Slice and Crisp your Veggies:
Crank up the music or turn on your favourite movies and slice all of your veggies.
In a large bowl or stock pot, mix the veggies, garlic, and pickling salt.
Place a thick layer of crushed ice over the top of the veggies.
Cover the pot and refrigerate it for at least 4 hours, but no more than about 12.
Sterilize your Jars:
Fill your canning pot with water and bring the water to a boil.
Place 6-12 pint-sized mason jars [or the equivalent] on a canning rack set inside the pot to sterilize and warm.
Meanwhile, warm the canning lids [but not the screw tops – we stack ours aside on a meat cleaver] in a small pot of water set upon your smallest burner.
Remove hot jars from the boiling water with tongs or the like and set upside-down to dry.
Keep that canning pot of water boiling.
Spicy! Pickle:
Drain the veggie mixture in a colander (rinse if you’d like) and set aside.
In a large stock pot, combine sugar, vinegar, seeds and spices.
Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, just until sugar dissolves.
Add the veggie mixture to the pot, careful not to splatter.
Bring the mixture back to a boil and then remove the pot from the heat.
Can it!:
For the Gochujang pickles, drop a dry red chili in the bottom of each jar. [Optional]
Using a ladle and a canning funnel, fill your hot pint jars with the hot veggies and liquid, leaving .5-in headspace at the top of the jar [ie fill the jar with veg and hot vinegar to .5 in below the very top of the glass jar].
Place warm lids on jars and attach the screw tops so that they are closed but not ridiculously lock-tight.
Place the filled jars in a rack in the boiling water of your canning pot.
Cover the canner and bring the water back to a boil.
When you have returned to a full boil, process [leave] in the boiling water for 10 minutes.
Remove the jars and set aside to cool on wire racks or a surface that isn’t heat sensitive.
Make sure that all of the lids have made that "popping" noise and are depressed/concave.