Why soak cucumbers before pickling and how to do it correctly?

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In this article we will find out why you need to soak cucumbers before pickling.

There are a huge variety of ways to pickle and pickle cucumbers! Just look at homemade recipe books. And how many magical secrets of making delicious pickled cucumbers do housewives know: grandmothers, mothers...

An important point is the preparation of raw materials and containers for salting. This will largely determine whether the cucumbers turn out crispy or whether they will “explode”... Some recipes advise: before pickling and canning, the cucumbers need to be kept in cold water - soaked. But for how many hours? Here opinions differ.

Choosing vegetables

Before you start preserving, you need to prepare the best cucumbers. The main criteria are color, size and elasticity. Experienced housewives know that the ideal vegetables are those that have black pimples. Jars with such fruits almost never explode.

Never purchase deformed fruits that are overgrown and yellowed. They should be the same, even and small. The optimal length is from 5 to 13 centimeters. All the rest of the illiquid stock can be used to prepare the salad.

Which cucumbers to choose for pickling

The key to successful preservation is the correct choice of the main ingredient. The ideal option would be small (up to 13 cm), smooth, elastic, bright green fruits with tubercles. With such cucumbers, the preparation turns out to be especially tasty, and the jars almost never explode.

It is also worth paying attention to the peel. It should be thick, so that it is difficult to pierce it with a fingernail.

It's good when you have the opportunity to taste a vegetable. Bitter fruits with voids are definitely not suitable for pickling, or they will have to be soaked for a day.

The following varieties of cucumbers are ideal for canning:

As for early ripening fruits, it is better to eat them fresh rather than canned. They have a delicate and thin skin and contain more harmful elements, which cannot be completely eliminated even if you soak the cucumbers in salt water.

It is better to take an enamel container for the procedure

What is the best water for soaking?

Below we will talk more about how and how long you can soak cucumbers before canning. And now I would like to pay attention to what kind of water can be used for this. A spring or well is best.

If you do not have this option, then place a container of tap water in the refrigerator in advance. About 8-10 hours, and it will become somewhat closer to the standard in its properties.

All housewives emphasize that the taste of cucumbers soaked in well water will certainly surprise you. They turn out crispy and tender, elastic and amazingly tasty. What other ways are there to improve regular water?

You can use a bottled one, but this is only if the volume of vegetables to be pickled is small. Tap water can be boiled or passed through a filter, and then infused with silver.

Why soak cucumbers before pickling?

It is customary to soak cucumbers before harvesting. The optimal soaking time is 3 hours, no longer. Why is this being done? There are many reasons given, but they are, in my opinion, quite controversial:

• Version one is to get rid of bitterness. In fact, this may be relevant for lightly salted cucumbers; for pickling and pickling for the winter, this bitterness does not pose any threat; it never occurs in cucumbers that have been in brine for a long time.
• The second version is to get rid of harmful substances that could accumulate during growth when using fertilizers, in particular, nitrate. This interpretation does not stand up to criticism - no saltpeter will come out of cucumbers in such a short soaking time.
• The third version is to revive cucumbers that have begun to wither and dry out. Also a so-so option. Why harvest limp cucumbers?

I will express my opinion on this matter based on personal experience. By soaking I solve two significant problems. One of them is that during growth and transportation, dried plaques of remains of flowers, soil and other foreign components accompanying growth may remain on the fruits.

Soaking for 3 hours completely “steams off” all this unnecessary debris .

The second problem, and this is more important, is that cucumbers absorb liquid very well. If cucumbers that are not soaked or saturated with water are poured with brine and the jar is screwed on, then after cooling it turns out that the brine in the already closed jar is not enough, the level is missing by a couple of centimeters, and this creates empty space in the jar, which is highly undesirable if there is a calculation for long-term storage.

From the above, two main points follow: even very fresh-looking cucumbers must be soaked for better washing, and there should be as little air as possible in the jars with cucumbers. A small subtlety: during sterilization, brine is absorbed into even soaked cucumbers, so before closing the lids, you should add it “to the fullest.”

What about other recipes?

Is it necessary to soak cucumbers at all? In search of an answer to this question, I looked at other recipes and leafed through all the magazines I had at home on the topic of homemade preparations. What happens:

- in some recipes, cucumbers are advised to be washed well and wiped dry, - or washed thoroughly, doused with boiling water and cut off the ends, - in most recipes, cucumbers only need to be washed well before pickling and pickling, - in some recipes, cucumbers are recommended to be soaked before storing for the winter, and soaking time varies from 2 to 8 hours .

