This summer, to preserve a bit of the season without robbing it of its just-picked crispness, we started making half-sour pickles. Our first attempt at half-sours a couple years ago was ill-fated. We wrongly assumed that fermenting whole pickles would take quite a while, so we packed a crock full and didn't check them for about ten days, at which point they were far too soft.
This summer's pickle trials, however, have been resoundingly successful. Armed with the knowledge that fermentation can progress very quickly, especially in the summertime, we've taken to testing our half-sours after two to three days. Our most recent batches of pickles have only needed about five days at room temperature before they're ready to go into the fridge, where fermentation slows considerably.
Read more & recipe here: http://www.thejoykitchen.com/recipe/fermented-half-sour-pickles
