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| Michal Ansky |
1 kg. (2.2 pounds) small cucumbers
10 peeled garlic cloves, sliced lengthwise
1 green chili pepper, sliced in half
2-5 sprigs of dill
2-3 bay leaves
1/2 tsp. whole black peppercorns
Water
Salt
2-3 tbs. natural vinegar
1. Rinse the cucumbers and remove any remaining barbs.
2. Spread the garlic and the hot chili pepper in the bottom of a tall jar and pack the jar with the cucumbers and the dill. Add the bay leaves and the peppercorns.
3. Boil water with salt -- about one heaping teaspoon per cup of water. After the water comes to a boil, lower the flame. Wait 2–3 minutes; then pour the hot, salty water over the cucumbers. Add the vinegar. Lay the gauze over the cucumbers, and place the not-particularly-fresh heel of bread on top of the gauze. Close the top, but not hermetically.
4. Set the jar in a sunny place, on a windowsill. Two or three days later, when the cucumbers and the pickling water change to a khaki color, they are ready to eat.
*Very important: Do not insert your fingers in the jar. Remove the pickles with a fork or tongs.
This recipe originally appeared in our B'yachad magazine.