It finally feels like spring has arrived in Calgary, which means it is the official start of BBQ season. As of now, most of my cooking will take place on the BBQ… right up until the snowfalls. With a few accessories like a cast iron pan and some BBQ mats, (which keep your grill looking like new) you can make pretty much anything you could make on the stove.

Grilling food on a BBQ not only is faster, but it also has many benefits. Cooking meat on the BBQ results in eating less fat since a large part of it drips off during the cooking process. Grilling vegetables on the BBQ retain more nutrients since they are cooked quicker. This allows them to maintain more nutrients, opposed to roasted or cooked in the oven. You also use a lot less oil/butter when grilling compared to cooking meats and vegetables in a frying pan. Lastly, using your BBQ gets you outside…in the sun and fresh air.

This post is the kick-off to a few summer BBQ recipes I am excited to share with you all. Right now, I am preparing some homemade condiments that will be ready just in time for summer. First up, a BBQ must-have; pickles. I call these Summer Dill Pickles because I make them early Spring so that they are perfectly flavoured just in time for Summer.

This recipe makes enough for two 32 oz jars of pickles. You can easily double or triple this recipe if you are looking to make a large batch. PS, they make a great hostess gift…

INGREDIENTS:

  • 10-12 mini cucumbers

  • 1 1/4 cup of white vinegar

  • 1 1/4 cup of water

  • 1/4 cup of sugar (I used organic coconut sugar. Use whatever sugar you have on hand)

  • 2 tbsp of salt

  • 1/2 tsp of whole peppercorns

  • 1/2 tsp of mustard seeds

  • 1/8 tsp of allspice

  • 4 whole garlic cloves

  • 2 bay leaves

  • 2 large or 4 small sprigs of fresh dill

DIRECTIONS:

Add the water, vinegar, salt and sugar into a medium saucepan and heat up until a simmer. In a small mixing bowl, add the remainder of your spices and stir to mix them all.

Then divide your spice mix and fresh dill among the jars.

Slice your mini cucumbers lengthwise.

Place your cucumbers around the sides of your jar, so that you try to keep the dill in the middle (just for aesthetic purposes). Pack as many cucumbers into the jar as you can so that they are tight, but not enough to damage them as you are putting them in. The cucumbers must sit below the neck of the jar to make sure that they will be submerged in the pickling liquid.

Once your pickle juice has come to a simmer, gently pour into each of the jars, leaving about 1/2 inch from the top of the jar.

Once cooled, jars are ready to be sealed. From here you have two options; you can give them a hot water canning bath if you want them to last up to a year. Store them in your pantry and let them marinate for at least 14 days. The second option (which I prefer) is to make refrigerator pickles. Just keep them in the fridge and within 7 days, they are ready to be consumed… but I suggest giving them 14 days to get extra flavourful. Refrigerator pickles have a shorter shelf life and will need to be used within 2 months.

Cheers to BBQ season! 🍻

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