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Everyone wants to know just how folks are canning crunchy dill pickles at home that can be stored on the shelf instead of the refrigerator! I see soooo many questions in canning groups and I get messages about HOW do we can the elusive crispy dill pickle like you find in the stores.  

They’re so mushy after you process them in the water bath canner.  I’ve added alum, calcium chloride, an entire grape vine’s worth of leaves, 7 oak leaves, soaked them in lime for a century, and I stood on my head while I put the lids on the jars AND THEY’RE STILL MUSHY.  What gives?  Home canning should mean I make food that’s enjoyable and homemade pickles are a staple here!  And I don’t want to fill my fridge full of refrigerator pickles.  I want to be canning pickles!  

I’ll tell you how but the canning police aren’t gonna like it.  The canning process that’s approved is cooking the cucumbers.  So, duh, they’re going to get overcooked and mushy and not be like that big fat crunchy deli pickle you’re so desperately craving to make yourself so you don’t have to eat the unnecessary food dyes.  Welp.  I’ve got the secret for you and we’ll go into detail, next!  

But, first I have to tell you that this is rEbEl CaNnInG.  I use a method called open kettle canning or hot pack canning.  This means I put hot contents into sterilized jars and add a hot sterilized lid and set it aside to seal.  No further processing.  This method of canning used to be normal practice, but now is unapproved by the powers that be and we’ll get into that.  If you don’t like an unapproved recipe or canning method, please don’t do it. Just as much as you can’t control what I do in my kitchen, I can’t control what you do in yours, and I don’t want to. Do your own thing.

What is Open Kettle Canning?

Open kettle or hot pack canning used to be very popular and quite frequently used back in the day for high acid foods, such as jams, jellies, pickles, and some fruits and sauces.  Things that were open kettle canned were very much below a pH of 4.6 and botulism don’t got a chance, so don’t start.  As people quit passing down the art of canning to their kids and folks started just buying it, the skills were lost.  People were trying to open kettle can and not following all the steps appropriately because either Grammy couldn’t quite recall what she did or Meemaw gave vague instructions.  

This resulted in improperly heated food and jars which means the jars aren’t going to seal properly.  So, that means the food molds in storage and all is lost.  We must find out how to fix this!  Easy… tell them to water bath it for 10-15 minutes.  Then they’ll seal.  That’s the most likely thing that happened.  Not because everyone died of botulism.. because their jars weren’t sealing because following and reading directions are hard!  I would know!

I have a couple canning books from the 1940s that give really thorough instructions on open kettle canning, which is the method I use to this day and it works perfectly.  The biggest thing they stressed in the book was to work one jar at a time when filling, because the jars will begin to cool as you work and by the time you get to the last jar or two, they won’t be hot enough to seal.

Now the bread and butter.  How do I open kettle can?  I’ll give you a good step by step in the instructions below, but I’ll give you the quick and dirty here.  To open kettle can, you need to sterilize the jars and they need to be hot.  That could be by boiling for 10-15 minutes, steaming them, or oven sterilizing (rebellllllll… but I don’t cayyreeeuuuuhhhhh).  You have to take this extra step for anything with a canning processing time under 10 minutes and with open kettle canning, your processing time is zero… so… sterilize them.  

Otherwise, for longer times the processing time during canning sterilizes the jars and contents for ya.  You will work one jar at a time, remove the jar from the boiling water or hot oven, fill it with warm sliced cucumbers and add spices/seasonings, and then ladle over the boiling pickling liquid.  Wipe the rim of the jar and then add a lid and secure it with a band.  Set aside at room temperature to seal.  

Some folks will cover their jars with a towel to hold in the heat for better sealing success, but I’ve never had any better luck doing this.  Others will invert their jars which I also don’t partake in.  None of them are wrong, they’re just not what I do. But all of them are rebel, as you’ve now been informed several times.

​Cucumbers for Pickles

You will want to grow a smaller variety that is specifically for pickling for best results.  I really enjoy the russian pickling cucumbers, picklebush, or the A&D variety.  Both are very prolific, low maintenance to grow, delicious, and crunchy.  When you pick your cucumbers, choose small cucumbers and you want to cut the blossom end of the cucumber off them right away and preserve them soon.  Larger pickles from the pickling varieties that were allowed to grow too long can be rubbery and also bitter.  Avoid avoid avoid.  The sooner you preserve them, the crunchier they will be; fresh cucumbers are best.  I pick my cucumbers and come in and can them straight away.

Equipment You’ll Want:

• Canning Jars (Wide mouth pint jars or quart jars)
• Lids & bands
• Large stock pot
• Ladle
• Jar Funnel
• Lid Magnet
• Jar Lifter

Ingredients

• Water
• White Vinegar
• Salt
• Sugar
• Dill seed or fresh dill heads
• Garlic
• Pickling cucumbers

Let’s get to canning crunchy dill pickles!

