Refrigerator Dill Pickles (no sugar) really could not be any easier and the result is SO GOOD! Cannot wait for you to try these!
Refrigerator Dill Pickles 101
Making your own dill pickles at home does not need to be intimidating! We have a super easy and delicious way to use up all those end-of-summer cucumbers – these refrigerator dill pickles are going to become a yearly staple in your house!
What are Refrigerator Pickles
Refrigerator pickles are pickles that are only good if stored in the refrigerator.
Refrigerator Pickles vs. Regular Pickles
Refrigerator pickles are pickles that are preserved in a vinegar/water mixture and then store only in the refrigerator while canned pickles are processed with a water bath and are then shelf-stable.
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- End of Summer: when you have ALL those cucumbers to use up – this is the recipe for you!!
- Fresh and Crispy: these are seriously crispy and SO GOOD!
- Easy: I love how easy this recipe is – it takes all of 10 minutes to make the most amazing batch of fresh pickles!
What You Will Need
- pickling cucumbers: definitely use pickling cucumbers (which are just small cucumbers) instead of larger cucumbers. The larger ones tend to get really mushy if you try and pickle them.
- white onion: this adds just a little zest to your cucumbers.
- fresh dill: a staple in this recipe! We love growing our own.
- white vinegar + apple cider vinegar: I love using both kinds of vinegar – adds to the depth of flavor.
- water: to balance out the vinegar.
- garlic cloves: adds a ton of flavor – don’t forget to smash them!
- pickling salt: part of the pickling process!
- black peppercorns: adds a touch of flavor!
How Long Do Refrigerator Pickles Last
Refrigerator pickles last for 4-6 weeks.
How to Make Refrigerator Pickles
Step One: add your brine ingredients to a small saucepan and bring to a simmer.
Step Two: grab your pickling cucumbers.
Step Three: cut those cucumbers up into wedges and put inside a mason jar.
Step Four: add in some onion and fresh dill.
Step Five: pour the brine on top (while it is still hot) of the cucumbers.
Let cool.
Step Six: Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.
Enjoy!
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Refrigerator Dill Pickles
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Refrigeration: 24 hours
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 24 hours 10 minutes
- Yield: 1 jar 1x
- Category: Snak
- Method: Refrigerator
- Cuisine: American
Description
Refrigerator Dill Pickles – an easy, classic refrigerator dill pickle recipe! Learn how to make crunchy, delicious homemade pickles!
Ingredients
- 3–5 pickling cucumbers
- 4–5 little slices of white onion
- 3–5 sprigs fresh dill
- 1/4 cup white vinegar
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 garlic cloves, smashed
- 1 1/2 teaspoon pickling salt
- 4–6 black peppercorns
Instructions
- In a small saucepan combine the white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, water, smashed garlic, pickling salt and peppercorns. Bring to a simmer.
- Meanwhile, after rinsing/cleaning your cucumbers find the end that wasn’t attached to the vine (this is called the blossom end) and cut just a tiny slice off (there is an enzyme found there that can effect the crispiness of the pickles!).
- Then cut the pickling cumbers into wedges by slicing them in half the long way and then slicing each half into 2-3 even slices again the long way.
- Cut little /4-5 slices/strips of white onion and place both the cucumbers and white onion in a 16oz mason jar (wide mouth) along with a couple fresh sprigs of dill.
- Carefully pour the vinegar (aka “brine”) over the pickles while it is hot. Ensure the garlic and peppercorns get in the jar too.
- Set the jar aside (careful, it will be hot) and place on a hot pad or kitchen cloth. Once they have cooled, cover the jar and place in the refrigerator for 24 hours.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- 1 jar: I kind of love that this recipe only makes one jar, but you can easily double/triple/etc the recipe as you need to!
- Storage: store in the refrigerator for up to 4-6 weeks.
- Spicy: feel free to add a dash of red pepper flakes to spice things up if you want!
- Garlic: you can omit the garlic if you want to.
- Refrigeration Time: You can definitely let them sit longer than 24 hours before eating – totally up to you, but they are delicious even after 24 hours!
- Whole Pickling Cucumbers: you can use whole pickling cucumbers if you want, but you WILL need to let them refrigerate much longer than 24 hours in that case – I would recommend at least a week or so.
- Pickling Cucumbers: I do recommend using pickling cucumbers because they are so little and don’t get mushy as easily!
Keywords: refrigerator dill pickles
Cathy says
Hi Erin, I haven’t ever pickled anything, however, due to some health issues my husband is having I’m doing a lot I haven’t ever done. He loves ‘all things pickled’ but they seem to have high sodium. The pickling salt the recipe calls for seems like a small amount…can you enlighten me? I’m just trying to find things he loves to replace some of what he’s giving up.
Erin says
Since these are stored in the refrigerator (and not in a pantry, which is where you would store traditionally-pickled pickles) you don’t need as much salt. Hope that helps!
Corey says
This might be a silly question… but does it matter if you slice the cucumbers vs cutting them into wedges?
Erin says
I don’t think that is a silly question! You can use whole pickling cucumbers, but it just might take a bit longer for the brine to penetrate them (definitely longer than the 24 hours recommend here for sliced). Hope that helps!