boiling water. Mold does not develop if the surface of the brine is sprinkled with dry mustard powder.

Who doesn't love to eat salty crispy cucumbers! If you follow some simple salting rules, even the most ordinary recipe for preparing cucumbers will turn them into an appetizing and tasty delicacy.

There are two ways to pickle cucumbers: cold and hot.

Their only difference is that in one case the vegetables are poured with cold water, in the other with boiling water.

There are certain nuances of preparing lightly salted and pickled cucumbers, which must be carried out regardless of the pickling method.

When salting, follow the general rules:

1. It is recommended to pickle cucumbers on the day of harvest, before the vegetables lose their elastic structure and become soft. Ignoring this rule may lead to loss of the characteristic crunch.
2. It is better to salt fruits of different sizes separately so that the marinade evenly saturates each vegetable.
3. Preparation of brine requires specially prepared water. It should be filtered, and ideally from a well or source.
4. To make cucumbers crispy nicely, they need to be soaked in cold water for 2.5 - 3 hours.
5. Any container used for pickling must be carefully prepared:

• Wash glass jars with baking soda slurry and steam;
• Rinse the barrel thoroughly until the water is clear of sawdust and the characteristic odor disappears. Next, you need to fill it with water and leave it for several days so that it dries out and small cracks and gaps disappear. Wash with a solution of soda - 1 teaspoon per 2 liters. water;

Attention: Preparing the barrel should begin several weeks before harvest.

• It is better to use an enameled bucket or pan. They are first washed with hot water and baking soda, which must be poured onto a damp sponge and rubbed on the inner walls of the container and the lid.

1. Leaves of fruit trees and bushes, for example, cherry and currant, should be added to the usual spices. Oak leaves are indispensable in preparing cucumbers, as they impart a tart taste and aroma.
2. Spices should be distributed evenly over the entire area of ​​the container. To do this, the recommended amount of seasonings should be approximately divided into 3 equal portions. The first part is placed on the bottom, the second in the middle, the third and last - on top of all the cucumbers, just before pouring.
3. It is necessary to store pickled vegetables in a cool place where the temperature varies from - 1 to + 4 degrees Celsius. This could be a refrigerator or a basement.

Cold methods of pickling cucumbers

Interestingly, the advantage of cold pickling is the absence of any preservatives and vinegar in the filling, which are used in the hot method.

1 way

Ingredients:

Cucumbers are selected according to the container's capacity, provided they fit tightly together.

Spices for a 3 liter jar:

• hot pepper – 1 pc.;
• garlic – 6 medium cloves;
• dill - 3 umbrellas or 3 teaspoons of dry herbs;
• black pepper – 10 peas;
• leaves – 3 cherry and 2 oak;
• table mustard powder – 1 teaspoon.

Brine: for 0.5 l. water 1 tbsp. a spoonful of table salt.

Cooking process:

1. Divide the spices into 3 equal parts. Place one part on the bottom of the jar.
2. Place the cucumbers vertically so that they are close to each other.
3. Having filled the jar to the middle, add the second part of the spices.
4. Having placed all the fruits tightly to the top, add the remaining seasoning and mustard.
5. Pour brine over the cucumbers, cover with gauze and leave at room temperature for 1.5 - 2 days until they ferment.
6. Next, drain the brine, boil it and cool.
7. Pour the resulting solution back into the jar and close it with a nylon lid.

It is better to store such a product in a cool place, so the cucumbers will retain their taste longer.

2 way

The simplest and easiest preparation method, the only disadvantage of such cucumbers is their short shelf life. This method for preparing cucumbers for the winter is not suitable - cucumbers after pickling like this will be ready in a couple of days and are intended for immediate consumption.

Ingredients:

• cucumbers – 1 kg;
• table salt – 2 tbsp. spoons;
• garlic – 4 cloves;
• fresh dill – 1 bunch;
• black pepper – 5 peas.

Preparation steps:

1. We wash the cucumbers in cold water and cut off the ends on both sides.
2. Place the prepared cucumbers in a tight bag, sprinkle with salt and mix thoroughly.
3. Cut each clove of garlic in half and crush it with a special crusher or the surface of a knife.
4. Add garlic, chopped dill and pepper to the cucumbers and mix.
5. Keep at room temperature for 2.5 – 3 hours.

Cucumbers cured this way can be stored in the refrigerator for 5 days.

3 way

“Grandma’s way”, in a tub or in a barrel. In the modern world, this salting method is not for the lazy. The downside is the large number of fruits for pickling.

Ingredients:

• cucumbers – 50 kg;
• garlic – 150 gr.;
• dill – 1.5 kg;
• – 250 gr.;
• leaves - 0.5 kg of cherry and 0.5 kg of currant.

Note: oak leaves are not taken because the container is wooden. It will transfer its smell and tart taste to the fruits.

Brine: for 12 liters of boiled water:

• for small fruits – 800 g;
• for large and large – 1 kg 200 g.

1. Spices are placed at the bottom of the tub or barrel, previously divided into 3 equal parts.
2. Lay out the cucumbers in a horizontal position to the middle, and add the next part of the seasonings.
3. Fill the container to the top, add the remaining spices and add brine.

It is necessary to put pressure on top so that the fruits are constantly in brine. Barrel cucumbers should be stored in a cool place.

The given recipes for salting cucumbers are very easy to follow and do not require a lengthy preservation procedure, so they are suitable even for beginners.

From this video you will learn a simple way to cold pickle cucumbers:

When we lived in a dormitory during my student years, I was lucky to try many different pickled and canned cucumbers: all the girls brought their mother’s preparations, and then treated each other.