Step 1: Prep

Wash cucumbers in cold water to remove heat from being outside, harvesting preferably in early morning if possible.  Make sure blossom ends are removed and leave whole, cut into slices or spears.  Set aside.  Be sure cucumbers are room temperature and not cold.

To a stock pot, add:

• 8 cups water
• 5 cups 5% white vinegar
• 4 Tbs salt
• 2 Tbs sugar

Over medium-high heat, cover and bring to a full boil.  Stir to dissolve sugar and salt.

Step 2: Sterilize Jars & Lids

Sterilize canning jars using your method of your choice.  Boiling them is the approved method. Place them in a pot of hot water, like your canning pot, and bring to a boil. Boil for 10 minutes, adding 1 minute to the time for every 1000 feet you are over 1000ft elevation. Keep covered.

What I do:  Place quart jars into a cold oven, heat oven to 225-250F.  Once to temperature, heat jars for 15-20 minutes to be considered sterile.  I also use my steam canner and bring it to temperature and steam the jars for 10-15 minutes. Lots of different ways you can do it!

Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil.  Remove from heat and add canning lids.  Cover to keep hot.

Step 3: Fill Jars

Once pickling liquid is boiling and your jars are sterilized, working one jar at a time, quickly remove one jar from the oven or boiling water using a jar lifter.

To a quart jar, add 1 1/2 tablespoons dill seed or 2-4 heads of fresh dill and 2 garlic cloves to the bottom of the jars.  For pints, halve these measurements.  

Pack cucumbers, keeping below 1/2″ headspace.  Work quickly.

Ladle over boiling pickle brine to 1/2″ headspace.  De-bubble and add more liquid if needed to maintain headspace.

Step 4: Open Kettle Canning

Wipe jar rim with a vinegar soaked cloth.

Using a lid magnet, remove one new lid from the hot water and place on top of the jar.  Secure with a ring and tighten tight.

Place jars on a heat proof surface and allow to cool. Cover with a towel to slow the cooling process so the jars have a greater probability of sealing. 

Step 5: Storage

Allow filled jars to cool 12-24 hours before removing rings and testing seals.  Any jars that didn’t seal can be refrigerated and eaten in 4-6 weeks.  

Store sealed jars on the shelf in a cool, dark place away from direct sunlight. Proper storage temperature is 50-70F.  Allow the pickles to sit for 6 weeks or longer to flavor fully.  The longer they sit the better they get!

Before eating, canned pickles are best if you place them in the refrigerator a day before you want to eat them.  This helps them be crispy pickles and nobody likes a room temperature pickle.

And there you have it.  What I think is the best homemade dill pickles on the planet.  Crunchy pickles are the best pickles.  Sans yellow food dye, pickle crisp, and unnecessary additives.  You can have crunchy pickles with minimal ingredients and that’s a real good thing.  Promise.

There’s also so much dang acid in the vinegar brine in these jars that botulism will not survive.  So, again, no. You can lose your mind all you want over an unapproved method, but it ain’t gonna be botulinum.

If you’re a pickle lover and enjoy a good variety in your life, check out my other cucumber pickles and pickle recipes here!

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Canning Crunchy Dill Pickles: Guide to Open Kettle Method

5 from 1 vote

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes minutes

Author: Ruby Broeske – Red Feather Farm

Equipment

• Canning jars wide mouth pint jars or quart jars
• Lids & Bands
• Large Stock Pot
• ladle
• jar funnel
• Lid Magnet
• jar lifter

Ingredients

• 8 cups water
• 5 cups 5% white vinegar
• 4 Tbs salt
• 2 Tbs sugar
• 1 1/2 tbsp dill seed **per quart jar**
• 1-2 cloves garlic **per quart jar**
• pickling cucumbers

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Instructions

• To a stock pot, add water, vinegar, salt & sugar. Stir to dissolve and bring to a boil.
• Wash and prepare cucumbers in slices, sandwich slices, spears, or whole; whatever you prefer. Be sure cucumbers are room temperature. Set aside.
• Place quart jars into a cold oven, heat oven to 225-250F. Once to temperature, heat jars for 15-20 minutes to be considered sterile. You can alternatively place jars in boiling water or a steam canner to heat.
• Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil. Remove from heat and add canning lids. Cover to keep warm.
• Once pickling liquid is boiling and your jars are sterilized, working one at a time, remove one jar from the oven.
• To the quart jar, add 1.5 Tbs dill seed and 1-2 cloves minced garlic. Layer in cucumbers, keeping below 1/2" headspace.
• Ladle over boiling pickling liquid to 1/2″ headspace. Debubble and add more liquid if needed.
• Wipe jar rim and add hot lid and secure with a band. Set jar aside to seal. Repeat this process. Any unused brine can be jarred and set aside to seal in the same manner or placed in the fridge to use for the next batch of pickles.
• Allow jars to cool for 12-18 hours before removing bands and testing seals.