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I think the last batch over-fermented. Were they fizzy, too? If it's too warm the culture goes crazy.

Here's my current recipe.

per quart of water:
3.5% brine (33g non-iodized salt per quart of water)
2 Tablespoons Dill seed
1 Tablespoon Mustard Seed
1 Tablespoon Black Peppercorns
1 Tablespoon Coriander Seed
1-2 Bay Leaves, crumbled
1/2 to 1 bulb Garlic, cloves separated, skinned and smashed a little
Small Whole Cucumbers (like Kirby), as many as will fit!

Leave out until brine becomes cloudy (about a week), then put in the fridge. Taste often! I like to wait at least 10-14 days -- if I have the willpower.

DON'T cut the blossom end! Any incision into the cuke greatly speeds the process and they get mushy fast. If you want, you can gently scrub any blossom remnants off.

Links that may help:
Pickle Me Too Hot Pickles
Arthur Schwartz Recipe from David Lebovitz
It's Alive with Brad
Sandor Katz's Sour Pickles

Last, you can do a quick sanitize with Star San. A little goes a long way.

Good luck!

My recommendations depend on what you consider "pickling."

There's the notion of canning-type pickling, where you put the vegetable (typically) in a brine, often flavored with spices, and preserve them by canning; sterilizing the jars and contents so that it's shelf-stable. Most "pickles" you buy in the store fall under this definition. Additionally, these recipes are pretty standard, and have gone through exhaustive formulating and testing to ensure safety. I personally would not trust online resources for canning unless you are 100% certain of their validity. (Whereas my next distinction is far more forgiving and open to experimentation.)
For this, I can think of no better book than the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving.

On the other hand, most non-Western cultures, including ours until the Cold War or so, consider pickling to involve some sort of preserving involving selecting and managing bacteria to preserve the food. Usually via some form of fermentation, though not exclusively so. Think kimchi or (non-canned) sauerkraut. Cucumber pickles are a paradox, common and popular in both canned and fermented categories. A common non-fermented, non-canned preserved item would be preserved lemons, say. Or honey-preserved garlic.
The best book for fermentation (and other non-canned preservations) is Sandor Ellix-Katz's The Art of Fermentation.

I mostly do refrigerator pickles, so that's what I'll describe.

Brine can be tricky, I think, because the vinegar sourness varies greatly depending on brand and process. Super common distilled white vinegar is much harsher than red/white wine vinegar which is turn is much harsher than rice vinegar. A way to get sweetness without adding sugar is to use apple cider vinegar which I found lends quite a bit of "fruit sweet" to your pickles. Also, adding carrots to whatever you're pickling with increase the sugar taste as well. I keep a little journal where I try to write down what I did in each batch. That way I can experiment and not make the same mistakes twice.

I started with basic recipes and found formulas I liked. This book is excellent: Quick Pickles. They've got the basics like dill cucumbers which has no sugar. Their basic dill pickle goes like this:

• 5 pounds of cucumbers (cut them into chips or spears as you see fit)
  
• 1 large red onion, peeled, halved and then cut into half-moons about 1/2 inch thick
  
• 1 whole head of garlic (or more to taste), cloves peeled and minced
  
• a good handful of fresh dill heads or fronds
  
• 2/3 cup peeled, finely grated horseradish (optional, makes things spicy)
  
• 1-3 chili peppers sliced in half (optional, again for spice if you want it; I usually de-seed them so that it's not too hot)
  
• 1/4 cup pickling spices (homemade is WAY better than store-bought, but both work)
  
  BRINE
  
• 3 cups red wine vinegar
  
• 6 cups water
  
• 1/2 cup kosher salt or coarse salt
  
  Pack all the ingredients except the brine things into a jar. Really pack the cucumbers in tightly.
  In a nonreactive pan, heat the brine vinegar, water, and salt to a boil over high heat. Stir it once or twice to dissolve the salt. Pour the hot mixture over the cucumbers until they are immersed. Allow to cool to room temp, then cover, refrigerate, and allow to stand for 2 days. They keep in the fridge (covered) for at least 2 months (mine have never lasted that long because we eat them too quickly).
  
  Pickling Spice:
  
• 1 tablespoon coriander
  
• 1 tablespoon whole mustard seeds (any color works)
  
• 2 teaspoons celery seed
  
• 2 teaspoons peppercorns (any color)
  
• 2 whole cloves
  
• 4 crumbled bay leaves
  
  If you keep it in a sealed container in a cool, dark place it'll keep for months.
  
  Of course, one of the troubles with this recipe is that it makes 4 QUARTS of pickles. It's an obscene amount of pickles. So I usually get my mathematician husband to help me scale down all the ingredients. I've made anywhere from 1 pound of pickles to the full recipe. They're easy snacking pickles.
  
  Also, keep in mind that boiling vinegar makes the whole house smell of vinegar. It's not my daughter's favorite, so when she's home I heat the brine mix in the microwave until the salt's fully dissolved. That way the smell of vinegar is more contained.

The first one says it will ferment, but because you use only vinegar you might not see much activity. Just follow instructions.

