Cucumbers always sneak up on us, seemingly magically appearing overnight. While out in the garden the other night, Mike picked a huge crop of them. Later that evening (when everyone was fast asleep, including myself), he made these delicious refrigerator pickles. They are good.
Refrigerator pickles are great because there is no canning involved, which makes them fast and easy. You basically make the brine, plop in your fresh picked cukes (or bought fresh from the farmer's market) and a few seasonings, and keep the large jar in your refrigerator.
After about forty-eight hours, they are ready to eat. They are so crisp and so fresh you'll have a hard time eating pickles from a jar again (even your own canned ones!).
After a few rounds of pickles, if they don't have that same great pickle 'bite', you can just make another batch of fresh brine.
Mike's recipe (as best as he can remember):
3 cups apple cider vinegar
9 cups water
1/2 cup pickling salt
2 tablespoons of sugar
2 tablespoons of pickling spice
12 fresh garlic cloves, peeled
lots of fresh dill
2 -3 lbs cucumbers, sliced (enough to fill the jar)
Onions are good in the jar too, but he didn't have any on hand this time around.
Onions are good in the jar too, but he didn't have any on hand this time around.
Directions:
Combine cider vinegar, water, pickling salt and sugar in a large pan. Bring to a boil while stirring occasionally. Cool to room temperature.
Put dill, garlic and pickling spices in large jar.
Add sliced cucumbers.
Pour in cooled brine.
Pour in cooled brine.
Wait 48 hours.
For a sweet refrigerator pickle with less bite, you can use this recipe.
For a good recipe to use for canned pickles, go here.
Your refrigerator pickles look delicious! I'll have to try these before the fresh Oregon-grown cucumbers disappear from the produce shelves (also seemingly overnight).
ReplyDeleteThat looks fantastic! I'm a big fan of refrigerator pickles as well (though I do prefer the sweet Bread and Butter variety) since they're just so easy to make. We usually end up with multiple huge one-gallon glass jars taking up space in the refrigerator. Luckily since they're so delicious they don't take up space for too long.
ReplyDeleteWow, thank you for the recipe - sounds delicious!
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness! I cannot wait to try this recipe!
ReplyDeleteWill adjust this for pickling my heirloom chicken eggs.
ReplyDeleteAdjust again for peaches.
And, of course, adjust for OKRA !
No going to sleep with mine.
Garden & Be Well, XO Tara
I love pickles & will definitely try this recipe! Thanks for sharing it :)
ReplyDeleteI so want to do this, my mouth is watering already. Of course I have work surrounding me like a mountain...
ReplyDeleteYum, I need to try this!!! :) donna
ReplyDeleteMike's pickles look yummy. I must try this. I need to go to the farmers market. Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe ~
ReplyDeleteThis recipe is a keeper!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing, and congrats to Mike for one delicious looking jar of pickles!
YUM!
ReplyDeleteDo you have to use pickling cucumbers, or does any variety work?
Can't wait to make some tonight . . .
Kay
YUM!
ReplyDeleteDo you have to use pickling cucumbers, or does any variety work?
Can't wait to make some tonight . . .
Kay
I have tons of garden cucumbers from the garden and would love to try this.
ReplyDeleteMy problem is I cannot find pickling salt anywhere. I do have sea and kosher salt. Would that work?
If so how much would I use??????
One thing to know, I do not cook or bake at all. So all help would be greatly appreciated.
these look delicious and refreshing...so pretty too!
ReplyDeleteThey look delicious and I love the glass container...so pretty!
ReplyDeleteKay, I think it's best with pickling cucumbers but have never tried it with other slicing varieties so not sure.
ReplyDeleteDogwalker, We've only used pickling salt but I believe that kosher salt is a fine substitute. I think you would use the same amount.
Best,
Trina
Mmmm, I can hear the crisp snap and taste that tangy bite! Yummy!
ReplyDeleteThose pickles look so good. Love your blog. Am a new follower. Come and visit my and follow too. Thank you, Cindy
ReplyDeleteOh how I wished I liked pickles! Cause these are gorgeous. :) Kit
ReplyDeleteVery timely. Thanks Trina! My garden is also bulging with a few hidden cukes especially with this heat....they literally grew inches overnight! xo -c
ReplyDeleteThose sound great and tasty. Have a good day and rest of the week
ReplyDeleteYum! Thanks for sharing the recipe. Can't wait to try it.
ReplyDeleteI've made a similar recipe, and these pickles are great. But want I want to know is, how on earth did you sleep through the strong vinegar fumes as your hubby made these at night? Perhaps I allowed mine to boil a little too vigorously, for the overwhelming vinegar scent permeated most of the house.
ReplyDeleteMichelle,
ReplyDeleteNot only did I not smell boiling vinegar, I did not hear one peep coming from the kitchen. So either Hubby is very, very quiet or I was just very tired. I think both. ; )
Trina
Thanks so much for this recipe! I have never tried refrigerator pickles before but we have so many extra cukes in the garden that I am going to give this one a shot. Looks delicious. :)
ReplyDelete-Anneber www.picklebypickle.com
Looks absolutely delicious. Do you think with the amount of brine (12 cups) one can make two large jars of pickles?
ReplyDeleteKathy
Looks absolutely delicious. Do you think with the amount of brine (12 cups) one can make two large jars of pickles?
ReplyDeleteKathy
Kathy,
ReplyDeleteThe brine recipe is enough for about 1 1/2 gallons if densely packed.
I made two batches: Mike's with bite and the less bite recipe. We opened up Mike's today (48 hours) and they were delicious. Next time I will use yellow onion instead of a red onion, although the red is pretty, it turned the brine pink. It won't stop us from eating them. Thanks for the inspiration!
ReplyDeleteI made a batch on Thursday, using 1/2 the amount of brine in Mike's recipe, and it was perfect for the size of the jar I used. Actually the jar looks exactly like yours! My husband and I tried the pickles tonight and they are delicious!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the recipe...
Cheers, Kathy
YUM - this picture could be framed & I am craving pickles.... looking forward to dinner in 2 days now!
ReplyDeleteHow big is your jar? I know having one like that will encourage snacking versus having to (Gasp) actually take a jar out to open :)
ReplyDeleteHi Carrie,
ReplyDeleteNot sure exactly how big but it's big enough that we lift the lid and pull out pickles as needed. I tip the lid upside down to place pickles on so there aren't any drips from the refrigerator to our plates.
They are so good with so many things - sandwiches, cottage cheese, hummus...
Trina
Looks great!! How long do they last in the fridge?
ReplyDeleteI have never made pickles before, but thought this looked easy enough.
ReplyDeleteThese are AMAZING! Thank you for sharing!
Oh my goodness! So yummy! I made Mike's recipe but threw in some Vidalia onion slices and an Anaheim chile from our garden. We didn't have any fresh dill so I used a teaspoon of dry per quart. Can't wait to make more!
ReplyDeleteGreat idea.I will definitely try this recipe!Thanks.
ReplyDeleteOh My,those look like the perfect snack for me. I have Adrenal Insuffiency & am always craving salt. I, also, LOVE drinking the pickle brine when the pickles are all gone. TMI? Is this a brine that I could drink, as well? Just can't get enough sodium. Sorry for those of you that have to watch your salt intake so closely ... we excrete it so easily, esp during the summer; and can easily get dehydrated. In the summer, many of us have to take Thermatabs, an OTC sodium/phosphate mineral supplement that's kept behind the pharmacy counter. Good salty brine for Dill Pickles are one of our fav food we often crave! These look not only easy to make, but beautiful, too! Thanks for sharing. Can't wait to try these!!! :)
ReplyDelete