4 best step-by-step recipes for hot pickled cucumbers for the winter
There are many options for harvesting cucumbers for the winter, depending on the preferences of the hostess, they prepare salted and pickled, sweet and spicy, whole and cut. Spice is added to universal recipes, diversifying the taste by adding hot chili peppers, mustard, garlic, and aromatic spicy herbs. In fact, an unlimited number of delicious appetizer variations can be made from the base marinade.
The subtleties of cooking spicy cucumbers for the winter
When harvesting cucumbers for the winter, the soft taste of vegetables is enriched with seasonings and herbs. Zelentsy, twisted with hot pepper, will be spicy and savory, making an excellent addition to boiled potatoes and other dishes. The addition of tannin-containing leaves of cherry, oak, black currant will make the cucumbers dense and crispy..
Selection and preparation of cucumbers
For pickling, young fruits of a small size are preferred, the optimal length does not exceed 12 cm. Before harvesting, the cucumbers are thoroughly washed under running water, cleaning them from earth and sand, dried, cut off the ends, and, if required by the recipe, soaked in water for several hours. For individual twists, vegetables must be chopped into slices or circles.
How to prepare containers for the start of the process
Glass jars for workpieces are thoroughly cleaned with baking soda, and then rinsed with plenty of water to remove any remaining detergent. After that, the container is sterilized in any way possible and dried.
Pickling recipes
For the preparation of preservation, you can use family recipes passed down from generation to generation, or you can try something new by adding unusual ingredients to the base marinade. The composition and number of components of the appetizer can be varied as far as imagination is enough, or you can choose the most delicious recipe for spicy pickled cucumbers and stop at it.
With chili in jars "Lick your fingers"
To prepare a spicy snack with a hot red pepper, you need small cucumbers, large and overgrown ones will not work. You can add tomatoes, if there is room in the jars, then you get a vegetable platter. Tomatoes must be pierced near the stalk so that they do not crack. Cucumbers according to this recipe are delicious and crispy.
Ingredients:
- small cucumbers - 1 kg;
- garlic - 5 cloves;
- chili pepper - 1 pc .;
- salt - 2 tablespoons without a slide;
- sugar - 2 tablespoons with a slide;
- water - 1 l.
To cook hot pickled cucumbers with hot peppers, follow these steps:
- Jars are filled with washed cucumbers with cut off ends mixed with garlic and pepper.
- The marinade is made from water, salt and sugar.
- Vegetables are poured with boiling marinade.
- Filled cans, covered with lids, are sterilized in a water bath for 20 minutes.
- The processed workpieces are filled with water up to the neck and rolled up.
- Banks are turned over, wrapped, left to cool.
Variation without sterilization
Canned cucumbers can be cooked without sterilization, this will greatly simplify and speed up the preparation process. Vegetables should be cut into small pieces, so they will undergo better heat treatment with boiling water and will be better stored.
To prepare pickled vegetables without sterilization, you will need:
- cucumbers - 1 kg;
- chili pepper - 3 pcs.;
- vinegar - 120 ml;
- dill - 1 bunch;
- garlic - 3 heads;
- sugar - 3 teaspoons;
- salt - 1.5 teaspoons.
Prepare a snack without sterilization like this:
- Put some washed dill at the bottom of the prepared jar.
- To the top, the container is filled with cucumbers cut into 3-4 parts, halves of garlic cloves, hot pepper rings, herbs.
- Pour boiling water over the contents of the jar, cover with a lid and leave to cool.
- A marinade is boiled from the cooled liquid, for this it is poured into a saucepan, mixed with salt, sugar and vinegar, and then boiled for 3 minutes.
- The brine is poured into vegetables, the lid is tightened.
- The jar is wrapped and, after cooling, is removed to the pantry.
With mustard seeds
Sharp cucumbers can be stocked up for the winter by adding mustard seeds to the vegetables. A savory appetizer is made from vegetables cut lengthwise - they are quickly pickled and ready to eat in a week. Ground black pepper will add additional spice.
For mustard preparation you will need:
- cucumbers - 2 kg;
- vinegar - 0.5 cups;
- sugar - 0.5 cups;
- vegetable oil - 0.5 cups;
- mustard seeds - 1 tablespoon;
- salt - 50 g;
- ground black pepper - 0.5 teaspoon.
You can prepare spicy cucumbers with mustard seeds as follows:
- Cucumbers cut lengthwise into 4 pieces are placed in a bowl.
- Spices, oil and vinegar are added to the vegetables, everything is thoroughly mixed and left to marinate at room temperature for about 5 hours.
- Vegetables are packed vertically in pre-prepared jars, the packing should be quite dense.
- Jars filled with cucumbers are poured with the juice isolated during the pickling process, the brine should cover the whole vegetables.
- The jars are sterilized in a water bath for 40 minutes.
- The containers are sealed with lids, wrapped until they cool, and taken to the pantry.
With fragrant marinade
A universal basic recipe for a fragrant marinade is suitable for any vegetables, it will perfectly marinate cucumbers - moderately crispy, sweetish and with the degree of spiciness preferred by the hosts and guests. The secret of the aroma of the marinade is in the addition of herbs and favorite spices, the pungency is regulated by the amount of garlic, pepper and horseradish.
In order to prepare a fragrant and moderately spicy snack for the winter, you need to take the following ingredients:
- water - 1 l;
- sugar - 1 tablespoon;
- salt - 1 tablespoon;
- vinegar - half a glass;
- horseradish root - to taste;
- bay leaf - to taste;
- parsley, dill, other favorite herbs - 1 bunch;
- garlic to taste;
- allspice peas - to taste;
- hot peppers, cut into rings and freed from seeds - to taste.
The components are indicated per liter of water. A three-liter jar will require up to one and a half liters of brine, the total amount is calculated by already distributing the cucumbers in containers and knowing how much liquid is needed.
Prepare hot cucumbers in a fragrant marinade as follows:
- A marinade is cooked from water, salt, sugar, vinegar, pepper, bay leaves, herbs. After a quarter of an hour, greens are removed from the boiling liquid.
- In the prepared jars, sprigs of the selected greens, bay leaves, a few peppercorns, chopped horseradish root, hot pepper rings, garlic are placed on the bottom.
- Fill the containers to the top with tightly packed cucumbers.
- Pour vegetables with marinade.
- The cans are sterilized for 20 minutes and rolled up.
- The container is turned over, wrapped, cooled and stored in the pantry.
Further storage of cucumbers
If the conservation is prepared according to all the rules, then further storage of the cans is not difficult. In country houses, it is convenient to keep pickled delicacies in the cellar, basement or underground.
In the conditions of apartment buildings, pantries, specially equipped lockers, or just free space under the bed are suitable.
The main thing is to follow a few simple conditions:
- Banks should not be placed near heating devices.
- Preservation does not tolerate direct sunlight.
- Frost is harmful to pickled cucumbers.
Shelf life of blanks
Cucumbers pickled in glass jars should not be kept for more than two years. During this period, it is necessary to periodically inspect them and safely throw them away if the lids are swollen or the brine becomes cloudy. After the jar is opened, its contents are stored in the refrigerator for no more than three days.
Any hostess is pleased to receive compliments for the skillful homemade preservation. Various options of spicy pickled cucumbers will satisfy even the most demanding gourmets without much difficulty.
