Crisp Garlic Dilly Beans or Cucumbers

(Pending permission to reprint)

Recipe from Jeffrey Yoskowitz of The Gefiteria and author of The Gefilte Manifesto: New Recipes for Old World Jewish Food (printed with permission pending)

Several weeks ago, I attended a hands-on demonstration given by Jeffrey Yoskowitz using Lacto-Fermentations (in lieu of Vinegar Pickling) for making Crisp Garlic Dilly Beans.  As Jeffrey pointed out, it required four things:  Salt, spice, produce (the freshest green beans or thinnest cucumbers possible!) and patience.  Here are his simple steps.

 Cooking directions:

 1.     Fill a pint-sized jar with water (2 cups).  Add I heaping Tablespoon kosher salt and shake or stir to dissolve the salt fully.

2.    Place cucumbers or green beans in the jar (as many as will fit!  Squeeze them in tightly!) along with 1-2 bay leaves, 1-3 cloves of garlic, 2 sprigs fresh dill, ½ teaspoon seeds such as mustard seed, peppercorns, coriander seeds, etc.  If needed, add more water/salt mixture (same ratio) and cover the veggies, leaving at least one inch between the liquid and the top of the jar.

3.    Keep the jar in a moderate temperature (65-75 degrees F.) such as on the kitchen counter

4.    Seal the jar.  After the first two days, “burp” the jar. Check them daily after that for a week.  When you like the flavor, transfer the jar to the fridge and enjoy.

Information on Lacto-Fermentation:

The process of fermentation involves waiting as the bacteria goes to work. Be sure to keep you jar in a moderate temperature space. Keep your vegetables under the salty brine, too.  Anything above the liquid may get a tad bit moldy.  Note that mold happens often, and it’s ok!  Anything white can simply be scraped away/cut off the veggies.  The rest will be just fine.  Once your pickles are at their desired flavor point, place them in the refrigerator to stop the fermentation process and keep them there and enjoy.