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                      PREVENTING PICKLING PROBLEMS

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Serving Size  : 1    Preparation Time :0:00
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 Amount  Measure       Ingredient -- Preparation Method
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                       -----PROBLEM PREVENTION-----

 There are so many factors involved in pickling --
 weather and growing conditions, type of salt, acidity
 of vinegar, storage temperature, time from gathering
 to pickling, processing -- that sometimes things go
 wrong. Here are some common problems and causes.

 1. SOFT OR SLIPPERY PICKLES: Could result from not
 removing the scum from the surface of the brine; from
 not keeping the cucumbers submerged in the brine; from
 using too weak of brine or vinegar, using hard water,
 or not removing the blossom end of a cucumber; from
 not sealing each jar as it is filled; from not heating
 long enough to destroy microorganisms; or from storing
 in too warm a spot. Check jars carefully for signs of
 spoilage.

 2. SHRIVELED PICKLES: May be the result of too strong
 brine, vinegar, syrup, or pickling solution, or may
 mean cucumbers didn't travel from the field to the
 kitchen fast enough.

 3. HOLLOW PICKLES: Could result from too long a time
 between pickling and processing, from improper curing
 or too high a temperature during fermentation, or from
 bad growing conditions.  Don't use any cucumbers that
 float as you wash them.

 4. DARK PICKLES: Indicate iron in the water or cooking
 utensil, ground spices or whole spices left in jars,
 cooking too long with spices, or hard water.

 5. FADED, DULL  PICKLES: Result from poor growing
 conditions or too mature cucumbers.

 6. WHITE SEDIMENT IN THE BOTTOM OF JARS: It isn't
 harmful. It could come from not using pure granulated
 salt, or could be the result of fermentation. Check
 jars carefully for signs of spoilage.

 7. SPOILED PICKLES: Means you didn't process them
 properly; that you used old ingredients, nonstandard
 jars, or old lids; or that the pickling solution
 wasn't boiling hot, or you filled too many jars before
 sealing them. In other words, you didn't follow
 directions! Check jars carefully for signs of spoilage.

 Source Vegetable Gardening Encyclopedia Typos by
 Dorothy Flatman 1995



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