Whether to soak cucumbers or not depends on the individual preferences of the housewife and on the recipe for pickling or pickling cucumbers. The average soaking time is 3 hours. Soaking cucumbers is an optional procedure, but very useful.

How long should you soak cucumbers?

Another pressing question for lovers of homemade preparations is how long to immerse vegetables in a container of cold water? Some recipes recommend soaking for 3-4 hours, others recommend leaving the cucumbers in water overnight. Which is correct? Here are the main recommendations:

• If the cucumbers are your own and have been stored at room temperature for up to 36 hours, just immerse them in cold water for 3-6 hours. This will help restore lost moisture. The smaller the size of the fetus, the less time is required for this procedure.
• It is recommended to soak store-bought vegetables for at least 12 hours - which is why it is better to leave them overnight and start pickling in the morning.
• Large vegetables that have been lying around for some time should be kept in liquid for at least a day.

If time is pressing, you can reduce the soaking of old cucumbers to 8 hours, but leaving even less time for this procedure is strictly not recommended - the natural moisture balance will not be restored and harvesting will not be possible.

Instead of crispy cucumbers that family members will happily eat in the evening, you will get a snack of very mediocre taste, with internal voids and without a sonorous crunch.

Salting in barrels and tubs

The same source in the section “Salting in barrels and tubs” says:

• According to the old tradition, before placing cucumbers in barrels for pickling, they are kept in water for 5-8 hours. During this time, the cucumbers will swell, become elastic and dense. During salting, voids will not appear in them, they will not become limp, but will turn out very crispy.

And another source writes:

• Before pickling, the cucumbers are sorted, the unusable ones are discarded, and then washed thoroughly. The washed cucumbers are immediately placed in a barrel. As for canning, it is said: Cucumbers are soaked in water for several hours , after which they are washed thoroughly.

In a word, we are convinced once again: whether to soak cucumbers or not is a matter of taste!

How to soak?

Before cooking cucumbers that have been left to pick for some time, they should be soaked - we found this out. However, before immersing vegetables in water, you should wash them thoroughly. This will help not only get rid of soil, but also destroy bacteria accumulated on the skin.

For best results, use the following tips:

• It is best to keep cucumbers in water in an enamel bowl, but this is not necessary; a regular plastic basin will do.
• Before sending to the container, each fruit should be cut off at both ends, this will help moisture (and later brine) penetrate inside.
• After soaking, you should rinse the vegetables again with running water. This procedure is a great way to prevent mold from appearing on workpieces.

Thus, soaking cucumbers before pickling is not necessary, but it is useful.

Interestingly, before sowing, it is recommended to soak the seeds of this vegetable crop for germination and treat it with Epin.

How to properly soak cucumbers before pickling

There are three main rules for soaking cucumbers:

If the cucumbers are soaked for a day before pickling, then the water is changed for the last time as late as possible. It's better if it's ice cold.

Some housewives recommend cutting the tails off cucumbers before the procedure. In their opinion, this part contains the maximum amount of harmful substances. However, experts in the field of preparations note that if the integrity of cucumbers is violated, the taste quality decreases. They don't turn out as springy and crispy as they could be.

What salt to use for home pickling cucumbers and how much?

Salt is almost the main component that helps cucumbers retain all their beneficial properties. The modern housewife has a fairly large selection of this product, so sometimes, at her own peril and risk, she puts sea or iodized salt in a jar with vegetables.

In principle, you can quite easily use such a preservative. Some housewives even claim that iodized salt makes cucumbers more healthy. In fact, this is not true at all. To make this product, a substance called potassium iodide is used, which is absolutely not suitable for food preservation.

During long-term storage, it begins to deteriorate and this immediately affects both the taste and appearance of vegetables. If we talk about sea salt, its qualities are practically no different from ordinary rock salt. The only thing that distinguishes them is the price.

Therefore, there is no need to chase fashion and buy a more expensive product.

You can quite easily buy the rock salt we are used to and use it to make delicious pickles. Moreover, it is rock salt that reveals the taste qualities of greens as well as possible, while maintaining their natural hardness and crunch.

