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Vegetables from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus

Solyonye ogurtsy (Russian salted cucumbers)солёные огурцы

Solyonye ogurtsy are whole cucumbers packed with spices under a salt brine and left to sour by lactic fermentation, traditionally in wooden barrels for weeks to months [ruwiki-sol]. The interstate standard GOST 34220-2017 fixes the finished brine at 2.5–3.5 % chlorides and 0.6–1.2 % titratable acid [gost34220]. In Russia and Ukraine the pickled cucumbers go into rassolnik soup [s1].

Fully documentedVegetables

Recipe

Amounts from a sourceNo fixed recipe. The standard sets the finished product's make-up (cucumbers at least 50 % of net weight, spices at least 2.5 %) and lets each maker follow its own recipe.
Fresh cucumbers, wholeSorted into three length classes[gost34220]
Spices and herbsAt least 2.5 % of net weightThe standard sets the share, not the kinds; dill, garlic, horseradish and fruit leaves are usual[gost34220]
Salt brineEnough that the finished brine holds 2.5–3.5 % chlorides[gost34220]
StarterThe standard covers lactic fermentation with or without starters of pure lactic acid bacteria cultures [gost34220]
Start
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What changes: Starting material: whole fresh cucumbers sorted into three length classes

Step 1 of 5
Sort the cucumbers by length
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactic acid bacteria
Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Solyonye ogurtsy are whole cucumbers packed with spices under a salt brine and left to sour by lactic fermentation, traditionally in wooden barrels for weeks to months [ruwiki-sol]. The interstate standard GOST 34220-2017 fixes the finished brine at 2.5–3.5 % chlorides and 0.6–1.2 % titratable acid [gost34220]. In Russia and Ukraine the pickled cucumbers go into rassolnik soup [s1]. Salt is 2.5–3.5 % (GOST 34220-2017).

Key numbers
Salt2.5–3.5 %Set[gost34220]Finished cucumbers and brine

What makes this one different

The standard sets the finished brine at 2.5–3.5 % chlorides, and the cucumbers must be firm and fully soaked through [gost34220]. Cucumbers that have only just taken up salt are called malosolnye; longer salting lets them sour by lactic acid [ruwiki-sol].

Related ferments

Variants

  • Malosolnye ogurtsyShort salting, one or two days in cooled brine, so the cucumbers are not fully soured [ruwiki-malo].

Safety

The standard requires no visible signs of spoilage such as mould or rot, and sets microbiological limits by reference to food law [gost34220].

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

Fossilised cucumber seeds from the 10th-century layers of Novgorod show the plant was known there early, and by the 17th century East Slavs knew cucumbers put up with salt, among them the quick malosolnye kind [ruwiki-malo]. Almost to the end of the 20th century salted cucumbers were put up for the winter in wooden tubs holding several poods; today they are canned in glass jars [ruwiki-sol]. GOST 34220-2017 was adopted by the interstate council on 14 July 2017 and has been in force in Russia since 1 January 2019 [gost34220].

Microbes
No study we found names its microbes.
  1. [gost34220] GOST 34220-2017, Овощи соленые и квашеные. Общие технические условия (Salted and fermented vegetables, general specifications), sections 4–5 and Tables 1–2, in force in Russia from 2019-01-01 (text on meganorm.ru)spec
  2. [s1] Wikipedia, Pickled cucumber (section on brined pickles and the note on Russia and Ukraine)wiki
  3. [ruwiki-sol] Russian Wikipedia, Солёные огурцы (Salted cucumbers)wiki
  4. [ruwiki-malo] Russian Wikipedia, Малосольные огурцы (Lightly salted cucumbers)wiki