Make Your Own Pickling Spice

While pickling spice can be found in the canning supply or spice aisle of many stores, you may want to mix your own if you grow some of the spices or if you dislike the taste of certain spices or have allergies to them. Your pickling spice recipe can be tailored to fit your taste or the recipes you commonly follow. If you are lucky enough to live near a store that sells bulk spices, making a pickling spice mix should be easy and affordable, however don't buy more than you can use in a year since dried spices lose their flavour over time.

Ingredients

Basic Pickling Spice

Yield: about 2 1/2 cups

  • 1/2 cup mustard seeds
  • 1/4 cup coriander seeds
  • 1/4 cup fennel seed
  • 1/4 cup whole allspice berries
  • 1/4 cup whole cloves
  • 1/4 cup dill seeds
  • 1/4 cup celery seeds
  • 1/4 cup cinnamon sticks, crushed
  • 1/4 cup black pepper corns
  • 2 tbsp. dried ginger, coarsely chopped
  • 3 dried red peppers, crushed
  • 6 dry bay leaves, crushed

Dill Pickle Pickling Spice

Yield: 7 pints (473 ml jars)

  • 24 pickling cucumbers, 3” to 4” long, scrubbed, blossom end removed, and cut into spears
  • 14 fresh dill flowers
  • 7 tsp. pickling spice
  • 6 tbsp. kosher salt
  • 3 cups white vinegar
  • 3 cups water

Indian Spiced Rice Pickling Spice

Servings: 4

  • 2 14.5-oz cans chicken broth
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 3 tbsp. pickling spice mix, tied in cheesecloth or placed in a spice ball
  • 1 1/4 cup unconverted long grain rice
  • 1 lb. (454 g) boneless chicken, cut into 1/2” strips
  • 1 cup frozen peas
  • 1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped

German Green Beans Pickling Spice

Servings: 6

  • 1 lb. (454 g) fresh green beans, washed, tips removed, and beans cut in half
  • 2 tbsp. pickling spice, tied in cheesecloth or placed in a spice ball
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 3 cups water - or enough to cover beans
  • 1 cup cider vinegar
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar

Spicy Vegetarian Soup Pickling Spice

Servings: 6

  • 8 cups fresh vegetables of your choice, washed, peeled, sliced or diced (e.g carrots, potatoes, onions, celery, squash, peppers, and green beans)
  • 2 tbsp. pickling spice, tied in cheesecloth or placed in a spice ball
  • 1 tsp. salt to taste
  • 1 tsp. garlic powder
  • 2 14.5-oz cans diced tomatoes
  • 10 cups water or vegetable broth
  • 1 1/4 cups elbow macaroni

Steps

Basic Pickling Spice

  1. Blend all the ingredients together by placing them in a jar, adding a lid and shaking them well.
  2. Add a label with the date and list the ingredients.
  3. Store the spice in a cool dark place for up to 12 months.

Dill Pickle Pickling Spice

  1. Prepare 7 clean pint (473 ml) canning jars by putting 1 dill flower and 1 teaspoon of pickling spice at the bottom of each one.
  2. Pack cucumber spears into each jar until its half full.
  3. Add a second dill flower to each jar, pressed against the side of the jar, with the flower facing outward.
  4. Continue filling the jars with cucumber spears, firmly packing them in.
  5. In a heavy pan, heat the water, vinegar and salt until they boil.
  6. Pour the boiling vinegar solution into each jar to within 1/2”(1.3 cm), from the jar rim.
  7. Run a bubble stick or the blade of a butter knife through each jar and along the inside walls to remove any bubbles.
  8. Add additional vinegar solution if needed to bring the fluid level to 1/2” from the jar rim.
  9. Wipe each jar rim with a clean cloth.
  10. Add a canning lid and a screw band to each jar. Tighten the bands on the jars.
  11. Place the filled jars in a water bath canner and add water until 2” of water covers the jars.
  12. Place the canner on the stove and bring the water to a boil.
  13. Start timing as soon as the water begins to boil.
    • Process (boil) the jars for 10 minutes at 1,000 feet (304 m) altitude or less.
    • Process (boil) the jars for 15 minutes for 1,001 to 3,000 feet (914 m) altitude.
    • Process (boil) the jars for 20 minutes for altitudes over {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}.
  14. Turn off the heat and let the jars sit in the canner for 5 minutes.
  15. Remove the jars with a jar lifter and set them on a towel-covered counter. The jars should not touch.
  16. Check the jars to see if they have sealed after 24 hours. You’ll know if they have sealed if the top of the lids are indented. You can remove the screw band now, if desired.
  17. Label your pickles with the date and store them in a cool, dark place.
  18. Leave for at least a couple weeks for partially pickled results, or longer for a stronger flavor.

