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 door 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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Hello! Wow, I feel so lucky that this is the first pickle recipe I tried and it is also the last one I’ll ever need. My family loved these so much. I don’t think we’ll buy a commercial pickle ever again. I’m pickling all the little early bits from the garden, too. Thank you.
If I prefer to make pint jars of pickles, how many pints does this recipe make or should I stick with quart jars? Also, I already purchased Ball Mixed Pickling Spice (mustard seed, black peppercorns, dill seed, cardamom, cassia, ginger, coriander, allspice, chili pepper, cloves and bay leaves). Would I end up with the same results if I use this prepared spice mixture? Thanks in advance!
If you use pint-sized jars, it should make 4 jars worth. And I’m not familiar with the Ball Pickling spice mix so I’m not sure how the taste will compare to this recipe, but I’m sure it will be tasty.
This recipe is my all-time pickle favorite.
Made these and my family can’t believe how good they are! Much better fresh like this than canning and eating soft. Love them!
Delicious. Just shared with my daughter so that she can make them too! By the way I used dried dill as I did not have fresh.
I haven’t even tried any other recipes because this one is amazing. Everyone asks for it 😂
Are these ingredients for one jar?
Actually, I use two 1-quart jars. Hope you enjoy if you make them!
I have made this pickle recipe three times , because they are awesome! I make four jars at a time and I double the amounts of sugar, salt, vinegar and water. Along with the spices , I also add allspice to all the jars and lots of dill !! Best recipe for refrigerator PICKLES!
This is the first pickle recipe I’ve tried and likely the last! I have one “problem” however. I’m getting more cucumbers than we can go through in a reasonable amount of time. So my question is, could this recipe be canned?
I don’t recommend it, Jolene — sorry!
Quick question. You divide the brining ingredients in half for each jar, like 8 dill sprigs per jar, 1 tablespoon of coriander seeds per jar, and so on? Also if you’re short on dill sprigs can you use freeze dried dill? Thanks in advance. Hope I did this right, they look delicious!
Yes, that’s correct, Heath. And it’s fine to use the freeze dried dill. Enjoy!
These are delicious and crisp, with a touch of lemon flavor (which I’m guessing is actually the coriander.) The boys have declared this their new favorite dill pickle recipe, though I’ll still do traditional as well for storage purposes. Quartered vs halved cucumbers worked much better for absorbing the flavor, even for small ones. Thank you for the recipe!
I have all the ingredients except the coriander. What could I substitute for that or can I leave it out.
Are these dill or sweet flavor pickles?
Hi Hazel, You can just omit the coriander. If you like the taste of fennel, you can replace the coriander with the same amount of fennel seeds. And these are more of a dill pickle. Hope that helps!
What do you mean by Whisk in the cold water?
Hi Drew, After you’ve combined the vinegar, salt, and sugar and transferred the mixture into a bowl, you’ll then whisk/mix in the cold water. Hope that clarifies and that you enjoy the pickles!
This recipe was the answer when I had an abundant crop of cucumbers this past summer. It is easy to make and the pickles turned out absolutely delicious and crunchy. It’s an easy recipe too. I gave some away to neighbors and they loved them too. I will make this every summer from now on, guaranteed!
Hi! I love this recipe and was wondering what other vegetable pickles use the same brine recipe. Can you use these ratios for carrots or beets but just change up the herb choice? Just wondering if you have done that before. Thanks!
Hi Anna, Glad you like this! I haven’t tried pickling other vegetables with this recipe, but I suspect it should work. (Depending upon how you cut them they may take more or less time to pickle.) I’d love to hear how it turns out if you use other veggies!
Excellent! Quick and easy and everyone loved them.
With this recipe my pickles take about a month in the refrigerator before they are ready to eat. They hold up for 1-2 months after that.
I have made these pickles many times & love them. Easy & quick.
Can I substitute dried dill for the fresh? If so, how much?
Sure, Maureen – I’d use 2 teaspoons dried dill. Please let me know how they turn out!
