Pickling: Pickled Cucumbers, Spreewald Style

1. This year I had the honorable task of pickling cucumbers for 3 households. One daughter was heavily pregnant, the other very busy at work. 30 kg of small free-range cucumbers were processed according to a recipe that has been tried and tested for years. It made 107 glasses.
2. The cucumbers should be fresh. If possible directly from a horticultural company.
3. The sizes ranged from 3 cm (gherkin size) to a maximum of 10 cm. The little ones came in 390 ml glasses, the rest in classic 720 ml glasses.
4. Wash and drain the cucumbers. Put them in the glasses, sorted by size. You can count on 300 – 350 g per 720 glass.
5. Add the spices per glass. The onion quartered or sliced.
6. Bring the spices for the brew to the boil. Sufficient for 8 – 9 720 glasses.
7. Pour the hot brine over the cucumber, full to the brim. Close the jars. Sterilize immediately afterwards.
8. For this I take my largest pot (5 x 720 glass) on the largest plate. The automatic cookers are usually much too sluggish and the heating process takes too long. The temperature of the oven is also difficult to control, since air is much less conductive than water.
9. Put a handkerchief on the bottom of the cooking pot to prevent it from rattling. The water should reach just below the edge of the lid. Check temperature! The time counts from 92 – 94 ° C. Then sterilize for 13 minutes with medium-strong bubbly.
10. When the time has elapsed, remove the glasses immediately and allow them to cool in the air.
11. The individual work steps go hand in hand. I. E. During the sterilization the next glasses are filled and the brew is poured.

Comment:

1. An attempt to replace the table vinegar with apple cider vinegar was not satisfactory to our taste. But the tastes are known to be different.