So, everything is learned by comparison, and I like cold pickles the most. The only drawback of these cucumbers is that they need to be stored in a cold basement or refrigerator, so they are not very suitable for city apartments.

Pickled cucumbers make the most delicious vinaigrette, they can be eaten simply as an appetizer with.

Even though we live in an apartment, I make 2-3 jars of these cucumbers and store them in the refrigerator. This summer, my daughter and I were visiting our grandmother and we all picked cucumbers together. The recipe for pickled cucumbers for the winter is very simple, you will see for yourself by reading the article to the end.

I offer you a recipe for pickled cucumbers, according to which my grandmother has been making them for decades. The recipe is proven, the cucumbers turn out crispy and not too salty, and can be stored in the cellar for up to 2 years.

To pickle cucumbers, you will need any jars and nylon (plastic) lids. I don’t recommend using metal screw caps, because they rust (both inside and outside...)

So, to pickle cucumbers we need the following:

• cucumbers
• Clean and dry 1 liter, 2 liter or 3 liter jars
• Nylon covers
• Horseradish leaves
• Dill umbrellas
• Black peppercorns
• Peeled garlic
• Chilli pepper
• Dry mustard
• Oak leaf (for crunchiness of cucumbers)

For the brine:

• 1 liter of cold running water
• 2 heaped tablespoons (60g).

Preparation:

If you can put less salt in it, then the lack of salt in pickled cucumbers can contribute to the development of bacteria. As a result, cucumbers may become soft and not tasty.

Soak the cucumbers in cold water for 3-5 hours (or better for 5-8, especially if these are store-bought cucumbers). This must be done so that the cucumbers get the missing water, otherwise they will get it from the brine and there may not be any left in the jar. Rinse the cucumbers under running water. The ends of the cucumbers do not need to be trimmed.

Wash jars and lids. (I do not sterilize or dry them in this recipe. But if you pour boiling water over the jars and lids, that will only be a plus).

Place the cucumbers, evenly layering with herbs.

Don't forget about garlic, chili pepper and dry mustard. For a 3-liter jar you need about 5-6 cloves of garlic, 1 chili pepper and 1 teaspoon of dry mustard.

Dissolve 2 heaped tablespoons of coarse salt in 1 liter of water in a separate container (about 1.5 liters and 3 tablespoons of salt are needed for a 3-liter jar).

Stir well and let sit. Usually coarse salt produces a sediment. I don't pour it into a jar. Fill the jars to the very top. Cover with regular plastic lids and place in a cool place.

Check periodically (every 3-5 days) and make sure that the cucumbers are covered with brine, otherwise, if this is not done, cucumbers without brine may become soft and mold will form.

Sometimes you have to add brine (until the foam is completely displaced from the jar and the edge of the neck, i.e. to the very edge of the jar, brine - based on 1 liter of water - 2 tablespoons of salt).

The cucumbers will ferment. This is fine. They may become cloudy and foam, but then the brine will lighten over time and the foam will go away.

Ingredients:

cucumbers - a bucket;
salt - glass;
mustard powder - 2 tbsp;
garlic - 1 head;
dill umbrellas - 5-6 stems;
black currant leaves - 10 pcs;
cherry leaves - 10 pcs;
bay leaf - 4 leaves;
horseradish leaves - 2 pcs;
black peppercorns - 10 pcs;
whole cloves - 7 pcs;
mustard seeds - a pinch

Cooking method:

We got around to telling you how to use the last cucumbers to make something delicious for the fall.
I love barrel cucumbers, but there’s nowhere to store them, so I make only one batch - in a bucket. They are salted for 2 weeks and eaten here until mid-November. Although they are barrel-shaped, they are not so eye-opening. My children and I love to make vinaigrette, hodgepodge with them, and eat them with potatoes.
I also like the fact that these cucumbers are made quickly in terms of labor costs, do not require any preliminary preparations, are stored in a bucket on the loggia, they do not mold and do not end up with a hole inside. And you don’t have to put country cucumbers here; those that are the last to be sold at fairs - from local greenhouses and fields - will also work.
So, take a bucket and wash it thoroughly. We put all the “grass” on the bottom. My leaves were already dry, so I crumbled them with my hands and compacted them.

We take a head of garlic, you can take one and a half, the cucumbers will only benefit from this.

We peel the garlic, wash it, and simply cut each clove into 2-3 parts.

Place the garlic in a bucket and add black peppercorns there too.
the carnation goes into the bucket,
mustard seeds - there too.

Wash the cucumbers, cut off the “butts”, put them tightly in a bucket.

Now we make the brine. In general, you can just pour salt, fill a bucket with water, stir and then stir. But I make the brine in a small amount of water first so that the salt is guaranteed to dissolve. So, take a glass of salt and put it in a saucepan with two liters of water. Turn on the fire.

Bring the brine to a boil, stir until the salt dissolves. Let the brine cool for 30 minutes.

Pour the brine into a bucket, fill it to the top (so that the water covers the cucumbers) with just boiled water. Mix everything in the bucket with your hands so that the brine is mixed.

Take a clean cloth and cover the bucket with it.

Now a little trick. Take mustard powder

Sprinkle it evenly over the entire cloth. This is necessary to prevent mold from appearing on top of the cucumbers. There won't be mold on the top, and there won't be any on the inside either. Mustard will add a slight piquancy to the cucumbers (they won’t be bitter, don’t be afraid), and the cucumbers will be crispy. We put a load on top, for example, a plate with a three-liter jar of water, and put it in the shade; I put it on the loggia. And we forget for 2 weeks.

And then we take out these cucumbers and enjoy. These cucumbers will help you avoid having to stock up on canned cucumbers in jars in your pantry for longer))) Yummy!