I think this is the busiest time of year for any gardener. As the summer winds down, we have to get everything put up for winter – currently that consists mostly of squishing tons of tomatoes into various jars and running the canner for hours every day.
I try to mix of what I am making, so it doesn’t become too tedious – today it’s crushed tomatoes.
But before I move over to the kitchen to get those going, I want to share my fast and easy recipe for these Jalapeno Garlic Dill Pickles. It’s a riff on one of the most popular recipes here on the blog – my Refrigerator Garlic Dills. This is another un-canned pickle that keeps crunchy and fresh tasting for months in the fridge.
You can vary the spiciness by how many peppers you add to each jar. Jalapenos can be unpredictable – sometimes they are very mild, other times downright fiery – right from the same plant. The only way to be sure is to taste each one, by cutting off a tiny piece and trying it. Or – if you are making these for people who love spicy food, it won’t matter and you can shove 3 or 4 of them in each jar.
Since I plan to share these with family, including the grandkids, I didn’t make them terribly spicy – just a couple peppers in each jar – enough for a nice bite, but the littles will still enjoy them.
I’ll make some Refrigerator Pickled Hot Peppers for the rest of us. It’s a good thing we bought a really huge fridge a couple years ago – I think the whole bottom shelf will be filled with pickles before the month is out.
So – let’s get these going!
- 2 quarts of water
- 1 cup white or cider vinegar
- ½ cup pickling salt
- 4 large heads of dill, or more if they are smaller
- 8 medium garlic cloves, peeled and cut in a couple slices each
- 4 tablespoons pickling spice
- 3 to 4 pounds of cucumbers - smaller cukes will stay more crisp
- 8 to 12 jalapeno peppers
- Wash 4 1-quart canning jars [I like wide mouth for pickles], and lids and set aside.
- Put the water, vinegar and salt in a 3 quart sauce pan, and heat to boiling, stirring to make sure all of the salt dissolves - keep at a very low simmer.
- Meanwhile, cut the cucumbers into spears, or thick slices, depending on your preference.
- Cut the jalapenos in half lengthwise.
- In the bottom of each jar, place one of the heads of dill, and one of the sliced garlic cloves.
- Pack the cucumbers and jalapenos in - this is easier if you prop the jar on its side, so the cucumber spears don't fall over. You can really wedge them in there, and cut some in half to fit them all the way to the shoulder of the jars - leave a bit of spcae so the brine can cover everything.
- For the mildest flavor, use just one jalapeno per jar, up to 3 per jar for spicier ones.
- Set the jars back upright, and put in another garlic clove and a tablespoon of pickling spice in each one.
- Carefully fill each jar to the top with the water/vinegar/salt mixture. All of the stuff in the jar should be covered with the brine.
- Screw on the lids, and put in an out-of-the way spot on your counter for two days.
- On the third day, stash the jars in the fridge. They will be nicely a pickly in 2 weeks, but will keep for months, so long as you keep them cold. Naturally, if you open a jar and they smell or look bad, discard them, but I have never had a single jar go bad.
I think canning jars are easy to find just about everywhere, but you can get them on Amazon if you like: Wide Mouth Canning Jars. I also like to use these plastic lids on my pickles: Wide Mouth Storage Lids, though I was out of them when I made this batch. Keeping the metal bands on the jars in the fridge for a long time tends to make them rust, which means they aren’t as reliable when you go back to use them for canning.
And then – in two weeks, you have amazing, jalapeno-y goodness!
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