Great and easy recipe. This is my second time making these pickles. I have increased the volume to can 6 quarts each time. Keep a couple for me and the rest give away. My only variation was adding pearl onions to all jars and fresh Tabasco peppers to a few jars.
I’m going to try this out tomorrow, but I got a question-
Can I make this with whole cucumbers and not cut them into halves or spears? I’m talking about small gherkin cucumbers that I just bought today.
Sure, you can leave them whole; they may just take longer to pickle. Hope you enjoy!
Are these a dill flavor or sweet pickle?
Hi Hazel, they’re more of a dill pickle. 🙂
So good! First time making refrigerator pickles and I tried this and one other recipe and this was the winner! Didn’t have mustard seeds so next time I’ll try it with the those but these were great.
Easy, easy, pickle recipe with lots of great taste! Lemony flavor of coriander seeds sets them apart. I can’t wait to make these in season with garden cucumbers. No preservatives and chemicals not to mention less sodium besides being more flavorful than store pickles. I used pure maple syrup instead of sugar.
I made these twice. First time I read the recipe wrong and used 3 tsp. Salt and they were delicious. Second time I used 3 Tbsp. and the batch was ruined. Way too salty! First time 5 star, second time 1 star.
There is a difference between kosher salt and regular salt. Kosher is much less salty. Not sure what kind of salt you used, but that could be the problem.
Demeyere cookware is 3 ply aluminum and very good cookware though you say not to use aluminum. This essential pot, though exceptional, would not be good to use??
I wouldn’t recommend it, Rhonda — sorry!
Perfect pickles 24 hours later! Even better the longer they sit. I’ll never buy dill pickles from the store again. These are the bomb! One of the first recipes in her book! So excited!
I have made these pickles several times and everyone goes nuts over them! You are correct-I will never buy a jar of pickles again!
Outstanding pickles! Thank you for the recipe. I am wondering if they can keep longer than a month in the fridge?
Hi Deb, I think a month is probably the max. Sorry!
Hi
Is there a way to make several jars and keep them over maybe 6 months and have them remain as half sour pickles ? I can not get the pickling cucumbers over the winter, would like to make and have them as half sours.
Thanks !
dibster
Hi, Unfortunately, I don’t think there’s a way to keep these for 6 months. Sorry!
These pickles are wonderful! I’ve been making them using your recipe for years actually, but I actually just bothered to read the whole article (whoops) where you recommend reusing the brine to make more batches.
So I just finished eating a delicious batch of pickles, but they soaked up most of the brine, and now my pickle jar is only 2/3 full of brine. My question is, do you just add water to the remaining brine, or should I add other components like a bit of vinegar, salt, etc to balance it out? I hate the thought of bland pickles!
Anyway, thanks for the recipe, these pickles are far tastier than anything in the store and cheap to make too!
Glad you like the pickles, Will! Yes, I would add a little more vinegar, salt etc. to the brine as just adding water will dilute the flavor too much. 🙂
Oh my gosh! These are truly the best pickles ever! I will never buy pickles again! They are crunchy and have just the right tang. I love them.
I love these pickles and have made them many times. They don’t last at all in my house. We usually eat them within a week’s time. Just make a few jars and going to give a jar to a friend. I know they last a month, but is the dill going to be OK for that long?
Hi Sheila, So glad you like these! Yes, the dill will be okay for up to a month in the jars, but it’s fine to discard it after a week or so as the flavor is already in the brine.
These pickles were so delicious! I made 4 quarts and will certainly be making them again. I found them even better after 48 hours of curing.
Hi Jenn!
Just wanted to ask you why the pickles should be eaten in one month? I thought they would last longer since they are in brine. The pickles are delicious! Have received many compliments. Thank you for your all of your wonderful recipes.
Suzanne
Glad you like these, Suzanne! While they may last for a bit longer than a month they’re definitely at their best if eaten within that time. (These are not designed for canning.)