Indian Spiced Rice Pickling Spice

  1. Place the pickling spice in a cheesecloth or spice ball.
  2. Put the broth, pickling spice and salt in a medium saucepan.
  3. Bring the broth mixture to the boil.
  4. Add the rice and let the mixture come back to the boil.
  5. Cook the rice and broth mixture for about 15 minutes, until the rice is almost tender.
  6. Remove the spice packet or spice ball.
  7. Add the chicken strips to the pot and turn the heat down until the mixture is just simmering.
  8. Cook for about 5 minutes, until the chicken is almost ready.
  9. Add the peas and apricots to the pot.
  10. Continue cooking for another 3 to 4 minutes, until the chicken is completely cooked.

German Green Beans Pickling Spice

  1. Place the pickling spice in a cheesecloth or spice ball.
  2. Place the green beans, salt, water and the pickling spices in a large saucepan.
  3. Simmer them over low heat until the beans are tender, about 15 minutes.
  4. Remove the spice packet or spice ball from the pan.
  5. Drain the green beans, reserving 1 cup of the cooking fluid in a bowl.
  6. Place the reserved cooking fluid, vinegar and brown sugar in a large casserole dish.
  7. Stir the ingredients with a spoon to dissolve the sugar.
  8. Add the green beans to the casserole dish.
  9. Chill the beans in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour before serving.

Spicy Vegetarian Soup Pickling Spice

  1. Place the pickling spice in a cheesecloth or spice ball.
  2. Place the vegetables, salt, garlic powder, pickling spice, tomatoes and water in a large soup pot.
  3. Bring the pot to a boil at high heat.
  4. Turn down the heat to simmer the soup and continue cooking until the vegetables are barely tender. This will take about 30 minutes, depending on the size you have cut the vegetables. It's good to keep an eye on the pot since your soup will taste better if the vegetables aren't over-cooked.
  5. Add the macaroni to the pot.
  6. Simmer the soup, stirring occasionally, until the macaroni is tender, about 30 minutes. Add more water or broth, 1 cup at a time, if the soup gets too thick.
  7. Remove the pickling spice before serving.

Tips

  • Spice balls are perforated metal balls that you open and put spices in, and then you float them in the food they’re meant to season. You can find them in the kitchen gadget aisles of most stores.
  • If you don’t have a spice ball, put the amount of pickling spices called for in a square of cheesecloth and tie it with a piece of string to make a packet.
  • Discard the pickling spice mix after 1 year.
  • If you opened packages of individual spices to make this mix, tightly close and seal them when you’re done using them. If they came in cardboard or paper containers, re-package them in glass or plastic containers with tight lids and store them in a cool dark place. Write the date on the containers.
  • You can add or omit any of the spices in the pickling mix to suit your personal taste. Add other dry spices in about 1/4-cup amounts.
  • Use only fresh spices in your pickling spice. Check the expiration on any containers; they should be less than a year old.
  • To keep pickling spice dry, take a teaspoon of powered milk and twist it in a piece of tissue. Add this to the spice jar. Be sure not to get the milk packet into any recipe.
  • Pickles taste best if they are stored for at least 2 weeks before eating.

Warnings

  • Do not use iodized salt for pickling.
  • Don’t use powdered spices in pickling mixes. They will turn the pickling brine or fluid cloudy. They also do not stay fresh as long as whole spices.
  • If canned pickles do not seal, refrigerate them and use promptly.
  • Discard any pickling spice mixes that look moldy or that have fine webbing like spider webs in the container, which indicates insect infestation.
  • Do not change the amount of vinegar and salt in the pickle recipe for food safety since they are both preservatives.
  • Read your recipe carefully. Some pickle recipes call for the pickling spice to be tied up in a spice bag before being added to the pickling solution.

Things You May Need

  • Jar with a tight lid
  • Medium saucepan
  • Cheesecloth and string or spice ball
  • Large soup pot
  • Large spoon
  • Knife
  • Cutting board
  • Vegetable peeler or paring knife
  • Pint canning jars and new lids and screw bands
  • Water bath canner
  • Jar lifter
  • Bubble stick or table knife
  • Measuring cups and spoons
  • Jar labels and something to write on them
  • Dish towels

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Sources and Citations

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