Quick and Easy Refrigerator Pickles
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Refrigerator pickles are quick and easy to make — no sterilizing jars or special equipment required.
Photo by Alexandra Grablewski (Chronicle Books, 2018)
The kids and I discovered a jar of these homemade refrigerator pickles in my parents’ refrigerator one day, and since then, no deli or store-bought pickles have ever come close. They were made by one of my mom’s oldest and dearest friends, Joanne Biltekoff, who is like an aunt to me. The best thing about Joanne’s pickles is that they’re quick and easy — no sterilizing jars or special canning equipment required. All you do is slice Kirby cucumbers into spears, cover them with brine, tuck them into the fridge, and they’re ready to eat the next day.
What You’ll Need To Make Refrigerator Pickles
The most important part of the recipe is to start with Kirby or pickling cucumbers. They’re short, squat and sometimes full of warts, but they make deliciously crisp pickles. Don’t be tempted to substitute another kind of cucumber or you’ll end up with soggy pickles.
Step-By-Step Instructions
Begin by making the brine. Combine the vinegar, salt and sugar in a small saucepan. Heat and stir until the salt and sugar are completely dissolved. Whisk in the cold water, then chill.
When cooking high-acid foods, be sure to use a cooking vessel made of a nonreactive material such as stainless steel, glass, ceramic or Teflon. Pots made from metals like aluminum, copper or cast iron will react with the acid and give your food a metallic taste.
Next, stuff the cucumbers into two 1-quart jars. Add the coriander and mustard seeds, garlic, red pepper flakes, dill sprigs to the jars, dividing evenly.
Cover the cucumbers with the chilled brine.
Cover and let sit in the refrigerator for about 24 hours, then serve. The pickles will keep in the fridge for up to one month.
These pickles will disappear quickly and you’ll likely get requests for more. You don’t have to start from scratch. You can use the pickle brine more than once — it should last for another batch or two of pickles!
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Quick & Easy Refrigerator Pickles
Refrigerator pickles are quick and easy to make — no sterilizing jars or special equipment required.
Ingredients
- 1¼ cups distilled white vinegar (5% acidity)
- 3 tablespoons kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 cups cold water
- 1¾ to 2 pounds Kirby cucumbers (about 6), cut into halves or spears
- 2 tablespoons coriander seeds
- 6 large garlic cloves, peeled and halved
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 16 dill sprigs
Instructions
- Combine the vinegar, salt and sugar in a small non-reactive saucepan (such as stainless steel, glass, ceramic or teflon) over high heat. Whisk until the salt and sugar are dissolved. Transfer the liquid into a bowl and whisk in the cold water. Refrigerate brine until ready to use.
- Stuff the cucumbers into two clean 1-quart jars. Add the coriander seeds, garlic cloves, mustard seeds, red pepper flakes, dill sprigs, and chilled brine into jars, dividing evenly. If necessary, add a bit of cold water to the jars until the brine covers the cucumbers. Cover and refrigerate about 24 hours, then serve. The pickles will keep in the refrigerator for up to one month.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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I have been making refrigerator pickles for years and I don’t think I have come across a better recipe than yours. But then again I’m not surprised because everything you make is fantastic. I actually had to eat one before the 24 hours is up because I couldn’t wait. This is my new go to refrigerator pickle recipe. Thank you so much, Jenn!
Finally! An easy refrigerator pickle that tastes great! Really love this recipe!
I was wondering if you could use pickle crisp to keep them crisp for a longer period of time?
Hi Sherrie, I’m not familiar with Pickle Crisp, but I don’t think they’re needed here. Glad you like the pickles!
There’s no measurements?
It sounds like you are just looking at the portion of the page that has the pictures with some instructions above. If you scroll down a bit to under the pictures, you’ll find the full recipe. Alternatively, at the very top of the page, to the right of the recipe name, you’ll see an orange/red button that says Jump to Recipe – if you click on that, it will take you directly to the recipe. Hope that clarifies!
Hi Jenn,
How much dill seed would recommend using instead of fresh dill?
Hi Tina, you’ll need 2 teaspoons. Enjoy!
Can this recipe be used for canning storage? We’ve been using it for refrigerator storage for the past 2 years and love it but are looking to store longer term as well.
Hi Amber, I didn’t design these with canning in mind, so I don’t know if it would be safe – sorry!
Hello Jenn, I used an adaptation of this recipe to make some awesome Spicy Garlic Dill Pickle chips. They turned out awesome. I omitted the Mustard seeds and Coriander but the rest was great, I just doubled the Garlic. I also used long English Cucumbers as my wife doesn’t like regular or Kirby Cucumbers as they give her heartburn from the seeds. I used My Mandolin so it was super easy to make the recipe. Thank you so much it is such an easy and tasty recipe. I strongly recommend people to use it. I am going to make a Giardiniera with it also.Definitely a 5 star rating from me.
Well, these are delicious! Maybe the best pickles I’ve ever had. Many store pickles even the ones I like are too strong with vinegar bite. These have a very smooth wonderful vinegary flavor but a tiny bit of sweet to temper the vinegar. Wasn’t sure what the coriander seed would add but it gives a subtle flavor profile that is very tasty. Love these pickles, new staple for my garden cukes!!
Could you can these if you wanted to?
Hi Sharon, I didn’t develop this recipe with canning in mind, so I don’t know if it would be safe — sorry!
My extreme food critic in the house said “these are better than store bought!”
Suffice it to say I went to the garden and added one more cucumber to the jar to fill the space we ate at supper.
I used pickling cucumbers from the garden -just coming in, and supplemented with English cucumbers. Both very crunchy and tasty. I was out of mustard seed, so added 2 bay leaves to each jar. Thank you!
I have been making this pickle recipe since I found it on your website in July, 2016. Neighbors and my grown sons have never stopped asking for them. Thank you so very much!