Sweet Gherkin Pickles — NCHFP
A tested NCHFP multi-day boiling-water canning recipe for sweet whole gherkin pickles.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 7 lb small cucumbers 1 1/2 inches or less
- 1/2 cup canning or pickling salt
- 8 cups sugar
- 6 cups vinegar 5% acidity
- 3/4 tsp turmeric
- 2 tsp celery seed
- 2 tsp whole mixed pickling spice
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 1/2 tsp fennel optional
- 2 tsp vanilla optional
Equipment
- Boiling-water canner
- Canning jars Six to seven sterile pint jars
Directions
Instructions
- Wash cucumbers; remove 1/16 inch from blossom ends and leave 1/4 inch of stem. Cover with boiling water. After 6 to 8 hours and again on day two, drain and cover with 6 quarts fresh boiling water containing 1/4 cup salt.
- On day three, drain and prick cucumbers. Boil 3 cups vinegar, 3 cups sugar, turmeric, and spices; pour over cucumbers.
- After 6 to 8 hours, drain and save syrup. Add 2 cups each sugar and vinegar, boil, and pour over pickles.
- On day four, drain syrup, add 2 cups sugar and 1 cup vinegar, boil, and pour over pickles. After 6 to 8 hours, drain again; add 1 cup sugar and optional vanilla and boil.
- Fill sterile pint jars with pickles and hot syrup, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Process 5 minutes at 0–1,000 ft, 10 minutes at 1,001–6,000 ft, or 15 minutes above 6,000 ft.
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Recipe Notes
Safety status: research-tested NCHFP recipe. Use cucumbers no larger than 1 1/2 inches and 5% vinegar. Preserve the multi-day schedule. Adapted from USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning, revised 2015. Source accessed September 12, 2026.
Exact source: https://nchfp.uga.edu/how/pickle/cucumber-pickles/sweet-gherkin-pickles/