Fresh summer cucumbers from the garden are great for snacks, recipes and . . . pickles! Making your own dill, bread & butter or sweet pickles is easy enough, but using pre-mixed pickle seasoning takes out all the guesswork.
I make seven quart jars of pickles at a time during the summer using pre-mixed pickle packages and in a few days they’re all gone! With these pre-made pickle mixes, you can either preserve them in a boiling water canner or store them in the refrigerator for a cool, quick snack.
If you’ve never canned pickles before, there are a few tools you’ll need to get started. You’ll need a boiling water canner, quart or pint jars and lids and bans for the jars. To make canning pickles easier, do yourself a favor and invest in a canning utensil set. You can always improvise and use kitchen tools you already have, but the canning set will make preserving pickles a lot easier–and safer. The canning set will include a jar funnel, jar lifter, a bubble remover and headspace tool and a magnetic lid lifter. These canning tools can be purchased separately in stores during the summer, but you can buy the whole shebang on the Ball canning website here for just $9.99. For instructions on how to preserve your pickles using a boiling water canner, see the article on Associated Content entitled “How to Can Pickles Using a Boiling Water Canner.”
There are several pickle mixes on the market today and you can find most of them in your local grocery store. My personal favorite is Ball Kosher Dill Pickle Mix. When using the pickling mixes listed below all you need to add is plain white vinegar and water. A word of advice: If you want to try these pickle mixes for preserving your cucumbers this summer, buy the mixes early! Oh, and, buy plenty of packages because they sell out quickly.
Pickle mix packages can be stored in a cool, dry place for up to a year. These pickle mixes will make enough pickle juice for about seven tightly packed quart jars of cucumbers. If you have leftover pickling juice, it can be stored in the fridge for three or four days. That’s plenty of time to pick more cukes from the garden.
Ball Pickle Mixes
Ball makes pre-made mixes for Kosher Dill and Bread & Butter pickles. If you can’t find these Ball pickle mixes in your local grocery or department store, just order them from the Ball website here. I searched the Ball website for a sweet pickle mix, but it wasn’t available. Just follow the canning directions listed on the back of the Ball pickle mix package and add water and white vinegar.
Mrs. Wages Pickle Mixes
Mrs. Wages makes a whole slew of pre-made mixes for canning pickles and other stuff. Mrs. Wages pickle mixes are easy to find in grocery stores, Fred’s and Walmart. For canning dill, kosher dill, polish dill, sweet pickle and bread & butter pickles for storing long-term, choose the Mrs. Wages pickle mixes called “Quick Process.” If you would rather store your pickles in the refrigerator, and skip the canning process, purchase the pickle mixes labeled “refrigerator.” Mrs. Wages also sells these pickling mixes by the case on the website, which is great if you have a huge cucumber garden and a huge home-made pickle fan club. To see all of Mrs. Wages pickling mixes and the prices on the website, click here. Directions for making Mrs. Wages pickles are on the back of the package. Remember, all you need to add is white vinegar and water.
Try some of these ready-made pickling mixes for your summer cucumbers. Your family will love them and you’ll become a pickle rock star!
Sources:
Personal experience
http://theconsumerlink.com/FreshPreserving/detail/TCL+1440010720/14.
http://store.mrswagesstore.com/pickles.html