These were so good!!! So crisp and so flavourful. Everyone raved about them. I did try to make another batch using mini English cucumbers but they didn’t stay as crisp. I can only get pickling cucumbers in late summer : (
I loved the pickles. Never had these before. It is in my recipe collection. Tom
I made this pickle recipe but went the additional steps and canned them. The taste was far better than any store bought ones but canning them made the pickle a little soft. I added more garlic and they were very pronounced garlicky by the time I opened the jar a few weeks later. But I love that. Thank you!
Fantastic recipe and very simple to prepare. So much better than any refrigerated pickles at the supermarket.
Never buying another jar of pickles. Simple recipe with fantastic crunch and flavor! These won’t last long in my house. Thanks Jenn and Joanne for sharing this recipe.
I made these two days ago. I did 3 wide mouth jars. I made them as stated with the exception of adding a jalapeño to one of the jars for my husband. They are so good that all 3 jars are going to be gone before the sun rises tomorrow. Thank you for such a simple but wonderful recipe. I was lucky enough to have fresh dried coriander from my garden as well as dill so it turned out I had everything on hand to make them. This will be my go-to for using up our excess cucumbers. On another note… I happened upon your site while looking for this sort of recipe. WOW! I will be spending some time cruising around your recipes. Only wish I had found your page earlier!
Happy you’re enjoying the pickles and found the blog — hope you find lots of other recipes you like just as well! 🙂
Hi there,
I know you said the brine can be used for another 2-3 uses – but is the dill OK to last this long as well? It won’t turn / go bad?
Hi Becky, I’d probably discard the dill as its flavor is already in the brine.
I’m getting ready to try this out to use up our abundance of cucumbers. Are these a sweet pickle or more of a dill? I prefer a classic dill so I thought about reducing the sugar. Thanks! So excited to get going.
Hi Jenna, These are more of a dill; I think they’ll be too sour if you reduce the sugar. Hope that helps!
Wow, made pickles so many times, and they never turn out right, either too salty or off flavors.
Then I made these!! Amazing!!!! fresh and crisp tasting with subtle yet full flavor that won’t disappoint. Will make these for good now, no other recipes needed.
Excellent recipe, pickles are crisp and the flavor is perfect. So simple! Will only use this recipe from now on.
I found pickling cucumbers at my farmers market and gave these a try. They are fantastic and so easy. I don’t think I will ever be able to go back to store bought. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Once again Jen, your recipes are the BEST! I never made a pickle before in my life, LOL. Now my husband is spoiled, he will not eat store bought pickles. Thanks!??
Rebecca 🙂
😂
Would it be ok to use dried dill? If so, how much would you suggest? Eager to try these!
Thanks!
Sure, Steph — I’d suggest 2 tsp. dried dill. Hope you enjoy!
I think these would taste great, but the 3 tablespoons of salt is way to much. Is that a typo in the recipe? The brine was super salty, but I thought once it soaked into the cucumbers it would be ok. Nope, too salty to eat. I may have to throw these out unless there is some way to rescue them. I’ll give it four stars just because of the oversaltiness, though they otherwise taste really good and was pretty easy to put together.
Hi Monica, Sorry you found these too salty. Did you use kosher salt or regular? Either way, you can reduce the saltiness of the brine by adding more water and vinegar (in the same ratio as they are used in the recipe). Hope that helps!
Hi Jenn:
Should I also add to your recipe 1/4 tsp. per quart of BALL PICKLE CRISP GRANULES? It is calcium chloride used to keep pickles crispy.
Hi Debbie, I’m not familiar with the granules, but I don’t think they’re needed here. Hope you enjoy the pickles if you make them! 🙂
I have added a fresh grape leaf to mine each time to keep them crunchy. Luckily my neighbor grows grapes.
Same thing happened to me. I think someone sabotaged her recipe. 3Tbsp is way too much.
I’ve been making a simple but delicious version of refrigerator pickles for several years now enjoyed by my family and friends alike. Last month I made Jenn’s recipe just for comparison. At first, I was the only one who snacked on them. But after they gathered flavor for about a week, my wife and daughter tried one. They couldn’t stop at one! From now on I will make this recipe instead of my old one. Irresistibly delicious and easy to make!
Is this recipe safe to use for canning also?
