Three Lactofermented Pickle Recipes - Homestead Honey (2024)

FAQs

Can you use honey when pickling? ›

Add the vinegars, honey, salt, garlic, mustard seeds, peppercorns, turmeric, chile flakes and bay leaves to a saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the honey and the salt. Carefully pour the brine over the pickles, stopping 1/2 inch from the top. Let cool completely, then cover with a lid and refrigerate.

Quick pickles, the most common type of pickle found in grocery stores, are not fermented because they use an acid, such as vinegar, in their pickling brine. However, Lacto-fermented pickles are fermented because they follow the lactic acid fermentation method, which only uses water and salt in its brine.

People preserve some pickles in a fermented brine that contains beneficial bacteria, which means they can be a good addition to a healthful diet. Fermented pickles offer more health benefits than other pickles. Even unfermented pickles, however, are rich in vitamins such as vitamin K and vitamin A.

It may be a normal reaction during fermentation caused by bacteria. If the pickles are soft, they are spoiled from the yeast fermentation. Don't use them. Using too weak a salt brine or vinegar solution may cause soft or slippery pickles, as can using moldy garlic or storing the pickles at too warm a temperature.

The very high sugar content of honey makes it an environment that most bacteria and yeasts can't grow in. One group of yeasts (called osmophilic yeasts) are more tolerant of high sugar environments, and they have potential to grow in honey—they are the ones we need to be concerned about when considering fermentation.

When using honey in wine making before the fermentation, you want to use it in-place-of or instead-of the sugar called for in the wine recipe you are using. As a general rule-of-thumb you can replace 1 pound of sugar with 1.2 to 1.3 pounds of honey. You can also use a wine hydrometer to determine how much honey to add.

The answer is yes, your ferments are happiest in the fridge.

Keep Fermentation Short

The longer the fermentation process, the softer the vegetables become. To limit this effect, only leave your pickles to ferment for a few days at room temperature, then refrigerate.

The popular claussen pickles are not fermented, they are pickled. These are two different preservation methods; fermenting is pickling, but pickling is not fermenting. Let me explain, plus let's talk about brands of fermented pickles, how to find fermented pickles in the grocery store and how to make pickles at home.

White deposits at the bottom of the jar are normal – they're partly yeast and leftovers from fermentation (salt, sugar, etc.).

How many fermented pickles should I eat a day? ›

For those that are used to fermented or probiotic foods and consume a good amount of fiber, the right amount is three times a day. The amount you consume doesn't have to be a lot. Serving sizes are quite reasonable, for example, a half a pickle, or a quarter cup of sauerkraut.

Fermented foods are considered safe for most people. However, some individuals may experience side effects. Due to the high probiotic content of fermented foods, the most common side effect is an initial and temporary increase in gas and bloating ( 32 ).

Because we pack our products in a glass jar, consumers can see that the jar contains pickles,” a Mt. Olive spokesperson tells TODAY.com. “Consequently, we use the front label to focus on the variety — the cut and flavor — of the pickle inside the jar.

Lime is a source of calcium. Calcium improves pickle firmness. Food-grade lime may be used as a lime-water solution for soaking fresh cucumbers 12 to 24 hours before pickling them. Excess lime absorbed by the cucumbers must be removed to make safe pickles.

The lactic acid fermentation process produces lactic acid bacteria that create gases when they feast on the vegetables. These gases are often visible as bubbles throughout the jar after a few days at room temperature and are a good sign.

"Pickles are about vinegar and salt, not sweetness," says Perry. Yes, you should have some sugar, but be wary of recipes that call for more than a ¼ cup of sugar. Your brine should lean salty, not syrupy. If you just use vinegar in your brine, it will be way too sharp, warns Perry.

In a product made with pectin, replace up to 1 cup sugar with 1 cup honey for every 6-pint recipe; be sure to adjust the amount of liquid in the recipe. In recipes with no added pectin, honey can replace up to half of the sugar; decrease the amount of liquid by the amount of honey added.

Salts not suitable for brining and pickling solutions are table salt and iodized salt, rock salt, and salt substitutes. Vinegar: A tart liquid that prevents the growth of bacteria. Always use a vinegar with an acidity level of 5 percent.

Brine is a strong solution of water and salt. A sweetener such as sugar, molasses, honey, or corn syrup may be added to the solution for flavor and to improve browning.