The most delicious recipes for cucumbers with citric acid for the winter

Not only vinegar can preserve the freshness of winter preparations and extend their shelf life. If you strongly feel the taste of vinegar or it is contraindicated for you for medical reasons, then an ingredient such as citric acid will come to the rescue. Just one teaspoon will keep the brine clear, the lids tightly closed, and the cucumbers strong and crispy.

The article offers seven detailed and best recipes for pickling cucumbers with citric acid, which are not at all difficult to master. You will find tips for preparing canned vegetables, reviews and recommendations from housewives that will surely be useful to you.

Why is citric acid needed in cucumber preparations and what does it do?

Citric acid is a great alternative to vinegar. It preserves the freshness of the product without any foreign smell or taste, is safer and will not harm people with diseases of the stomach or sensitive oral mucosa.

You can hardly go wrong with the dosage of citric acid when canning: as a rule, one teaspoon per jar is enough.

There are two options for adding acid:

1. Into the jar - immediately before pouring boiling water marinade.
2. Into a saucepan with boiling marinade. In this case, after adding lemon, the marinade must be boiled for 1 minute.

Citric acid has an excellent antibacterial effect, therefore it prevents the formation of mold and swelling of the lids during sealing.

Best Recipes

We invite you to familiarize yourself with the top 7 recipes for preparing cucumbers for the winter with the addition of acetic acid.Follow the recipe carefully and you will get crispy and healthy cucumbers.

Pickled cucumbers with citric acid, mustard seeds and spices

Ingredients:

• medium sized cucumbers;
• 4 cloves of garlic;
• 1 tsp. citric acid;
• dill umbrella;
• a sprig of parsley;
• 2 bay leaves;
• caraway;
• black peppercorns;
• allspice black pepper;
• 1 tbsp. l. salt;
• 3 tbsp. l. Sahara;
• 1 tsp. mustard seeds (for one jar).

Cooking method:

1. Soak clean cucumbers in cold water for at least 4 hours.
2. Rinse the cucumbers again.
3. Cut the tip of the vegetable from the front and back.
4. Cut the garlic into thin slices.
5. Sterilize the jars and boil the lids.
6. Place several slices of garlic, allspice, cumin and parsley on the bottom of the container.
7. Next, fill the jar tightly with cucumbers, placing garlic between the vegetables.
8. Place an umbrella of garlic on top and add mustard.
9. Boil the water.
10. Fill the jars with boiling water. Leave for 15 minutes.
11. Drain the water back into the pan, add salt and sugar. Add bay leaf and peppercorns. Stir thoroughly and bring to a boil.
12. Cook for 1-2 minutes.
13. Pour citric acid into a jar and immediately pour boiling marinade over it.
14. Roll up the jars. Turn over and wrap.

Advice. If you don't like a sweet taste, reduce the amount of sugar in this recipe by half.

Spicy cucumbers

Ingredients:

• 1 kg of cucumbers;
• 5 cloves of garlic;
• 1 medium onion;
• 1 tsp. citric acid;
• 1 small hot pepper;
• peppercorns;
• 1 tsp. ground black pepper;
• 2 tbsp. l. salt;
• 1 tbsp. l. Sahara:
• 1 aspirin tablet (optional);
• 1 liter of water.

Cooking method:

1. Soak the cucumbers in cool water for 3-5 hours.
2. Cut off any excessively tough skin.But try to choose fruits that do not require additional processing.
3. Chop the garlic.
4. Cut the hot pepper into thin slices.
5. Cut the onion into half rings.
6. Sterilize the jars.
7. Place chopped garlic, a few onion rings and peppercorns on the bottom.
8. Place cucumbers in a jar, place onion rings and chopped hot peppers between the vegetables.
9. Boil water, pour boiling water over the contents of the jars. Leave for 7 minutes.
10. Drain the water back, add salt, sugar, ground pepper. Bring to a boil.
11. Pour citric acid into the jar. If you are using aspirin, crush the tablet and pour it into a jar along with lemon.
12. Gradually fill the jars with boiling marinade.
13. Cover with lids.
14. Sterilize for 10 minutes.
15. Hermetically sealed close the banks, wrap it up for two days.

