As you know, my quest for the great deli dill pickle has begun. Of course when making pickles patience must be a virtue which is something I often lack. So I created a distraction which I must say was incredibly clever. I took part in a cleanse! I already spoke a bit about the process “In the name of good health” entry so I won’t get into that again, but it worked. The wait was painless, but would the first bite be??

Oh the suspence was killing me as I struggled to open the bloody jar. I still wasn’t convinced that this recipe wasn’t going to kill me. I’ve never heard of pickling without vinegar before so as far as I was concernend this fabulous pickle could be the end of me and my quest!

But I carried on and took that first bite: A slight ouch, great crunch, it tastes sour! Yeah I think its going to be great….. wait a minute, …no it’s not that sour….what is that….garlic?…no…yes…and too much salt….yeah a LOT of salt. Damn!

Not quite, but not too bad either. The recipe is definately correct in the sense that natural fermentation is what gives a pickle the deli pickle taste. I went off course by modifying the recipe slightly. I did not have gallon jars so I had to estimate. I also added more garlic and bay leaves which most definately took these pickles in a different direction.

All the same though I’m getting closer. I suspect that there will be several batches to go before I can finally put this quest to rest, but Im ok with that!