Pickled gherkins for the winter: recipes without sterilization

Many housewives are interested in recipes for pickled gherkins. This preparation can decorate any holiday table. Small, crispy canned cucumbers make an excellent appetizer and are well suited for inclusion in side dishes and sauces.

Small, crispy, appetizing gherkins will become a real decoration of the winter table.

Today we will tell you how to properly prepare this wonderfully tasty roll.

General rules and small nuances

Contrary to popular belief, gherkins are not the fruit of some “special” varieties of popular culture. These are just very young greens of any variety, slightly grown ovaries, picked 2-3 days after the flower withers. They should have a thin delicate skin, dense crispy flesh without voids and a length of no more than 5-7 cm. Small-fruited, early ripening, parthenocarpic hybrids with a “bouquet” arrangement of ovaries (3-6 pieces in one node) are best suited for growing such raw materials ).

Among the cucumber varieties with bunched ovaries and small-sized fruits are the popular hybrid varieties “Temp F1”, “Marinda F1”, “Tescha F1” and others

Small cucumbers are prepared for home canning in the same way as large ones. They must be kept for several hours in cold water, washed and removed from the tails. There is also nothing unusual in the composition of the marinade filling and the possible set of additional ingredients that are placed in jars: this is a traditional set of spices and herbal additives, described in detail in the article “How to pickle cucumbers,” posted on our website.

Pickling gherkins for the winter at home is no more difficult than preserving more “adult” cucumbers, but there are still some differences in the approach to the process. For example, it is believed that young greens should not be processed using the three-time hot pouring method , so as not to accidentally “cook” their delicate skin. Therefore, experienced housewives in such cases limit themselves to pouring twice (or once with subsequent wrapping). But if desired, the marinade for gherkins can be made a little “stronger” (sour) than for large fruits: this does not spoil the taste of the dense pulp of the ovaries, but only becomes a little sharper. In addition, canned small cucumbers almost always remain crispy.

We have put together for you some simple step-by-step instructions on how to prepare an appetizing and beautiful gherkin snack for the winter.

Storing cucumbers at home

Storing canned gherkins is practically no different from ordinary cucumbers. If all preparation rules are followed, including high-quality sterilization of the jars and their correct twisting, cucumbers can be stored both in a cool place (cellar, refrigerator) and indoors. It is important to ensure that there is no direct sunlight.

Did you know? Oak leaves have a powerful vitamin complex, which is why they are often used in folk medicine.
To preserve gherkins, it is better to take the foliage of young oak, which contains much more aromatic components. Oak greens not only give the fruits a pleasant aroma and taste, but also keep cucumbers in a solid state for several months.
If preserved food is stored indoors, it must be provided with sufficient ventilation; the air temperature should not exceed +20°C. In this state, cucumbers will be suitable for eating throughout the year. Opened canned food is stored exclusively in the refrigerator at a temperature of 0...+3°C for up to 5 days.

Canned gherkins are a delicious delicacy. These little cucumbers will appeal to everyone without exception: both children and adults. They will be a great addition to the holiday table and add variety to the daily menu.

Pickled gherkins (traditional recipe with sterilization)

Many housewives use this recipe as a base recipe, making changes to it according to their own taste. The gherkins are lightly salted, very aromatic, crispy and piquantly spicy.

Yield : 3 cans (1 liter volume)

Ingredients:

cucumbers – about 2 kg (how much will fit into the jars);
garlic – 6-9 cloves;
fresh hot pepper – 3 small whole pods (optional);
water – 1.2 l;
rock salt – 2 tbsp. l.;
sugar – 1 tbsp. l.;
acetic acid (70%) – 1.5 tsp;
vodka – 60 ml;
dill (umbrellas), horseradish, currant and cherry leaves - 3-6 pcs.;
dry spices (bay leaf, peppercorns, coriander or mustard seeds, cumin, clove buds, etc.) - optional.

Preparation:

The gherkins are soaked, washed, and their tails are cut off.
Dry spices and fresh herbs are laid out evenly in pre-sterilized jars. Place cucumbers in containers as tightly as possible.
Add 20 ml of vodka and half a teaspoon of acetic acid to each jar.
A brine is made from water, salt and sugar.
Fill the container with brine to the top. Place the jars in a pan of hot water, bring it to a boil and leave for 10-12 minutes.
Remove the jars from the water, seal them, turn them over onto the lids and leave to cool.

