About the book

A pickling book for ordinary kitchens

Some hobbies need a spare room. Pickling needs a saucepan, a jar, and about twenty minutes of your afternoon. The Joys of Home Pickling! was written for anyone who has eyed a jar of gourmet pickles at the deli counter and thought “surely I could just... do this myself”. No fancy equipment, no countryside kitchen, no chef's whites required.

How the recipes work

Every recipe in the book is built from three moves. Learn them once and the rest is variation:

  • Brining. Salt draws out moisture, firms things up, and sets the stage for everything that follows.
  • Fermenting. Good bacteria do the heavy lifting, building tang and complexity with no vinegar required.
  • Preserving. Vinegar keeps the bad stuff out, so a jar you made three weeks ago is still a jar worth opening.

Safety comes first

Pickling is part science, part art, and the book is clear about which part is which. The vinegar-salt-water ratio is what keeps a jar safe, so every recipe gives exact amounts, in metric and US measures, and says how the finished jar should be stored and for how long. The book covers sterilising, checking seals and vinegar strength, and recommends following the guidance of reputable sources such as the Food Standards Agency or your local environmental health department.

The free recipes on this site follow the same rules: when you scale a recipe up or down, the salt, vinegar and water stay in proportion.

What's inside

Eleven chapters and more than 30 recipes and brines, from classic dill pickles to kimchi, small batches for tiny kitchens, pickling traditions from around the world, and a chapter on turning a jar into a gift.

  1. 1Getting StartedThe kit, the ingredients, and the safety basics.
  2. 2Classic PicklesDill, bread-and-butter, spicy, and the everyday veg.
  3. 3Creative PicklingBeetroot, okra, and mixed vegetable medleys.
  4. 4Fermented PicklesSauerkraut, kimchi, and lacto-fermentation made easy.
  5. 5Sweet and Savoury PicklesFrom sweet gherkins to pickled pineapple and garlic.
  6. 6Global Pickling TraditionsAchar, tsukemono, turshi, and escabeche.
  7. 7Pickling Liquids and BrinesSix brines, and how to build your own.
  8. 8Pickling with Limited SpaceSmall batches for the cosiest of kitchens.
  9. 9Preserving and Storing PicklesCanning, fridge pickles, and shelf life.
  10. 10Pickling for Gifting & OccasionsJars that look as good as they taste.
  11. 11Troubleshooting and TipsMushy pickles, cloudy brine, and the FAQs.

A dozen of the recipes are free on this site, along with guides built from the book's technique chapters.

Editions

First published in August 2024 and now in its second edition, The Joys of Home Pickling! is published independently by Furze Media Ltd. It's available on Amazon in paperback, hardcover and for Kindle.