14 Day Pickles - Master Cookbook Recipe # 24

Name: 14 Day Pickles - Master Cookbook Recipe # 24
Prep time: 20160 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 20190 min
Yield: 10-12
Cuisine: Southern
Ingredients: 1 peck sliced cucumbers; 1 gallon boiling water; 1 pint pickling (canning) salt; 1 1/2 gallons clean water; 2 tsp powdered alum; 2.5 quarts vinegar; 12 cups sugar; 1 Tbsp celery seed

These 14-day sweet pickles are a true labor of love, but the results are unmatched. This traditional method uses a long soak and a repeated heating process to create a pickle with a deep, sweet flavor and a signature crispness that you just can't get with quick-pickling methods.

This is recipe #24 in Tammy’s Master Cookbook.

Prep time: 336 hrs Cook time: 30 minTotal time: 336 hrs 30 min

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Ingredients

1 peck sliced cucumbers
1 gallon boiling water
1 pint pickling (canning) salt
1 1/2 gallons clean water
2 tsp powdered alum
2.5 quarts vinegar
12 cups sugar
1 Tbsp celery seed

Instructions

Salt Soak (Days 1 to 7): Place sliced cucumbers in a large glass jar or ceramic churn. Pour the pickling salt over them, then add the boiling water. Let them stand for 7 days. Every day, skim any residue from the top and ensure cucumbers remain submerged.
Water Rinse (Day 8): Drain the cucumbers and cover them with 1 1/2 gallons of clean water. Let stand for 24 hours.
Alum Soak (Day 9): Drain the water. Boil fresh clean water with the powdered alum, then pour this mixture over the cucumbers. Soak for another 24 hours.
Sugar & Vinegar Start (Day 10): Drain the alum water. Boil the vinegar, sugar, and celery seeds together. Pour this hot mixture over the cucumbers and soak for 24 hours.
The Daily Reheat (Days 11 to 14): Each day, drain the vinegar-sugar syrup into a pot, bring it to a boil, and pour it back over the cucumbers. Repeat this every 24 hours.
Canning: Sterilize your jars and lids. Pack the pickles into the jars. Boil the brine one last time and pour it over the pickles, leaving 1/4-inch headspace at the top. Seal the jars.
Storage: Allow jars to cool. Store sealed jars in a cool, dry place. Refrigerate any jars that do not seal.

Notes

Salt Choice: Use only pickling or pure kosher salt. Avoid standard table salt, as the additives can cause a cloudy brine or discolor your pickles.
Check the Seal: Your lids should "ping" as they seal. If a jar doesn't seal, keep it in the refrigerator and use those pickles first.
Long-Term Storage: For long-term shelf stability, process your jars in a pressure canner following current NCHFP guidelines.
Keep 'Em Submerged: During the long soaking periods, you can use a heavy plate to keep the cucumbers fully under the liquid.