To preserve the bright green color of cucumbers (as in the photo), some housewives put a small oak leaf in each jar.

Features of canning gherkins

Gherkins are the same cucumbers, only small. But the process of canning them is different:

It is not recommended to make cuts on the fruits and cut off the tails on both sides, like large cucumbers.
Some recipes require pre-soaking (Crispy or Hungarian). If large cucumbers are soaked for 3 to 10 hours, then for gherkins 3 hours is the maximum.
When washing gherkins, do not use a brush, as it can damage the delicate skin of the small vegetable.
For long-term storage of large cucumbers, use vinegar, apple cider vinegar, citric acid or aspirin. In the case of gherkins, it is better to stick only to regular vinegar.

Gherkins in mustard sauce

An appetizer made from young vegetables turns out to be very unusual, spicy, but tender. To add spice to canned food or slightly change the taste, you can include pieces of fresh hot pepper, a clove bud or a little cinnamon.

Output: 2 l

Ingredients:

cucumbers - about 1.5 kg (as much as will fit in the jars);
young carrots – 2-3 pcs.;
onions (small heads) – 4 pcs.;
dill - a large bunch;
ground black pepper – 2 tsp;
bay leaf – 4 pcs.;
water – 1 l;
vinegar, 6% – 250 ml;
mustard powder/seeds – 3-4 tbsp. l.;
sugar – 1-2 tbsp. l.;
rock salt – 1 tbsp. l.

Preparation:

The gherkins are washed and the tails removed, the carrots are peeled and cut into thin circles, and the onions into half rings.
The dill is chopped, the bay leaf is chopped into small pieces.
Dill, bay leaf and black pepper are mixed in a saucepan. Add water, vinegar, mustard powder, salt and sugar and bring to a boil.
Immerse cucumbers, carrots and onions in the hot marinade and boil for a couple of minutes.
Place the vegetables tightly in prepared jars, fill them to the top with marinade, roll them up, turn them over onto the lids and wrap them until they cool.

The cooled workpiece should be stored in a cool, dark place.

Simple marinade with vinegar

The classic version of marinade with vinegar is very simple to prepare.

gherkins – 1 kg;
garlic – 4 cloves;
vinegar (6%) – 170 ml;
onion – 1 large;
hot red pepper – 1 pod;
salt – 1 tbsp. l. (type flush with the edges);
water – 500 ml.

Wash and clean the vegetables. Dry the cucumbers, placing them on a towel, cut the onion into rings, garlic into slices, hot pepper into slices. Place several slices of onion, slices of garlic and cloves of pepper on the bottom of the prepared jars. Then fill the jar with gherkins, but not to the brim. We also place onions, garlic and peppers on top.

Gherkins canned with sour berries

A very tasty and beautiful appetizer, ideal for a holiday table. In principle, any berries are suitable for preparing such canned food, but the best berries are made with gooseberries or currants (black or red). An excellent option is to marinate gherkins with a mixture of these berries.

Yield: 3 liter jars

Ingredients:

cucumbers – about 2 kg;
berries – 500 g;
garlic – 3-6 cloves (optional);
fresh hot pepper – 3 small whole pods (optional);
water – 1.2 l;
sugar – 70 g;
rock salt – 30 g;
vinegar 6% – 100 ml;
dill umbrellas, horseradish, currant and cherry leaves, tarragon herb and other spicy herbs;
dry seasonings (bay leaf, black and allspice peas, clove buds, coriander grains, etc.).

Preparation:

The gherkins are washed thoroughly and their tails are cut off.
Garlic cloves are peeled.
The berries are washed, the green stalks and (if possible) dry remains of flowers are removed from black currants and gooseberries. Red currants can be placed directly in clusters.
Wash green herbs and leaves, as well as hot peppers, in running water.
All components are laid out evenly in pre-sterilized jars.
A brine is made from water, salt and sugar.
Fill the jars with boiling brine to the top, cover with lids and leave for 15-20 minutes.
Pour the brine into the pan and boil it again, then remove from the heat and add vinegar.
Fill the jars to the top, roll them up, turn them over onto the lids and leave until cool.

