the salt should be largely, but not completely, removed. Pickles keep better when the salt is not entirely soaked out.

Under factory conditions, processing is accomplished by placing the pickles in tanks, which are then filled with water and subjected to a current of steam, the pickles being agitated meanwhile. In most homes, however, the equipment for such treatment is not available.

The best that can be done in the home is to place the pickles in a suitable vessel, cover them with water, and heat them slowly to about 120° F., at which temperature they should be held for from 10 to 12 hours, being stirred frequently. The water is then poured off, and the process is repeated, if necessary, until the pickles have only a slightly salty taste.

SORTING

After processing, the pickles should be sorted. To secure the most attractive product, pickles should be as nearly as possible of uniform size. At least three sizes are recognized—small (2 to 3 inches long) , medium (3 to 4 inches long), and large (4 inches or longer). Only the small sizes are selected for bottling. Fairly small and medium-large cucumbers are well adapted to the making of sweet pickles. The larger sizes may be used for sour and dill pickles. Imperfectly formed pickles, the so-called crooks and nubs, can be cut up and added to mixed pickles or other combinations of which cucumbers form a part. The number of pickles of various sizes required to make a gallon is shown in Table 4, page 16.

SOUR PICKLES

After pickles have been processed sufficiently, drain them well and cover them at once with vinegar. A 45 or 50 grain vinegar usually gives all the sourness that is desirable. If, however, very sour pickles are preferred, it would be well to use at first a 45-grain vinegar, and after a week or 10 days transfer the pickles to a vinegar of the strength desired. As the first vinegar used will in all cases be greatly reduced in strength by dilution with the brine contained in the pickles, it will be necessary to renew the vinegar after a few weeks. If this is not done and the pickles are held for any length of time they may spoil.

The best containers for sour pickles are stone jars, or, for large quantities, kegs or barrels. Covered with a vinegar of the proper strength, pickles should keep indefinitely.

SWEET PICKLES

Cover the cured and processed cucumbers with a sweet liquor made by dissolving sugar in vinegar, usually with the addition of spices. Depending upon the degree of sweetness desired, the quantity of sugar may vary from 4 to 10 pounds to the gallon of vinegar, 6 pounds to the gallon usually giving satisfactory results. The chief difficulty in making sweet pickles is their tendency to become shriveled and tough, which increases with the sugar concentration of the liquor. This danger can usually be avoided by covering the pickles first with a plain 45 to 50 grain vinegar. After one week discard this vinegar, which in all probability has become greatly reduced in strength, and cover with a liquor made by adding 4 pounds of sugar to the gallon of vinegar. It is very important that the acidity of the liquor used on pickles be kept as high as possible. A decrease in acidity much below a 30-grain strength may permit the growth of yeasts, with resulting fermentation and spoilage.

If a liquor containing more than 4 pounds of sugar to the gallon is desired, it would be best not to .exceed that quantity at first, but gradually add sugar until the desired concentration is obtained. A sugar hydrometer readily and accurately indicates the sugar concentration (p. 4). A reading of 42° (Brix or Balling) would indicate a concentration of approximately 6 pounds of sugar to the gallon of vinegar. (Table 3, p. 15.)

Spices are practically always added in making sweet pickles. The effect of too much spice, especially the stronger kinds, like peppers and cloves, however, is injurious. One ounce of whole mixed spices to 4 gallons of pickles is enough. As spices may cause cloudiness of the vinegar, they should be removed after the desired flavor has been obtained. Heating is an aid to a better utilization of the spice. Add the required quantity of spice, in a cheesecloth bag, to the vinegar and hold at the boiling point for not longer than half an hour. Heating too long causes the vinegar to darken. If considered desirable, add sugar at this time, and pour at once over the pickles.

If the pickles are to be packed in bottles or jars, after such preliminary treatment as may be required, transfer them to these containers and cover them with a liquor made as desired.

DILL PICKLES

The method for making dill pickles differs from that for making salt pickles in two important particulars. A much weaker brine is used, and spices, chiefly dill, are added.

Because of the weaker salt concentration, a much more rapid curing takes place. As a result they can be made ready for use in about half the time required for ordinary brined pickles. This shortening of the period of preparation, however, is gained at the expense of the keeping quality of the product. For this reason it is necessary to resort to measures which will prevent spoilage.

SMALL QUANTITIES

Place in the bottom of the jar a layer of dill and one-half ounce of mixed spice. Then fill the jar, to within 2 or 3 inches of the top, with washed cucumbers of as nearly the same size as practicable. Add another half ounce of spice and layer of dill. It is a good plan to place over the top a layer of grape leaves. In fact, it would be well to place these at both the bottom and top. They make a very suitable covering and have a greening effect on the pickles.

Pour over the pickles a brine made as follows: Salt, 1 pound; vinegar, 1 pint ; water, 2 gallons. Never use a hot brine at the beginning of a fermentation. The chances are that it would kill the organisms present, thus preventing fermentation.

Cover with a board cover or plate with sufficient weight on top to hold the cucumbers well below the brine.

If the cucumbers are packed at a temperature around 86° F., an active fermentation will at once set in. This should be completed in 10 days to 2 weeks, if a temperature of about 86° F. is maintained. The scum which soon forms on the surface and which consists usually of wild yeasts, but often contains molds and bacteria, should be skimmed off.

After active fermentation has stopped, it is necessary to protect the pickles against spoilage. This may be done in one of two ways:

(1) Cover with a layer of paraffin. This should be poured while hot over the surface of the brine or as much of it as is exposed around the edges of the board cover. When cooled this forms a solid coating which effectually seals the pickles.

(2) Seal the pickles in glass jars or cans. As soon as they are sufficiently cured, which may be determined by their agreeable flavor and dark-green color, transfer them to glass jars, and fill either with their own brine or with a fresh brine made as directed. Add a small quantity of dill and spice. Bring the brine to a boil, and, after cooling to about 160° F., pour it over the pickles, filling the jars full. Seal the jars tight.

The plan of preserving dill pickles by sealing in jars has the merit of permitting the use of a small quantity without the necessity of opening and resealing a large bulk, as is the case when pickles are packed in