Seems like fermentation takes a little more care than I expected, but not in a bad way! I hadn’t realized there were fermentation kits out there and I’m so glad to have gotten that information before I got excited one day and decided to just wing it. It’s also good to know I should probably be thinking of this more like baking than like cooking, since I’m gathering from your description that more precise measurements are called for to get the right result.
Thank you - I really appreciate you taking the time to write out this great advice!
I hope that the brine helped you with your sore throat!
For other non-cucumber pickles, a great way to dip your toes in might be pickled onion (I like red onion best for this, but that’s my personal preference), or pickled carrots. Both of these make excellent toppings for sandwiches of all kinds, tacos, poke, basically anything that could use a little acid or some extra crunch
I’m also quite partial to pickled cauliflower and pickled beets for general snacking