Bread 'n' Butter Pickles are a classic cucumber pickle with an appealing combination of sweet and sour flavors. They are great on their own, or in sandwiches. And yes, their namesake recipe - these pickles plus bread and butter - is very tasty.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Salting time: 4 hours
Total Time: 4 hours, 20 minutes
Yield: 5 - 6 half pint jars
Ingredients:
2 1/2 pounds small, firm cucumbers, unpeeled, sliced into 1/8-inch thick rounds
- 3/4 pound onions, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 large bell pepper, red or green, stemmed, seeded and chopped or cut into slivers
- 3 tablespoons kosher or other non-iodized salt (iodized salt discolors pickles)
- 1 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup water
- 1 tablespoon whole mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon whole allspice
- 3/4 teaspoon celery seeds
Preparation:
In a large bowl, toss the cucumbers, onions and bell pepper with the salt. Transfer the salted vegetables to a colander. Place the colander over the bowl you used to mix the vegetables and leave to drain for 4 hours.
Rinse the cucumbers, peppers and onions under cold water to remove most of the salt. Put them into a large pot. Add the vinegar, water, sugar, mustard seeds, allspice and celery seeds.
Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring to help dissolve the sugar. As soon as the liquid reaches a boil, turn off the heat.
Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cucumbers, peppers and onions to sterilized canning jars (or any clean but unsterilized glass jar if you're going to store them in the refrigerator rather than sealing them in canning jars). Pack the vegetables into the jars tightly but leave at least 3/4-inch head space between the top of the vegetables and the rims of the jars.
Pour the hot brine over the cucumbers. You want the vegetables to be completely covered by the brine but there should still be 1/2-inch head space. Gently press down on the pickles with the back of a spoon to release any air bubbles.
Any leftover brine can be saved in the refrigerator and reheated for future batches of bread and butter pickles.
Screw on the canning lids. Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 months. For longer storage at room temperature, process in a boiling water bath for 5 minutes.
Wait at least a week for the flavors to develop before sampling (they're even better after 2 weeks).
