Place the dill, garlic, mustard and peppercorns in the bottom of a clean, quart sized mason jar.

Wash the pickles thoroughly to remove any debris.

Cut the ends of the cucumbers off and discard. (the ends will cause mushy pickles)

Slice the cucumbers into thick rounds or spears.

Pack the pickles into the jar so that they fit very tightly and do not move, leaving 1 inch head space.

Combine the water with one tablespoon of salt and taste.

Add more salt until the water tastes suits you. It should have taste like sea water.

Pour the water over into the jar until it covers the cucumbers.

Stuff the leaves into the jar to further tighten the pack.

Cover with lid and screw on band to finger tight.

Set on a warm counter where the jar will not be disturbed.

After 24 hours, loosen the lid to release carbon dioxide and re-tighten to finger tight.

Repeat loosening the lid and re-tightening once or twice per day for four days, total.

After the fourth day, taste test a pickle to see if it is to your liking.

If it is not sour enough, allow the jar to remain on the counter for another day or so until it reaches your satisfactory taste.

Once the pickles taste to your liking, refrigerate and enjoy.