|
| Anyone have any idea as to why my homegrown cukes would have a horrible bitter taste when fermented in my crock? I used water, vinegar (5%), pickling salt, dill and pickling spices. The recipe has been used succesfully many other times. When taste tested they were so bitter it took hours to get rid of the taste in my mouth. Any ideas??? |
Follow-Up Postings:
|
- Posted by readinglady z8 OR (My Page) on Sun, May 26, 13 at 12:36
| Growing conditions can cause excessive bitterness. That would include drought, lack of water or fluctuating water levels. There are other possibilities, but this is the most likely. It's unfortunate but sometimes unavoidable. Since you've made these pickles many times before, the most likely cause is environmental. Carol |
|
- Posted by gardenlady76 TX coast/9 (My Page) on Sun, May 26, 13 at 12:43
| Thank you Carol for the response. Do you know if soaking the cukes in a salt brine over night would help draw out the bitterness? Maybe I am grasping at straws but I have a lot of cukes growing...... |
|
| Agree that the most likely cause wasn't the fermenting process. They were most likely already bitter when picked due to growing conditions. The fermenting brine can affect the finished flavor IF they were old cukes (not fresh picked) to begin with as they are soft and absorb the brine differently. Otherwise it is the flavor of the cukes themselves you are tasting. Dave |
|
| Just start watering them more so the future ones won't be so bitter. Meanwhile taste the individual cukes before putting them into ferment. You might find some that aren't so bitter. Picking them smaller will help some too. You can try the brine pre-soak but the bitter flavor is in the tissue of the cukes themselves so I doubt it will help much. Use the bitter ones for relishes and such where the bitter taste will be covered by the sugar and seasonings. Dave |
|
- Posted by readinglady z8 OR (My Page) on Sun, May 26, 13 at 17:35
| I agree with Dave. These bitter flavors come from cucurbitacin compounds and there's not much that can be done. At an extreme they have even been known to make people sick (reported in zucchini, for instance). You can try a sweet relish if the problem is not severe, but truthfully if they're super-bitter through the entire current picking and not just mildly bitter or the occasional cuke, I'd probably compost them. In that case you risk wasting good ingredients and lids. It's really your call. And definitely follow Dave's advice and make sure the plants are well-watered. Carol |
|
- Posted by gardenlady76 TX coast/9 (My Page) on Sun, May 26, 13 at 18:26
| Thanks to all who responded. I will abide by the majority and blame it on the bitter cukes.....actually it is the first time I used home grown cukes, I usually purchased pickling cukes at the local farmers market and had no problems. So lesson learned, water, water and more water. Thanks again to all. |
Please Note: Only registered members are able to post messages to this forum. If you are a member, please log in. If you aren't yet a member, join now!
Return to the Harvest Forum
Information about Posting
- You must be logged in to post a message. Once you are logged in, a posting window will appear at the bottom of the messages. If you are not a member, please register for an account.
- Please review our Rules of Play before posting.
- Posting is a two-step process. Once you have composed your message, you will be taken to the preview page. You will then have a chance to review your post, make changes and upload photos.
- After posting your message, you may need to refresh the forum page in order to see it.
- Before posting copyrighted material, please read about Copyright and Fair Use.
- We have a strict no-advertising policy!
- If you would like to practice posting or uploading photos, please visit our Test forum.
- If you need assistance, please Contact Us and we will be happy to help.
Learn more about in-text links on this page here