Seasoning for pickling cucumbers

In order for the pickles to be as flavorful as possible, in addition to water and salt, you must add as many spicy seasonings as possible to the jar. Some housewives, due to a simple lack of time, buy ready-made seasonings and simply sprinkle them on the vegetables.

In principle, the taste of such a product is quite tolerable, but still it cannot be compared with cucumbers that have been pickled with fresh herbs. Therefore, if you want your greens to have their own special individual taste, then prepare the pickling seasoning yourself.

To do this, go to the garden and pick fresh currant leaves, cherries, horseradish, dill umbrellas and a few heads of garlic. After all these greens have been thoroughly washed and dried, they can be safely placed in clean jars.

And in order for the pickles to be not only aromatic, but also piquant, be sure to add a mixture of peppers, horseradish root and a couple of pieces of chili pepper to the cucumbers.

If you are not lazy and spend a little more time than usual, then in winter your cucumbers will be an excellent addition to meat dishes.

How to avoid mistakes when pickling cucumbers

Ready cucumbers should have moderately dense and crispy flesh. The taste is salty and sour, with a pleasant aroma of spices and herbs. The color is greenish-olive. The brine should be clear, with minimal cloudiness. Store pickles at temperatures close to 0 °C.

Problems that arise when pickling cucumbers:

Cucumbers don't crunch. You chose the wrong variety of cucumbers, or took too large fruits; left the jar with the finished product too long in unsuitable conditions; you didn't put enough salt. Use these “non-crispy” ones for sauces such as tartar and for preparing pickles and mixed solyankas.

Cucumbers are sour. You didn't put in enough salt or forgot to put it in altogether. Don’t correct anything, just throw away such blanks.

Cucumbers become moldy. Banks are not sterilized enough; There is not enough salt in the brine. Rinse the cucumbers, digest the brine, and reprocess the jars. Add 1 tbsp to the brine. l. vodka per 1 liter of solution, and salt if you feel a slight sourness.

White flakes have formed at the bottom of the jar. This is how lactic acid manifests itself. If there are a lot of flakes, you did not soak the cucumbers long enough before pickling. Catch the cucumbers, wash them and use them as quickly as possible. If there is little sediment, do nothing - use the cucumbers for their intended purpose as usual.

Some cucumbers have softened and lost their shape. You used flabby or frozen fruits; they were packed too tightly in the jar. Take them out and use them for salads, pie fillings, soups or making spreads/sauces. Take out the remaining cucumbers too, filter the brine and refill with the liquid product.

Pickling cucumbers in a barrel: recipe

If you want to try cucumbers prepared according to an old recipe, then for this you will have to find a real oak barrel. First, you will need to pour water into it and wait until the wood absorbs it slightly.

After it swells a little, the water will need to be drained and the barrel should be allowed to dry a little. To make the cucumbers as fragrant as possible, be sure to rub the entire inside of the barrel with fresh garlic. Once the preparation of the container is completed, you can begin to pickle the greens.

So:

1. Rinse the cucumbers, fill them with water and leave to soak in moisture for 10-12 hours
2. Prepare a large amount of horseradish, cherry and currant leaves
3. Be sure to prepare the brine in advance and cool it to room temperature.
4. Prepare the brine at the rate of 900 g of salt per 10 liters of water
5. Start putting cucumbers mixed with spicy herbs into the barrel
6. For added piquancy, you can also add horseradish root to the vegetables.
7. When the barrel is completely filled, fill it with brine, cover it with a cloth and a special lid
8. To prevent the greens from rising above the brine during fermentation, be sure to place something heavy on the lid
9. After approximately 25 days, the cucumbers will be ready to eat.

Dry pickling of cucumbers without brine

If you need to make cucumbers in a faster way, then pickle them in an ordinary plastic bag. This method allows you to achieve the desired result much faster and literally within a day after the start of the pickling process, you will be able to please your family with hard and aromatic cucumbers.

Pickling cucumbers in a bag with dill:

1. Select small springy greens and rinse them in cold water
2. Carefully cut each cucumber with a knife and place them in a clean bag
3. Chop dill, parsley, celery, garlic and hot pepper and add it all to the cucumbers
4. Salt and pepper the vegetables and herbs and tie the bag as carefully as possible
5. Shake the bag vigorously, place it in a bowl and place it in the refrigerator for a day.
6. Place the finished cucumbers in a hermetically sealed container and store in a cool, dark place.