Each housewife has the opportunity to adjust the taste of such canned food in accordance with her preferences or try to roll up several options at once. For example, you can do without adding garlic and fresh hot pepper to make the preparation less spicy, or put a couple of pieces of cinnamon sticks in jars (the taste will be more exotic and spicy). Modifications of the filling with a different ratio of salt and sugar are possible. But it’s probably not worth experimenting with increasing the amount of vinegar, since the berries already contain additional acid.

Preparing ingredients and jars

Before starting the conservation process, housewives begin searching for suitable components

To ensure that canned food is stored properly and does not spoil, you need to pay attention to the following requirements for gherkins:

fruits with a uniform green tint to the skin, without yellowish or whitish inclusions - any spots indicate a violation of the growing rules, such fruits are not suitable for seaming;
tails with a dark green color, dense;
vegetables have no signs of wilting, the skin is evenly covered with pimples;
maximum length - 8 cm.

The size of the cucumbers is important - if it exceeds 8 cm, then the seller offers young cucumbers instead of gherkins. Both types have many common characteristics, but French cucumbers have firmer flesh and tender skin, which are ideal characteristics for preservation.

Food preparation

Preparatory work begins with thoroughly washing the vegetables and removing their tails.

The washed vegetables are placed in cold water for 2-3 hours; this approach will make them crispier. Garlic is used in many rolls; dry, unsprouted and hard heads are suitable for preparations. Garlic is separated from the husk and cut into large slices.

The classic set of spices for seaming is represented by the following components:

cherry, currant, oak leaves;
tarragon, cumin;
mint, pepper;
dill and horseradish.

Additives help improve the taste of the product. All ingredients should not show signs of fading or foreign stains. For cooking, use table salt, without secondary additives, coarsely ground - fine salt can cause the fruit to soften.

Glass containers must be free of cracks, chips and signs of damage, especially in the neck area. Banks are sterilized using one of the available methods:

in the microwave;
oven;
over the steam.

How to pickle gherkins for the winter so that they turn out crispy and like in the store (1 l or 0.5 l)

If you are really looking for a store-bought recipe for crispy pickled gherkins for the winter, then you have definitely come to the right place. I've been making this recipe for 7-8 years now. Everything has been checked and rechecked.

Everyone I treated was completely delighted! The recipe was written down and rewritten - now we can make these delicious store-bought crispy canned cucumbers ourselves.

And take note or take note

Ingredients for marinating

To do this you need to take:

one kilogram of small young cucumbers about 4-5 cm long, but not more than 7 cm;
6 buds of cloves;
3 pods of red hot pepper;
5 sprigs of thyme;
a glass of salt;
small white onions 5 pieces;
white wine vinegar - 3 cups;
2 bay leaves;
4-6 cloves of garlic;
two or three peas of allspice;
7-10 black peppercorns;
half a glass of sugar;
and 15-20 cut umbrellas of flowering dill.

Recipe for making pickled gherkins for the winter, crispy like in the store

1. Before preparing this delicious preparation, you need to soak the vegetables in cold water for 3-4 hours. According to my recipe, you need to marinate in 1 liter or 0.5 liter jars.

2. Then rinse the cucumbers thoroughly in cold water using a brush, place in a pan or food container, add salt and refrigerate for 24 hours.

3. Peel and wash the onions. Divide the garlic into cloves and peel each clove.

4. Rinse the thyme and dill umbrellas in running water or keep in a pan filled with fresh water.

5. Dilute the vinegar with the same amount of water and bring to a boil, adding allspice and black peppercorns, and thyme sprigs. Remove from heat and cool completely.

6. Prepare dishes for preservation; to do this, you need to rinse small glass jars (half- and one-liter), sterilize and dry them, and boil the lids.

7. Add two tablespoons of vinegar to cold water and rinse the gherkins in it, which were left covered with salt for a day. Carefully wipe each cucumber and dry with a towel.