Hi Melanie, Unfortunately, I don’t know for sure if it’s safe for canning, so I don’t recommend it. Sorry!
These pickles taste exactly like the kosher dill pickles in the fridge section of the grocery store that I spend $5.99 per jar on. Now I know they are so easy to make at home and I can get four to five jars for the price of one store bought one. I reduced the kosher salt to 2 tablespoons and found the pickles well seasoned. I used all of the other spices as directed. I also made a batch of just lots of fresh dill and chopped garlic. Both types were very good. I did a batch of round slices and vertical slices to put on sandwiches and the cucumbers stayed nice and crunchy. Thank you Jennifer for sharing this awesome recipe!
I made these and took them to work and to say they were well received is putting it lightly. I pretty much have to bring a jar at least every other week now . Simply put best pickles ever.
I’ve made these pickles for the last Three years with fresh farmer’s market produce and everyone loves them! The recipe is simple and lends itself well to improvising. I’ve added fresh horseradish for example and more hot pepper to a few batches and they were delish too! Everyone wants a jar😊Thanks for sharing!
These were delicious, easy to make, and disappeared quickly. I’ll definitely make them again, but I have a question. The dill weed became less attractive and uninviting after the first few days (yet the pickles were still yummy!) and I thought about removing it from the brine (which would also make it easier to see how many pickle spears remained, and to fish them out) but I wondered if it would affect the flavor of the remaining pickles, or especially wondered if it would make the brine not reusable. Should I replace the dill if making another batch?
Hi Judy, glad to hear you like the pickles! Yes, I think you could get away with removing the dill and that the brine would still be good for a second batch. (I think the brine has soaked up plenty of flavor at this point so it shouldn’t be an issue.) Hope that helps!
Would recipe work as well if I left cucumbers whole, did not cut them in half? Thanks
Sure — keep in mind that it may take a bit longer for them to pickle if left whole, but it will work. Hope you enjoy!
OMG! The easiest best pickles! I have a feeling I’ll be making these all summer, glad I can use the brine for a second batch! They are delicious by themselves and great on sandwiches (I cut a few into planks just for sandwiches).
I am unable to find coriander seed, and I don’t want to have to order it online. Can I use ground coriander?
Sure, Nancy — I would use 1 teaspoon ground coriander. Enjoy!
Thanks I appreciate your prompt reply
Is that 1 tsp of Corianader per quart or divided between the the 2 quarts. The same question for using dried dill.
Tom
Hi Thomas, Everything should be divided between the two jars. Sorry for the confusion!
I have added a fresh grape leaf to the jar to preserve crunchiness. Luckily my neighbor grows grapes.
What if the brine doesn’t cover the cukes? Mine have been in the fridge overnight and they’re still not covered.
Hi Becky, the cucumbers should be fully submerged by the brine. If they aren’t, just add a bit of cold water to the jars until the brine covers them.
I’ve really enjoyed your recipes and when I saw these cucumbers at the store, I had to try this one. They tasted so fresh. I’ve never made pickles before!
Question: I love garlicky pickles so how can kick-up the garlic taste? Should I add more and chop? Crush them?
So glad you enjoyed the pickles, Mark! To up the garlic, you could add more peeled and halved cloves to the brine or, or for an even stronger garlicky taste, you could chop them. Hope that helps!
Well, I tried adding 3 chopped garlic and that was overkill. So I think your original recipe tastes the best!
Can this recipe be adapted to make a bread-and-butter pickle?
Thanks, have loved every recipe of yours I’ve tried!
Sure, Carol – you may want to increase the sugar. I’d love to know how they turn out!
When the pickles are all gone (because I’ll eat them so fast!), can you add a new batch of Kirby cucumbers to the existing seasoned brine to refrigerate or should I make up a whole new brine?
Hi Sally, Yep, you can use the brine again — it should last for another batch or two. Enjoy!
I don’t have jars. Can I use a bowl and cover it with plastic wrap?
Sure, Betty, any airtight container will work as long as the cucumbers are fully submerged in the brine. Hope you enjoy!