I suspect that this will be the first entry of a future series as my quest is definitely a work in progress. I LOVE PICKLES. Pretty much anything pickled will do actually. You name it, pickle it, and I’ll LOVE IT! But my true love is for the great Montreal deli dill’s. I long for that joyful crunch and the sweet pain of their loyal sour juice thereafter. An experience unlike any other really.
My unforeseen quest for the perfect green gem probably dates back to University days where I was introduced to some fabulous homemade pickles that a good friend of mine had brought back with him to school. It would seem that his mother was a kind of connoisseur as they were delicious! A key ingredient for Mooke’s mom was her very own cucumbers. She could literally go to the garden and instantaneously become the great pickle creator!
I was thrilled with the idea of making my own. I got the recipe and made my first batch that summer for the next year of school. They were really great too, sorry, I’ve lost the recipe since then which is why my quest goes on….
It has been at least 7 years since my first batch of pickles. Moving, travelling, enjoying my youth took precedent as it should and now I find myself in a settled situation where my journey can finally begin. However no pickling recipe will do. Although my first batch was excellent it was a far cry from the Montreal Sensation. How do they get soooo sour?
I started surfing the Internet looking for clues because I knew I was missing something. Something big. Could it be more salt? Could it be more garlic? What about the seasoning? What is the bloody secret!? And then I was given the ultimate tease. My work colleague brought in a jar of pickles he had made and bingo! The magical flavor I’ve been searching for. To my dismay I was denied the secret!!! “It’s a family secret. Sorry I can’t tell you!”
WHAT! I was even more determined now as someone I knew had already broken the pickle code! And then I realized what I had been missing (talk about keyword optimization), I had not used Montreal or deli pickle as a search query! Suddenly I had a recipe in front of me and it seemed that it was one of the only recipes I could find! I quickly read through it to finally unlock my mystery and there it was! The Secret for making a great deli dill is?????????????

NO VINEGAR!

That’s it folks. No vinegar. When salt and pickling spices are combined with water and cucumbers a fermentation process begins which in turn naturally creates a brine resulting in that distinct deli taste. The jars should then be placed in a dark cool space and left to ferment for a while. The longer they ferment I think the more sour they should be. This fermentation process will continue on however once they achieve the flavour you were seeking throw them in the fridge as refrigeration slows the process down considerably. No boiling water, no canning process, just lovely Ole cold water.

So I did it. I unlocked the mystery but will they be good? I don’t know. The measurements were for gallon jars which I was of course not working with so I had to guess a bit so only time will tell.

Stay Tuned……………………..

Click Here for the Recipe!! (Will open in new window)