Note! The cucumbers turn out tart and spicy. It is not recommended for consumption by children, as well as people with diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. In addition, this snack must be eaten with bread. It tastes better and is safer.

Recipe with citric acid without vinegar

Here is an example of a classic recipe for preparing cucumbers for the winter with citric acid.

Ingredients:

• 1–1.5 kg of cucumbers;
• 1 tsp. citric acid;
• 2 cloves of garlic;
• currant or cherry leaves;
• peppercorns;
• dill umbrella;
• 1 tbsp. l. salt;
• 1.5 tbsp. l. Sahara;
• 1 liter of water.

Cooking method:

1. Leave the cucumbers overnight in a bowl of cold water.
2. Rinse the fruits well.
3. Wash the jars with soda and sterilize.
4. Place cherries or currants and a clove of garlic on the bottom.
5. Place vegetables. First place the smallest cucumbers.
6. Place a clove of garlic and an umbrella of dill on top.
7. Pour boiling water over the contents of the jars and leave for 10 minutes.Then repeat the procedure.
8. After putting the water on the fire for the third time, add salt, sugar and peppercorns.
9. Pour citric acid into the jar.
10. Fill the containers with boiling marinade.
11. Immediately close the lid and turn over. It is advisable to wrap it up.

Advice. If there is no desire to make preparations using triple filling, then it can be replaced by sterilizing jars with filled vegetables.

Crispy cucumbers with lemon and vodka

Ingredients:

• 2 kg of small cucumbers;
• 50–60 ml vodka;
• 1 tsp. citric acid;
• 2 tbsp. l. heaped sugar;
• 1.5 tbsp. l. salt;
• 1.5 liters of water;
• a sprig of parsley;
• dill umbrella;
• horseradish leaves;
• peppercorns.

Cooking method:

1. Soak the cucumbers in ice water for at least three hours. The more time they spend in water, the crispier they will be.
2. Cut off the tails at both ends.
3. Place a horseradish leaf and parsley at the bottom of a sterilized jar.
4. Fill with cucumbers.
5. Place an umbrella of dill on top.
6. Add salt, sugar, peppercorns to the water. Boil it.
7. Pour in vodka. Boil again.
8. Add citric acid to the jars.
9. Pour the boiling marinade over the vegetables.
10. Cover with a lid.
11. Sterilize for 15 minutes.
12. Close the jars, turn them over and wrap them for one day.

Note! The crispiness of cucumbers comes from horseradish leaves. We do not recommend replacing them with currant, cherry or raspberry ones.

Pickled cucumbers “Prague”

Ingredients:

• 1.5-2 kg of small cucumbers. Gherkins are ideal;
• 1 tsp. citric acid;
• 2 slices of lemon;
• 1.5 liters of water;
• 40 g salt;
• 140–150 g sugar;
• 1 tsp. grain mustard;
• 3 bay leaves;
• 3 cloves of garlic;
• peppercorns and allspice to taste.

Cooking method:

1. Soak the cucumbers for 3-4 hours.
2. Rinse and sterilize the jars.
3. Place bay leaves, peppercorns, and garlic on the bottom.
4. Place the cucumbers as tightly as possible.
5. Add mustard.
6. Place lemon and allspice on top.
7. Pour boiling water over the contents of the jars. Cover with a lid and leave for 15-20 minutes.
8. Drain the water, add salt and sugar.
9. Bring to a boil.
10. Stirring, boil for 2 minutes.
11. Pour citric acid into boiling water. Stir again.
12. Fill the jars with hot marinade and close them immediately.
13. Store upside down for the first two days.

Sweet cucumbers with citric acid

What you will need:

• 1.5 kg of cucumbers;
• 3 cloves of garlic;
• 6 tbsp. l. Sahara;
• 2 tbsp. l. salt;
• 1 tsp. honey;
• 1 tsp. citric acid;
• 1 small onion;
• dill;
• parsley;
• currant leaves.

