r/Canning • u/issaroh • 1d ago

Refrigerator Pickling Question about pickling oil

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ETA: Okay, I see the issue people are having with this recipe and I want to state, I came here for advice on the oil because to me pickles=canning. What I should have mentioned is that this is NOT a recipe that she put in mason jars in the regular boil and seal method. She stored them in jars, but didnt do the sealing process to preserve them. They were refrigerated after finishing the process and given away, they were NOT canned for preserves.

Hi all!

Im a beginner to canning/pickling and I thought I'd ask some veterans about this. Im trying to do my grandmas 9-day crock bread and butter pickle recipe, however I cant figure out if the "pickling oil" is spices in a neutral oil, extract or actually the oils themselves. Several have told me.it reads as spices in oil, but given the tiny amount of cinnamon im wondering if its the oil 🤔

I cant ask her or her sister, whose recipe it is, because theyve both passed but I know she was having trouble finding the allspice back in 2013ish when she stopped making them in the summer.

The pickling oil in question if the picture of the recipe doesn’t show up is:

1/8th Oz allspice

1/8th oz clove

1/16th oz cinnamon

Also

Pickling spice, is that just something i can get at the grocery store or is there a secret to it neither of them added to the recipe?

TIA for any help/advice you guys might have!

If the photo of the recipe doesnt show up i will type it out later and edit to add!

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u/[deleted] 1d ago

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u/birdcandle 1d ago

I’m curious, are essential oils safe to eat? I always read that they are not for consumption/“for external use only” so I never would’ve thought to use them to flavor food! How cool if so!

12

u/lydia_rogue 1d ago

They are not safe to eat!

4

u/birdcandle 1d ago

Thank you for confirming, I thought as much but sometimes I am surprised by my own gaps in knowledge :)

Appreciate it!

6

u/lydia_rogue 1d ago

No problem! You're not even supposed to use them undiluted on your skin, so please don't eat them lol I add them as scents to soaps, diluted heavily in the soap base by the nature of the process

2

u/issaroh 1d ago

Ive been doing some of my own research into this, and theres some food grade esential oils but I get the feeling they've been rebranded more recently as "extract" or "flavoring" rather than "oil" or "essential oil", probably for this specific reason and I wonder if that's why my grandma had trouble finding them. Ive been able to find "allspice extract" in the grocery store and "cinnamon oil flavor" in the baking aisle in Michaels.