My mother-in-law taught me to make these many years ago and they are a staple in our pantry. Young and old find them simply adictive! You can adjust spiciness by the number of chiles you use. We love them hot and I use 4 dried Thai chiles per jar. The horseradish root and green pepper keep the crisp!

Ingredients

12 cups of water

4 cups of white vinegar

1 cup pickling salt

1/4 cup sugar

2 tsp. alum

Mix above ingredients together in a large kettle and bring to a boil.

Place the following ingredients in sterilized jars. Pack well washed

cucumbers into jars

1 head of dill

2+ cloves peeled garlic

1 dried Chile * I add 3 or 4 chiles!

1" X 1/2" piece of peeled horseradish root

1" X 1 1/2" piece of green bell pepper

Directions

Process pickles in a large kettle filled with warm water to just below the neck of the jars, bring pickles to boiling and process for 10-12 minutes at boiling. Check colour of cucumbers after about 10 minutes by lifting one jar from hot water bath and looking at colour. Cucumbers should be starting to look somewhat yellow. Don't overcook (they will still continue to cook after removing from hot water bath).

Cool.

Wipe jars.

Place on shelves to cure for 4 to 6 months for flavour to develop, one year is better.

Comments

Comments: 7 | Add a Comment

shantihhh says :

Time to make pickles! These are our family favourite!

Posted on: 17 August 2011 - 9:12pm

Laura j says :

My grandmothers recipe always used alum. She passed away before any of us obtained the full recipe...this sounds like it might be close!

Posted on: 2 September 2010 - 10:50am

aparna.priya says :

looks great !

Posted on: 30 August 2009 - 8:23pm

healthyeating says :

I have heard somewhere that alum is not good for health...So, is there any substitution for it ?

Posted on: 30 August 2009 - 8:07pm

Dmodde says :

below is a list of uses for alum none are bad for the body and you probably get them everyday in your white and wheat bread from most bakeries. Medical uses: Alum is used in many subunit vaccines as an adjuvant to enhance the body's response to immunogens. Such vaccines include hepatitis A, hepatitis B and DTaP. Alum in powder or crystal form, or in styptic pencils, is sometimes applied to cuts to prevent or treat infection. Powdered alum is commonly cited as a home remedy for canker sores. Preparations containing alum are used by pet owners to stem bleeding associated with animal injuries caused by improper nail clipping. Culinary uses Alum powder, found in the spice section of many grocery stores, may be used in pickling recipes as a preservative to maintain fruit and vegetable crispness. Alum is used as the acidic component of some commercial baking powders. Alum was used by bakers in the England during the 1800s to make bread whiter[6]. White bread was demanded by the middle class. In 1875, the Sale of Food and Drugs Act prevented this and other adulturations. [7

Posted on: 31 August 2009 - 10:42pm

tanya3286 says :

I never heard of alum being used in pickles before... so they are not harmful to the body then?? I have only heard of alum being used as an antiseptic and for water purification here.. :)

Posted on: 4 August 2009 - 1:44am