Gherkins

Joyce Goldenlily

Having made up some pickling vinegar I picked my first 3 gherkins and put them under salt for 24 hrs. Rinsed and dried them before dropping them into the jar of vinegar. I am now underway with my mini production line. I picked another 3 yesterday, hopefully, I will have a jar full by the end of the season. There are plenty of nucleus baby gherkins on the 2 plants which are loving the heat. 

barry island

I am hoping to pickle gherkins and have three plants just starting to produce, I was wondering how to do it as I missed one growing and it got too big for pickling so if they get to the right size in one or two's can they be pickled at different times and I don't need a batch of gherkins all at the same time to pickle?

Dovefromabove

Yes … you can also cut up the big ones and pickle them … you can buy jars of them quartered lengthwise. 😊 

barry island

Thanks that's what I'll do then, the big gherkin tasted nice but was mostly seeds so I think if I pick them when they are small they will be better. I do like anything pickled and have done beetroot already with shallots to do soon and gherkins will be a first time for me.

barry island

A question about salting Gherkins before pickling, I salted a few Gherkins for 24 hours to ensure that they are crispy but they have gone soft what did I do wrong, should I pickle them anyway or bin them and start again without the salting process? Thanks for any advice.

Dovefromabove

Salting removes moisture which will be replaced when the gherkin absorbs the vinegar and that’ll plump it up again …  so all is as it should be 👍 

barry island

I cut one open and tasted it and it was too salty, when I salt Shallots the salt washes off but the Gherkins were saturated with the salt, I think that I will start again without the salt next time.

Dovefromabove

Unless the salt is used to draw moisture out of the gherkin the vinegar won’t penetrate in order to replace the lost moisture and therefore the gherkin will not be crunchy and ‘preserved’ properly. 

The salt also helps prevent the growth of unsafe bacteria in your pickles. 

Tasting it before the process is completed doesn’t tell you anything. 

https://picklewiki.com/?p=200

barry island

Will the vinegar push the salt out of the Gherkin or maybe I left the salt on too long although I read that 24 hours was ok?

Dovefromabove

The vinegar will dilute the salt. 

You are rinsing and drying off the gherkins after salting?

barry island

Yes rinsing and drying but instead of crispy firm Gherkins I got limp very salty Gherkins, I noticed that after about 2 hours of salting the container had a good bit of liquid in it so I may try salting for 2 hours rather than 24 hours, thinking about it leaving them in salt for 24 hours the Gherkins seemed to have reabsorbed the salty liquid.