My homemade pickles

I think you guys will be surprised how easy these are to make and you can tweak them to how you like them pretty easily. First of all, I use a seasoning mix and that will save you a huge headache to begin with. Here are the two kosher pickle(one I use) packets you have to choose from:
http://www.canningpantry.com/refrigerator-kosher-dill-mix.html
http://www.canningpantry.com/kosher-dill-pickle-mix.html
*You can find Mrs. Wages at Wal-Mart and Festival for sure... for some reason neither one had the refrigerator packet this year. You can make the other one work.

The first link is a refrigerator mixture. You don't actually need to process these in a home canner... you put them in the refrigerator and they are good for a couple months.

The second link is a true canning process where you put them in a water bath canner and seal the jars so you don't have to store them in the refrigerator.

Both recipes are similar in the fact that you mix the seasoning, water, and vinegar together and cook it on the stove before pouring it over the cucumbers/pickles in the jar. Mrs. Wages does sell other types of pickle mixes and some of those may call for sugar or other ingredients too.

Here are some of the things I do that deviate from what the instructions say:
For mine I usually end up adding more than the recommended amount of vinegar which gives them a stronger taste. Also, I usually don't add the full amount of liquid that the packet recommends. I do however add the whole seasoning packet as this is another way to give them a "stronger" taste. This last time I made them I did write down my exact vinegar to water ratio if you want that as well. Also when creating the mixture to pour over the cucumbers you can add a clove of garlic or two to the mix. I probably wouldn't put the cloves of garlic in the jar though unless you plan on eating them right away. I do add dill pieces to the jars with the cucumbers before I add the hot liquid to them. I figure a couple small pieces per jar is all they need. There is dill already in the seasoning packet but I have found adding a little makes a big difference.

I have used both large cucumbers as well as small picklebush cucumbers. Seems like the picklebush ones stay crispier and they seem to hold the flavor better as well.

Anyway, I have learned alot in the two years I've done this. There are some basic canning steps you should always follow to make sure your food is safe to eat. The main thing is cleaning your jars properly and making sure the mixture is acidic enough to preserve the vegetable.