Brine for Pickling

Ingredients

• 1 pint pickling salt
• 1 gallon water
• 1 pinch saltpeter
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 6 whole cloves
• 1 egg

Instructions

1. Use rain water if possible; if lacking, soften other water by dissolving a pinch of washing soda in it the day beforehand to neutralize mineral contents.
2. Put water in a deep, clean kettle over the fire and bring to a boil. Add salt—one pint to the gallon of water is the usual proportion. Boil and skim. Add a pinch of saltpeter and one tablespoonful of sugar for each pint of salt (the pinches must not be large). Add also six whole cloves for each gallon. Take from fire and let cool.
3. Test the brine strength by dropping in an egg—it should float to show the size of a quarter of a dollar. If it does not float high enough, the brine needs more salt. Dissolve a pint of extra salt in as little water as suffices and add to the brine, then test again.
4. When cold, pour the brine into a clean, roomy vessel—a keg, barrel, or big stone crock. It should not quite half fill the vessel. Provide a floating head and a light weight to keep the head on the pickles and hold them under the brine. Unless the pickles are held under, the uppermost will rot and spoil the lot. Mold will gather around the head despite the cloves, but less than without them. Whenever you add fresh pickles, remove the head, wash and scald it, dry it, and return it to place.