Homemade refrigerator pickles are such a fun thing to make at home. Crispy, tangy and made with fresh dill, every bite is delicious. This recipe uses a cold brine, no cooking required. All you need is a jar, lid and 72 hours in the fridge.
Garden Fresh Cucumbers
We used whatever garden fresh cucumbers that we could find before the the deer and squirrels helped themselves to a feast. You can also use store bought cucumbers. To have crisp, crunchy-snap-pickles try to find a-day-too-soon ripe or perfectly ripe cucumbers. Any cucumber that is a little past ripe will still pickle and be delicious but not snappy.
Cold Pickling
What is cold pickling? Cold pickling is a process to pickle vegetables without using a hot cooking process. Using a cold brine like this and allowing the cucumbers (and red onion) to pickle by soaking for a few days in the refrigerator is a cold pickling process.
Yes! Don’t forget, the red onion used to add flavor to your cucumber pickles is also pickling and perfect for sandwiches, trust me.
Reuse the Cold Pickling Brine
Once you eat your first batch of homemade refrigerator pickles, you can just add more cucumbers into the same brine and pickle again! Top it off with a splash of apple cider vinegar and go another round. I usually get three rounds of pickles before I have to start over.
Equipment
- 28oz Jar with Lid
Ingredients
- 1 TBSP Whole Peppercorns
- 1 Bay Leaf
- 2 tsp Kosher Salt
- 2 tsp Sugar
- 3 garlic cloves - peeled and smashed
- 2 Cucumbers
- ¼ oz Fresh Dill (handful)
- ¼ Purple Onion - thinly sliced
- ½ cup Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1½ cup Water
Instructions
- In a jar, add all of the ingredients. Make sure the pickles are fully submerged. If you need to, top it off with more water.2 Cucumbers, 1 TBSP Whole Peppercorns, 1 Bay Leaf, ½ cup Apple Cider Vinegar, 1½ cup Water, 2 tsp Kosher Salt, 2 tsp Sugar, ¼ oz Fresh Dill, ¼ Purple Onion - thinly sliced, 3 garlic cloves - peeled and smashed
- Add the lid and turn it upside down to let the ingredients combine.
- Refrigerate for 72+ hours.
