What does the hot brine vs cold brine pickles experiment test?

It tests one variable: brine temperature. The idea is that cucumber slices in a hot brine turn softer than slices in a cooled brine, though both taste sharp.

20-minute experiment

Hot brine vs cold brine pickles

Does heat make a pickle softer?

The idea

Cucumber slices in a hot brine turn softer than slices in a cooled brine, though both taste sharp.

The one thing you change: Brine temperature

You need

1 cucumber, sliced thin (use the guard if you use a mandoline)
1 cup vinegar
1 cup water
1 tbsp salt and 1 tbsp sugar
Two small heatproof jars

Steps

Warm the vinegar, water, salt and sugar until dissolved. Split the hot brine between the two jars.
Let one jar of brine cool completely. Keep the other hot.
Divide the cucumber slices between the two jars and wait 30 minutes.
Taste a slice from each jar. Compare crunch and sharpness.
These are quick fridge pickles, not canned ones. Keep leftovers in the fridge and eat them within a week.

What you should find

The hot brine slices are softer and more pickled. The cooled brine slices stay crunchier.

From the app

Cook this with Chef Fizz

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The science behind it

Make quick pickles

A quick pickle is vegetables in a salty, sweet vinegar brine. A common mix is equal parts vinegar and water, plus a spoonful each of salt and sugar. Salt…

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