There are some recipes that are about so much more than the food itself, and this is one of them. While I (and my brother) would declare this THE BEST PICKLE RECIPE EVER, I don’t know if that’s more because of the taste or the tradition.

As kids, and as adults, actually, my Nannie always had a fresh jar of pickles ready for us when we visited. She gifted us jars of homemade pickles, along with bags of frozen blueberries picked from her bushes and pecans she gathered and shelled. I appreciate all she did even more from where I stand now, all the growing (back in her day she had a fabulous garden), preserving, and generously sharing the good stuff with the people she loved.

Now that I’m growing cucumbers and filling my own shelves with jars of pickles, I’m so happy to be following in her footsteps. I wish I could show her what I’m doing now, but I’m hopeful she sees it in some way. I think she’d get a kick out of just how invested I’ve become in achieving the perfect pickle crunch.

This recipe is based on hers, with a few small adjustments.

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Nannie soaked her cucumbers in lime before canning them, but I skip that step and use muscadine grape leaves instead. The leaves contain tannins that help the pickles stay crisp. Since we have muscadines growing nearby, they’re easy for me to grab, but you can also use calcium chloride if you don’t have access to grape leaves.

I also adjusted the measurements because I prefer canning pickles in pint jars rather than quarts. Pints are a great size for our family, and they fit easily into my electric canner. This recipe yields 7 pints because that’s how many I can fit at once into my canner. A traditional stovetop water-bath canner works just fine, too, though!

These are the pickles I keep making again and again: garlicky, dilly, tangy, and have good crunch. So are the world’s best pickle? In my mind, yes.

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A Few Tips Before You Begin

Start with fresh pickling cucumbers whenever possible. Ideally 3-5 inches long, which means they are firm and fresh and they also fit pretty nicely into pint jars at this size. Trim off both ends, especially the blossom end, which can contain enzymes that soften pickles.

After cutting the cucumbers into spears, cover them with ice and then add cold water. Let them soak for at least three hours and up to six. This cold soak helps firm them up before they go into the jars.

Pack the cucumber spears tightly, but do not crush them. They will shrink slightly during processing, so fit in as many as you comfortably can.

Finally, take the time to slide a bubble-removing tool or thin spatula around the inside of each jar before processing. Trapped air can change the headspace, so recheck it after releasing the bubbles and add more brine if needed.

See all my canning recommendations here.

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Every time I look at these jars lined up on the shelf, I think of Nannie. I remember the pickles, of course, but also the blueberries, pecans, and the quiet way she took care of all of us through the food she grew, cooked, served, and preserved. Getting to carry a small piece of that tradition forward feels incredibly special.