Fill a barrel with cucumbers. Add 6 to 8 pounds of green or brined dill,
or half that quantity of dry dill, and 1 quart of mixed spices. If brined
dill is used, it is well to add about 2 quarts of the dill brine. The
dill and spices should be evenly distributed at the bottom, middle, and
top of the barrel. Also add 1 gallon of good vinegar.[2]
[2] This addition of vinegar is not essential, and many prefer not to
use it. In the proportion indicated, however, it is favorable to the
growth of the lactic bacteria and helps to prevent the growth of spoilage
organisms. Its use, therefore, is to be regarded with favor. Some prefer
to omit the mixed spices for the reason that they interfere with the
distinctive flavor of the dill herb.
Head up tight and, through a hole bored in the head, fill the barrel with
a brine made in the proportion of one-half pound of salt to a gallon of
water. Add brine until it flows over the head and is level with the top
of the chime. Maintain this level by adding brine from time to time.
Remove the scum which soon forms on the surface.
During the period of active fermentation, keep the barrel in a warm
place and leave the hole in the head open to allow gas to escape. When
active fermentation is over, as indicated by the cessation of bubbling
and frothing on the surface, the barrel may be plugged tight and placed
in storage, preferably in a cool place. Leakage and other conditions may
cause the brine in a barrel of pickles to recede at any time. The barrels
should be inspected occasionally, and more brine added if necessary.
Pickles put up in this way should be ready for use within about six weeks.
When pickles are to be held in storage a long time, a 28° brine, made by
adding 10 ounces of salt to a gallon of water, should be used. Pickles
packed in a brine of this strength will keep a year, if the barrels are
kept filled and in a cool place. The important factor in preserving
pickles put up in a weak brine, such as is ordinarily used for dill
pickles, is the exclusion of air. When put up in tight barrels this is
accomplished by keeping the barrels entirely filled with brine.