that darn Euell Gibbons

[randyt]

I bought a old edition of a book by Euell Gibbons called Stalking the Good Life. Anyhoo there is a chapter in this book about a dill crock. That darn Euell is such a great writer I'm on the hunt for a dill crock LOL. Looking forward to some lacto fermentation. One of my customers has a bunch of old crocks, in good shape, no chips or cracks. May make a deal with him on a couple of them.

[hunter63]

Check those crocks for the tiny "egg shell cracks"......it with actually leak and weep thru.....and your brine may go down to the level that exposes your cukes to air.....and they will rot at the brine line.

Now old crocks seem to be a lot better ....thicker glazing?...
Don't know, but the newer crocks I bought, I had made the mistake of storing in the garage.....so I think the cold cracked the coating.
Sold them for planters.

Make ya wonder what is growing in the stone under the glaze.....and how would make sure it's clean.....boiling water?

I know it's old timey and cool to use a crock.....but do your self a favor....get a food grade 5 gal plastic bucket.

BTW have several crocks 3-5 and 10 gal....sitting on my porch a decorations at "The Place"

My favorite pickle is the garlic dill in a 1 gal crock (bucket)....recipe from Carla Emery Old Fashion Cook Book .....add cukes as you go, but must eat a few that have been in for just a few days, just to "check them"....vinegary and salty.....LOL

Never was able to Finish a batch...the kids and I would eat them as fast as I made them....

[natertot]

Sounds like a good read and I agree with hunter. Food grade buckets will be better to ensure safety. Gotta be careful what you put into the body and all kinds of crazy things were used in the past. I am pretty certain that lead was even used in a lot of the glazing, but not 100% sure. Post some pics when you get around to trying stuff out. I am interested in seeing where this takes you!

[hunter63]

Not much to it....wash the cukes, wash the bucket with boiling water....Make your favorite brine....many versions even some "salt free" (WTH?)
Put cukes in bucket....crock pickles I like small 4" whole cukes....cover with brine cover with a plate or dish the fits.....weight down with a baggy full of water or weight.....make sure cukes are covered...can cover with cheese cloth.

Let them sit ...at least 15 minutes....then check'em (LOL)....DW says 6 week till done....(yeah right)

I would add new cukes every time I picked .....and "sampled" some in the crock......lasted about 4-5 weeks.....(no wonder I had high blood pressure...salt and vinegar

[randyt]

Euell would dill just about anything

[hunter63]

Yeah, you can pickle almost anything.....still love them.
Our crock had small onions, bean, baby carrots, along with the cukes..........didn't do the beets in the big crock...turned the brine red.

[kyratshooter]

My Mom used to pickle stuff all summer. Made the house stink something awful. My first exposure to chemical warfare.

She did a lot of kosher dills, lots of Bread and Butter pickles and sometimes two batches of sauerkraut.

I remember three or four 10 gallon crocks and one 20 gallon beast.

She would line them up along the cabinet between the back entryway and my Dad's study. I think she did that on purpose so the stink would drive his nose out of whatever book he was ingesting and into the family room where she could talk to him.

[hunter63]

Where did she store them when not being used?

[kyratshooter]

Where did she store them when not being used?

They stayed right where they were!

Our house was decorated in the "Early American" style popular in the 1960s, back before the black and white cow and "craft movement/threat" started, which morphed into the "how much junk can you find at the flea market craze.

She would tie a calico "skirt" around the neck of the crock and it became part of the home décor. sometime she would stick dried flowers in them or umbrellas or something.

The wall they were placed against had a series of shelves above it and that was filled with old butter molds, antique kitchen gear, wooden presses, kerosene lamps and such. It was Cracker Barrel décor before Cracker Barrel existed.

Now looking back on it, some of our kin were in on the founding of Cracker Barrel, and they used to visit the house a lot....

[hunter63]

Yeah, Just wondering if my storing them in the garage accounted for the cracking.....

I have to believe I not the only one that allowed them to get cold enough to freeze....even out ancestors most likely had an excess or conditioned space.
I know root cellar's were used to keep veggies from freezing...........Just thinking out loud.

The problem was with the new versions, not the 60 to 100 year old crocks.

[Wise Old Owl]

that would be a interesting read... PM me when you are done with the book.