The second should get decent activity, and based off the recipe it looks like you might be able to use a one gallon container. ( I'm only estimating because I suck with metric)

Try this-
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Leaktite-2-gal-Bucket-2GL-WHITE-PAIL/202264039

or this-
https://www.amazon.com/1-gallon-USDA-Fermentation-Glass-Jar/dp/B006ZRBGSC

This is all based off you being in America, and with that in mind- you can usually find flip top/latch top jars at stores like tj max or Marshalls for about 5$. Good luck and have fun. If you have any trouble just ask.

Radishes and pickled onions from here. Used diamond regular salt without iodine. Ferment Your Vegetables: A Fun and Flavorful Guide to Making Your Own Pickles, Kimchi, Kraut, and More https://www.amazon.com/dp/1592336825/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_apa_ndnrxbEMBN6DS

It had white bacteria I cleaned it off and used and when it came back 2 days later was this.

I've spent this whole week researching this very thing, since I just bought an olive tree.

yes, the green ones are less ripe and dark more ripe... preference is taste.. There are many Youtube videos on how to do it. I bought a lactic acid [fermentor](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01I8HT5IY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) for my olives, which is one of the several ways. Every way that I saw is an incredibly long process.

For lactic acid ferm, you place them in your pot with salt water, wait a week or two, drain, new salt water, heavier on the salt, wait 3-4 weeks. Try... Probably not ready yet. drain, add new brine (water + salt) wait a month. Try. Repeat until they taste like you want them.

Go to Youtube... sooooo many videos on this

Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving https://www.amazon.com/dp/0778801314/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_Gg5bzbXZHQGP2
This is a great book for getting started canning. My mom bought it for me when I started. It gives very detailed instructions and lots of recipes.

If you need a huge container, look into food service containers like this: https://www.amazon.com/Basix-Storage-Containers-Ounce-White/dp/B01H3YNXR2/ref=pd_lpo_79_tr_t_3?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=F3SXTQK9ABEGSK9EC780

I normally scrape off the surface stuff and give the food a taste. I bought some pickling stones from Amazon and they work very well holding everything under the brine (if using Mason jars) mine are for wide mouth.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00V41EZNC/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1464484798&sr=8-1&pi=SL75_QL70&keywords=Pickling+pebble

Also you can get airlocks for the jars. These ones are simple to use!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01726CJ9Y/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?qid=1464485203&sr=8-2&pi=SL75_QL70&keywords=pickle+pipe

Traditionally, in Germany, for sauerkraut, both were used, i.e. the vegetable was held under the brine with stones in a fermenting crock pot that had deep gully filled with water. Something like this

For me, it's much easier this way: I just use fido jars and stones to keep the vegetables under; however, when done, I always have to use a spoon to take out the mold forming on top of the brine. So I guess that there's a lot of advantage to "double the security".

However, I don't know what would happen if the container/jar was sealed but the vegetables were not weight down to be under the brine.

The book is phenomenal and everyone should buy it, BUT this is the regular Amazon price (since late April), so there's no need for everyone to click through a Facebook page (and affiliate link) to get it.

Here's a direct link to the book on Amazon.

Prices are usually better in-store, and TJ Maxx family discount stores (Marshalls, HomeGoods, etc.) and Ross tend to carry them (I got a few not long ago of the linked size for $2.99/ea.), but these jars are fantastic, for allowing burping, but avoiding overflow and fizzy explosions, with no extra air lock pieces needed. Relevant link (jar 17).

I have this book and on page 148 is a recipe I plan on trying this weekend. It's a fridge recipe, and says should keep for about 2 months in the fridge.

• 1 pound small button mushrooms (I bet yours would be fine)
  
• 2 teaspoons pickling salt
  
• 6 tablespoons red wine vinegar
  
• 2/3 cup red wine
  
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
  
• 4 whole cloves
  
• 8 whole black peppercorns
  
• one 1-inch piece fresh ginger, sliced thinly
  
• 1 Mediterranean bay leaf
  
  toss mushrooms with salt, put into a flat bottomed dish and cover with plastic wrap. Let stand at room temp for 8-12 hours.
  
  put the mushrooms and juice into a nonreactive pan. cook over medium heat until all the juice has evaporated, 8-10 minutes. Add remaining ingredients. simmer the mix for 5 minutes. Remove pan from heat and let them cool.
  
  Pack the mushrooms into a 2-3 cup jar (a pint jar I would imagine....whatever it fits into...). Pour the liquid over the mushrooms. Cap the jar and refrigerate for at least two days before eating.
  
  Edit: for stupid spelling and spacing. >.<

They are a specific Thing. Just order some. You'll need Chicago green relish and celery salt too, anyway.

https://www.amazon.com/Vienna%C2%AE-Chicago-Style-Condiment-Mustard-Peppers/dp/B01AO2AW7E/ref=sr_1_3_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1468185463&sr=8-3&keywords=sport+peppers

I use these teabags that I buy at the local Asian market. They fold-over so there's no staples or glue.

I have been wanting to switch to using green tea instead of grape leaves so thanks for that imput. Does the tea add any noticeable flavor?