8. Then tightly pack the fruits together with the peeled onions, pieces of hot pepper, garlic cloves and other seasonings, placing them between the cucumbers, in sterilized jars.

9. Fill the prepared jars with the gherkins with the cold vinegar mixture and roll up or seal tightly with a lid.

Store in a cool, dark place.

You can try pickled gherkins, crispy like in a store, in just 10 days. But don’t forget to store these wonderful summer fruits for the winter. You will see how happy everyone will be, including you yourself, when you open a jar on a winter day and enjoy the bright taste of summer.

The most popular and beloved snack in Russia is ready. Bon appetit!

Don't forget that conservation doesn't end there:

Pickles
Eggplants for the winter - simple recipes
Pickled tomatoes
Homemade spicy adjika - very tasty

Ingredients for 2 liter jars:

gherkins (small cucumbers) as many as you like;
garlic to taste;
dill umbrella 2 pcs.;
horseradish leaves 2 pcs.;
cherry and currant leaves 2 pcs;
hot chili pepper to taste;
mixture of peppercorns – 4 pcs.;
cinnamon on the tip of a knife (optional);
water as needed;
salt 2 tbsp;
sugar 4 tbsp;
vinegar 9% 2 tbsp.

How to prepare crispy pickled gherkins for the winter (like in the store)

Gherkins, first of all, need to be prepared for canning. If you just picked them from the garden, then it won’t take much time for the preparatory process. In a large bowl, cover the cucumbers with cold water and leave for an hour. If you harvested gherkins the day before, or brought them from the market, then you need to keep them in water longer. In the second case, place the bowl with the purchased cucumbers in the refrigerator for 8-10 hours. To ensure that your gherkins are always crispy, soak them in cold water for several hours.

For canning gherkins, the presence of herbs and inflorescences is considered important. Be sure to use horseradish leaves, cherries, currants and dill umbrellas, then the cucumbers will turn out tasty and crispy. Rinse all prepared leaves under running water.

Rinse glass jars with a capacity of 750-1000 ml thoroughly and sterilize with steam, fill the lids with boiling water. Add a leaf of horseradish, cherry, and currant to the bottom of the jars. Place an umbrella of dill and two cloves of garlic in a jar. Use black and allspice peas to taste (3-4 peas will be enough). Add chilli peppers to the preserves if desired; they will add spiciness to the cucumbers; you can do without them.

Pre-cut the ends of small cucumbers so that they marinate better. Fill the jar with cucumbers as tightly as possible.

Make the first pour of boiling water over the cucumbers in the jar. Cover with a lid and leave for 10 minutes. After this, drain the water and bring it to a boil again. Pour boiling water into the jars a second time and leave again for 10 minutes. The gherkins must be heated well and, in addition, boiling water will kill all microbes, and then the canned food will not explode during storage.

Drain the water into the pan and now prepare the marinade. Add sugar and salt to boiling water and boil for a few minutes.

Pour a tablespoon of table vinegar into a jar with gherkins and pour in the boiling marinade. Immediately roll up the jars and place them upside down. Now leave the jars, without covering them with a towel, until they cool completely. Then put the gherkins in the pantry.

Store pickled gherkins for no more than 1 year. Everyone will love these little crispy cucumbers.

How to marinate:

Pour cold water over the cucumbers and leave to soak for 30-50 minutes.

First place all the mustard leaves and seeds at the bottom of the jar.

Wash the carrots and cut into rings. Add.

Now it's the cucumbers' turn. They need to be packed tightly.

Pour sugar and salt into the preparation, pour in vinegar and add all the pepper.

Bring water to a boil and pour into a jar with the preparation.

Now you need to sterilize. To do this, put the jars in a large saucepan and fill them with water up to the shoulders. When it boils, hold for another 10-15 minutes and remove (look, it will be hot - use an oven mitt).

All that remains is to screw on the lids, turn them over and wrap them in a blanket - so that the cooling is slow.

With dry mustard the process is the same, only the marinade will become noticeably cloudier.

If you don't like the vinegar smell, you can use lemon juice.

To make our pickled gherkins crispy and preserve them with a bang, you can cut off their “butts.”

Useful tips

Gherkins are pickled in almost the same way as regular cucumbers, but there are also small nuances that need to be taken into account.

