The Vancouver independent. (Vancouver, W.T. [Wash.]) 1875-1910, 1883-11-01
A Chapter on Pickles.

anu something sharp, sour and spicy
will be gladly welcomed. Hence the
demand for pickles.
There are pickles and pickles. The
only way to have good ones, about which
you need have no fear that their present
state was brought about by doubtful
means, is to oversee the operation of
making them yourself. Some way the
"home. made pickles bought at the store
have an unpleasant uncertainty about
them, and too often lack the crisp spiel
ness possessed by those which undergo
the transformation in our own kitchens,
and homemade in fact as we'll as in
brand and imagination.
If pickles are made rightly, and good
materials used, they will keep without
any trouble, and will be in as good con-
dition at the end of two years as they are
Q month after they are put up.
Cider or white wine vinegar should be
used, for if the vinegar is not good the
pickles will not keep. 1t is important
also that whatever kind of vegetables
are used should be fresh.
The common way of putting down Gu
cumbers for pickles is to place them in
brine as they are cut from the vines, ad
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until the barrel is full. The cucumbers
must be very strong and the pickles held
under it by heavy weight. Caulifower
may be put down in the same way. To
make either into pickles they must be
soaked in water for several days, during
which time the water must be changed
twice day. They usually keep we'll
in brine, but we think it less trouble to
make them into pickles at once, and
have them ready for use at any time.
An excellent way to make cucumber
pickles, when large quantity is to be
taken care of, is to put them down with
sugar. Cut the cucumbers from the
vines while quite small. For pickles
cucumbers should never exceed three
inches in length, and two inches and two
and half inches are long enough. Rinse
them by placing them in a colander and
dashing cold water over them; cover the
bottom of the barrel with q layer of
sugar half an inch deep, then put in q
layer of cucumbers, and cover with
sugar, and add alternate layers of cucum-
beers and of suger until the barrel is full.
Put thick layer of sugar over the top.
The sugar and juice from the cucumbers
will make q vinegar which makes an ex-
ceilent pickle. A weight must be put On
top to keep the pickles down, and the
barrel provided with tight wooden lid.
In q short time the pickles will be very
sour. When put down in this way they
keep their fresh green color. They are
ready for table use at any time, and need
only to be rinsed of and have fresh vine-
gar poured over them; but we think
them best with spice added. Take out
two quarts of pickles, rinse. and place in
q jar. Take enough fresh vinegar to
cover them add to it two table spoonfuls
of salt, one tea spoonful of pepper, one
ounce of ginger root, one ounce OF mus
tard, and half an ounce OF mace; boil to-
gether ten minutes; then pour over the
pickles in jar. They will be ready for
use in ten or twelve hours. The same
vinegar may be used for more pickles.
To put up cucumbers in bottles, put
them first in n strong brine for two days;
remove from the brine and let them stay
in cold water two hours; then put them
over the fire with enough weak vinegar
and water to cover them. Do not let
them boil. AS soon as they are tender
remove from the vinegar and put in bot
ties. Pour over them strong spiced vim
egar which has been prepared while the
cncumbers were heating. To each quart
of vinegar add one teaspoOnful OF salt,
one teaspoonful of pepper, one of mus.
tard seed, and quarter of an ounce of
ginger roo.. Pour over the pickles in
the bottle boiling hot, and seal mp i'm.
mediately. Green tomatoes, caulifower,
beans, martinoes, green peppers, and
nasturtiums are put up In exactly the
same manner. Onion pickles are made
the same way, except that they do not
need to be put in brine.
Chowchow pickles call for all kinds of
vegetables and seed pods the garden Will
furnish-smsll green tomatoes, cucum-
beers. beans, peppers, raddish pods,
onions, caulitiower, cabbage, etc. There
should not be enough onions to flavor
the pickles strongly. Cut the larger
vegetables into sma pieces, and put all
in Jar; pour over them boiling salt and
water: let them stand until cold; then
put in bag, and hang up to drain over
night. After draining pour over them
boiling vinegar; let them stand until
cold; then pour off the vinegar; pour in
on the stove; add one teaspoonful Of salt
and one of pepper to each quart OF vine'
gar. For the same quantity OF vinegar
take one quarter Of pound OF mustard.
one o cupful of sugar and one quar-
Ter of a cupful OF -four. Mix the mus.
tard. -four, and sugar we'll together dryi
then mix smooth with little cold vine
gar; pour into the boiling vinegar and
cook Ava miputes Pack the pickles in