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The annual closing of cucumbers for the winter has long been equated to a national tradition. Every autumn, many housewives compete with each other in the number of closed jars. At the same time, someone closes the pickles, someone pickles them. But there are also those who seal lightly salted cucumbers in jars for the winter.
Which cucumbers to choose
Lightly salted cucumbers for the winter are an excellent alternative to already boring salted and pickled cucumbers. Due to the low salt content and the absence of vinegar, they can be given even to children, but only within reasonable limits.
In order for such cucumbers to turn out great, you need to choose the right fruits. Ideal cucumbers for lightly salted pickling should be:
- dense and hard;
- slightly pimply;
- not bitter in taste;
- no more than 7 - 10 centimeters in length.
During pickling, cucumbers that meet these conditions will acquire not only an excellent taste, but also a special crunch.
A little about spices and seasonings
Adding spices and seasonings when rolling lightly salted cucumbers is a very important procedure that can affect not only the taste of the future snack, but also its structure and shelf life. Most often, when preparing lightly salted cucumbers, the following spices and seasonings are added:
- Bay leaf;
- horseradish;
- garlic;
- black pepper;
- dill;
- black currant leaves.
These seasonings can already be called “pickling classics,” but this does not mean that other seasonings for pickling are not suitable. Some, for example, successfully use cherry and oak leaves, while others add red pepper instead of black pepper. This departure from the usual seasonings will help you get a new, richer taste of cucumbers.
You can also do without seasonings altogether, adding only salt and pepper. But if the desired result of pickling is crispy cucumbers, then you should not ignore horseradish.
Classic recipe
This recipe is used annually by many housewives to prepare lightly salted cucumbers for the winter. Most of the ingredients that it will require can be found in every garden plot, namely:
- 5 kilograms of cucumbers;
- 7 liters of water;
- 7 tablespoons of rock salt;
- garlic;
- dill;
- currant and horseradish leaves.
Before you start pickling, fresh cucumbers must be washed thoroughly, removing all the soil and dirt from them. Now you can remove the ends from both sides and place the cucumbers in a large, deep enamel or glass container for soaking. They should only be filled with cold water, and the soaking time should not exceed 2 hours. Moreover, the colder the water, the crispier the cucumbers will become.
While the cucumbers are soaking, you can prepare the brine and seasonings. To prepare the brine, all prepared salt must be dissolved in boiling water.As for preparing the seasoning, you need to peel the garlic and wash everything else. There is no need to cut dill and garlic.
Now you can either take another large container, or use the one in which the cucumbers were soaked. Some greens with garlic are placed at the bottom, then some cucumbers. You need to lay out most of the greens and all the cucumbers in these layers. The rest of the greens with garlic should be set aside for wrapping in jars. When this is done, pour hot brine into the container. It must cover all the cucumbers.
If the cucumbers are completely covered, then there will be no problems, and you can start preparing the brine.
Place a weight on the container with cucumbers in the form of a large jar of water or a heavy stone and leave it for 48 hours at room temperature.
When the specified time comes to an end, you can begin sterilization of jars. The easiest way to do this is over steam. You can learn about this method of sterilizing jars from the video:
When the cucumbers are pickled, they must be removed from the brine and rinsed well in clean cold water. In this case, the brine must be poured through cheesecloth into a clean pan, but the herbs and garlic can be thrown away. All drained brine should be boiled. During the boiling process, foam will form, which must be skimmed off.
Now we take pre-sterilized jars. Place greens with garlic at the bottom of each jar, and then cucumbers. At the same time, you should not try to stuff as many cucumbers into the jar as possible. They should have some free space.Once the cucumbers are in the jar, pour boiling brine over them and close the jar with a lid.
Closed jars of lightly salted cucumbers should be turned upside down and wrapped in towels or a blanket. They should remain in this position for 24 hours. The finished jars should be stored in a cool, dark place.
Cucumbers with apples
This winter version of lightly salted cucumbers in jars perfectly combines spicy herbs and the sweet and sour taste of apples. To prepare this snack you will need:
- cucumbers;
- 1 – 2 apples;
- garlic;
- dill;
- cherry and currant leaves;
- black peppercorns;
- carnation;
- Bay leaf;
- rock salt.
Therefore, before preparing the brine, you need to measure how many liters are in the jars of cucumbers.
First, let's deal with the cucumbers. They need to be thoroughly washed from soil and dirt and the ends cut off. Now, as in the previous recipe, they should be soaked in cold water for 1 - 2 hours.
While they are soaking, prepare the remaining ingredients: peel the garlic and rinse the herbs. Apples should not only be washed, but also cut into slices. In this case, there is no need to remove the core and seeds.
When the time for soaking the cucumbers comes to an end, they must be taken out of the water and placed in an enamel container for pickling. They should be accompanied by apples with herbs and other seasonings. All contents of the container must be mixed thoroughly. Now let's prepare the brine. To do this, dissolve salt in boiling water and mix well. Hot brine is poured into a container with cucumbers, apples and herbs. They should be left to salt for 8-12 hours.
After this time, when the cucumbers absorb the aroma of apples and herbs, they can be sealed in sterilized jars. To do this, all the brine must be drained from them and boiled again. While the brine is boiling, place the cucumbers and apples in jars on cushions of herbs. After the boiling brine is poured into the jars, they can be closed with lids. The finished jars must be turned upside down and wrapped. When the jars have cooled completely, they can be turned over and stored in a cool, dark place.
When preparing lightly salted cucumbers for the winter, it is worth remembering that the longer they sit in jars, the more salted they become. Therefore, it is advisable to use them in the first 2-3 months after twisting.
Do I need to add vinegar in the first recipe? not specified there. I did it as written. However, after cooling upside down for a day, the lid swelled.