The fruits, as usual, need to be sorted and washed. Do not use a brush or hard sponges when washing; the skin of small fruits is very delicate and can be easily damaged.

The ends of gherkins are never cut off. If you are not sure that the cucumbers are fresh from the garden, they need to be soaked in cold water. But you shouldn’t soak them for a long time - 2-3 hours will be enough.

To prepare the marinade, you can use the usual set of spices. As a rule, garlic, dill, bay leaf, allspice and black peppercorns are used. Cherry or oak leaves are often added; these additives make the cucumbers stronger and crispier.

It is better to use small jars, the maximum capacity is 1 liter. The container must be washed well, dried and sterilized, for example, heated in the oven. Canned food is prepared with or without sterilization; in the latter case, the double or triple filling method is used.

Pickled gherkins with oak leaves for the winter

Thanks to this recipe, the cucumbers will turn out crispy and very tasty. An important ingredient is the brine - it turns out transparent. In addition, the aroma of the brine is reminiscent of traditional preparations in wooden barrels, like in the good old days. You are guaranteed fragrant gherkins without a hard crust.

We prepare products:

500 gr. freshly picked gherkins;
oak leaves, 2 pieces (it is better to take young, unspoiled leaves);
horseradish leaves - 1 small leaf (we also take those that look fresher);
dill with umbrellas - 2 pcs.;
garlic cloves – 2 pieces (small size);
black peppercorns – 10 peas;
1.5 tablespoons of salt;
1 spoon of 9% acetic acid;
1 spoon of sugar;
0.5 l. water;
Salt, vinegar and sugar are measured in tablespoons.

The preparation is designed for 1 liter.

How to deliciously pickle gherkins:

Cucumbers should be used fresh, or, in extreme cases, picked no more than a day ago. We wash them and fill them with water for 3-4 hours.
We put all the necessary spices in jars, put the greens there, and then the gherkins tightly together.
Add salt and sugar to water and bring to a boil. After boiling, pour in vinegar. Then turn off the brine and let it stand for a couple of minutes. Then we pour it into jars.
After this, set the jars to sterilize for 5-6 minutes. To do this, place them in a pan of water and bring the water to a boil.
We take our cucumbers out of the water. Close the jar tightly with a lid, let it cool, and put it in a cool room.

Our gherkins are ready.

Recipe for crispy cucumbers with mustard

Ingredients you will need:

cucumbers;
peppercorns;
mustard seeds;
garlic and bay leaf.

For 1 liter of water:

sugar – 75 g;
60 g salt without a slide;
30 ml vinegar essence.

It is important to use vinegar essence; it is one of the components of the desired crunch.

Preservation stages:

Leave the cucumbers in cold water for a couple of hours.
Sterilize jars of the required volume.
Pack cucumbers tightly into hot jars.
Fill with hot water and leave for a quarter of an hour, cover with a towel. This procedure must be repeated twice. Then drain the water and boil it again.
While the water is boiling, put 5-6 peppercorns, a couple of bay leaves, garlic (a couple of cloves), and 1 teaspoon of grain mustard into each jar.
Salt and sugar should be added to the drained water per 1 liter. Add the essence only after turning off the heat under the pan. Mix thoroughly.
Fill the jars with marinade and seal.

There is no need to roll and turn the jars over onto the lid. The purpose of these manipulations is to retain heat in the workpiece. In this case it is not necessary.

Selection and preparation of ingredients

When starting to preserve gherkins, it is important to know how to purchase high-quality fruits so that the preservation is well preserved and delights with its taste.

When purchasing, you should pay attention to the following signs of good gherkins:

green, uniform skin color without white or yellowish spots. Spotting indicates that the fruits are overripe or the technique for growing them has been violated;
the tail is hard, dark green;
the fruit is compacted, without signs of lethargy;
the top cover of the cucumber is covered with pimples - this is an indicator that the fruit is crispy;
the length of the gherkin should not exceed 8 cm.

If you really want to pickle gherkins, you should pay special attention to the size. A fruit length greater than 8 cm may indicate that an unscrupulous seller intends to sell ordinary young cucumbers as gherkins.

