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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Can you make the brine and just keep it in the fridge as needed? Using this recipe for 2 years and they are great. Would love to make up several batches of the brine and just keep it on hand as the cucumbers come out of the garden.
Sure!
Delicious! Made this with my pickle-loving grand daughter. It was fun and we could hardly wait to try them. She made labels for the jars and we posted our accomplishment on Facebook.
Extra brine we used with shaved red onions and made amazing pickled onions!
I have dill growing in my garden – but most of it is in heads now- can I use that? and if so, how much per jar?
Sure, Julie – amount should be the same.
I only have fresh dill head (seed). How much would you recommend to replace dill sprigs?
I’m not 100 percent sure, but my guess would be that you’d use around the same amount.
These pickles were the best ever! My daughter loves things extra spicy so we added a sliced jalapeno to one of the jars . . . delicious! I don’t think I’ll be buying pickles from the grocery store anytime soon!
Is the dry ingredients per jar or per the 2 guarts?
Hi Jesse, The recipe is enough for two jars. Hope that helps!
I searched several stores for Kirby cucumbers but never found them so I settled on small Persian cucumbers and hoped for the best. The only other ingredient difference was that I omitted the crushed red pepper. The pickles turned out great. My little girls finished one jar in an afternoon!
Jenn, these pickles are absolutely amazing! We love them so much that I just had to share the recipe on my blog – with full credit to you, of course! I feel as though my search is over for the perfect homemade dill pickle. And, btw, love your cookbook!
So glad you enjoyed them, Rosemary! I checked out your blog and it is lovely — your photos are so beautiful.
My friend made and brought these pickles to an Shakespearean outdoor play in Asheville, NC. I love pickles anyway but these are the best. she later sent the recipe and I made the pickles for the first time. Super easy and just as tasty as my friend’s! I have since turned by boyfriend on to Jenn’s recipes and we have since made the chicken pot pie and crustless broccoli quiche. I made a fan out of many non pickle lovers as well as anti broccoli folks through Jenn’s fabulous recipes! And of course I have preordered her cookbook!
I have a small-mouth quart jar – how much room should I leave at the top before popping these (covered) babies into the fridge? Thank you!
Hi Caitlin, you want the brine to just cover the cucumbers. If you need to, add a little cold water to get the cucumbers completely covered. Hope you enjoy!
Can you use ground mustard and coriander?
Sure, Jen. Hope you enjoy the pickles!