Cooking method:

1. Soak the cucumbers for 3–7 hours;
2. Cut the garlic into plates and the bulbs into rings.
3. Chop the greens.
4. Place a currant leaf, a mixture of garlic and herbs on the bottom of a sterilized jar.
5. Place the cucumbers in the jar and place the onions along the entire height of the jar.
6. Boil water and fill the jars with boiling water. Cover with a lid and leave for 10 minutes.
7. Drain the water back. Add salt and sugar. Boil it.
8. Before boiling, add a spoonful of honey and citric acid.
9. Mix thoroughly and fill the jars with marinade.
10. Cover with a lid.
11. Sterilize for 12 minutes.
12. Roll up. Turn over and cover with something warm for a day.

Advice. You can exclude honey from the recipe if you are allergic to the product. When adding honey marinade becomes a little cloudy, this is a natural reaction.

Recipe with carrots and onions

Ingredients:

• 1 kg of cucumbers;
• 2 large carrots;
• 1 large onion or 2 medium ones;
• sprig of dill;
• 1 tsp. citric acid;
• 2 tbsp. l. Sahara;
• 2 tbsp. l. salt;
• garlic clove;
• 1 liter of water.

Cooking method:

1. Pre-soak the cucumbers in cold water for 4-5 hours.
2. Grate the carrots on a coarse grater or cut into thin slices.
3. Cut the onion into half rings.
4. Chop the garlic and herbs and mix.
5. Rinse the jars well. Sterilize thoroughly.
6. Place a mixture of herbs and garlic on the bottom.
7. Cut the cucumbers into thick slices.
8. Next, lay out layers of vegetables: carrots, cucumbers and onions. It is advisable to repeat 2-3 times. That is, do not take too many products for each layer.
9. Add citric acid on top.
10. Boil the water. Add salt and sugar to boiling water. Mix thoroughly.
11. Fill jars with marinade.
12. Cover with lids and sterilize for 25 minutes.
13. Roll up the jars, turn them over and do not move them for the first two days.

Helpful tips for cooking, rolling and storing

Preparing cucumbers with citric acid for the winter is a common thing for many, but there are nuances that are useful for everyone to know:

1. If you don’t trust citric acid, thinking that the preparations will quickly deteriorate, then at the final stage add crushed aspirin to the jar. Don't neglect sterilization.
2. Honey goes well with onions. Therefore, if you find one of the ingredients in the recipe, feel free to add the second one.
3. To get crispy cucumbers, add horseradish leaves to the preparations. In this case, it is better to avoid currant and cherry leaves.
4. If you want to add other vegetables to the preparations, take elastic, dense tomatoes. It’s better not to add cabbage and pepper.

Reviews

We present to your attention reviews from housewives who have already tried a couple of recipes and can share their impressions:

Albina Salakhova, Kazan: “Canning is my passion, I have three children, they all love pickled and salted vegetables. In order not to harm the children's stomach, I do not use any pepper (even peas), I try to add no more than 1 tbsp of salt. l. But I don’t skimp on garlic and onions, they perfectly strengthen the immune system.”

Svetlana Rastorgueva, Serpukhov: “I like to experiment in the kitchen. I especially love cucumbers with the addition of mustard and grated horseradish root. This taste cannot be compared with anything! Spicy, aromatic, rich. I make twists in liter jars. Citric acid does not cause any trouble in preparations.”

Olga Lavrushina, Kislovodsk: “I am a supporter of classic recipes. The abundance of herbs and spices is not for me. But I noticed this feature. If you make preparations using citric acid, then a slice of lemon at the very top of the jar will give the dish extraordinary freshness and aroma. I advise you to take a lemon with a thick zest.”

Let's sum it up

Citric acid in cucumber preparations for the winter has a pronounced antibacterial effect. Thanks to it, you can give up vinegar, which many people don’t like. “Limonka” will prevent the lids from swelling, the brine becoming cloudy and the formation of mold. But do not forget that the jars must be sterilized before preparing the preparations.

Cucumbers with citric acid go well with onions, garlic, horseradish, tomatoes and herbs. We recommend serving it with meat, potatoes, pasta, or as an independent dish.

We wish you a rich harvest, delicious preparations and bon appetit!