Of course, both have many common characteristics, but gherkins are distinguished by more elastic flesh and delicate skin, so they are ideal for canning. When preparing for preservation, vegetables should be washed well and removed from the stems. It is advisable to soak them in cold water for 2-3 hours, then the fruits will crunch.

Did you know? To quickly peel a lot of garlic, you need to separate the heads into cloves, trim off the butts, put everything in a metal bowl, and then cover with another smaller bowl on top and shake for 10 seconds. Now all that remains is to remove the peeled cloves from the husks.

Many recipes for preserving gherkins for the winter involve adding garlic to the list of ingredients. You should choose hard, dry heads that have not sprouted. Garlic is peeled and cut, as a rule, into large slices.

Canned cucumbers will be more tasty and crunchy if you add a little spice. Each housewife selects them to her own taste, but there is also a classic set that includes currant, cherry, oak, horseradish, dill leaves, as well as caraway, tarragon, mint, and peppercorns.

Such additives not only improve taste, but also bring considerable benefits to the body. Leaves should be clean, without spots or signs of wilting. It is better to use regular coarse table salt without impurities. Fine salt can help soften canned gherkins.

Method without sterilization

What you will need: gherkins, sugar - 40 g, salt - 40 g, cloves - 2 buds, a mixture of peppers, dry garlic - 10 g, horseradish leaf.

What to do:

Wash the gherkins well. Keep in cold water for at least 6 hours.
Boil vinegar and water in a saucepan.
Add cucumbers to the marinade one at a time. As soon as one changes color, add a second one, and so on.
Then, when all the cucumbers have gone through the marinade, take them out of it and move them into a jar, layering them with spices.
Fill the containers with marinade and close.

Turn upside down and cool.

You can experiment with spices as you please. The main thing is not to get carried away with quantity and know what ingredients to add. You shouldn’t add spices that you don’t know anything about. Otherwise, time will be lost and the product will be damaged.

Tips on the topic

So that you are not left in doubt, we recommend that you familiarize yourself with useful tips that will facilitate the process of winter preparations:

If you want spicy gherkins, add the garlic clove without chopping.
Oak and horseradish give the gherkins a crispy texture.
Do not combine gherkins with celery and basil.
If you want to use mustard, use grain mustard, not powder.
An umbrella of dill will improve any recipe.
Traditionally, there should be two times less salt than sugar.
If you want sweet cucumbers, do not add honey to them. Better increase your sugar intake.
Skip allspice in favor of ground pepper and peppercorns.

Using a variety of methods for preparing pickled gherkins at home, people have gained a lot of experience in simplifying and speeding up the pickling process, so that the result is both quick and tasty.

For example:

Cucumbers should be washed exclusively with cold water. If you extend this process somewhat over time, then there is no need for an additional two-hour soaking of vegetables in cold water.
You can significantly speed up the process of pickling gherkins by soaking them for a couple of hours not just in cold water, but with the addition of currant, bay and cherry leaves. If you then drain this liquid, add sugar, vinegar, salt and boil it, you will get a good marinade, which all you have to do is pour the vegetables placed in the jars.
For those for whom vinegar, which is one of the main ingredients in most recipes, is contraindicated, there is a solution in the form of replacing it with citric acid.
When you cut off the ends of the gherkins, the pickling process noticeably speeds up.
To make pickled vegetables healthier, it is recommended to add sea salt rather than table salt during the cooking process.
To enhance the aroma of the finished product, you can use its seeds instead of dill.

We invite you to familiarize yourself with the Recipe for pickled ginger for home use.

Important! The less time passes from the moment of collecting gherkins in the vegetable garden to the cooking process, the crispier the pickled vegetables will be. Although for some lovers of pickled gherkins the “store-bought” level seems to be the standard of quality, by preparing them at home you can achieve better culinary results

The main thing is to follow the recipe and put in a little effort, and then you will have crispy, spicy cucumbers on your table all winter

Although for some lovers of pickled gherkins, the “store-bought” level seems to be the standard of quality, better culinary results can be achieved by preparing them at home. The main thing is to follow the recipe and put in a little effort, and then you will have crispy, savory cucumbers on your table all winter.