Refrigerator Dill Pickles

By Ann Fulton

Refrigerator Dill Pickles – No canner is needed and once the spices are assembled, these crisp pickles come together easily and may just become a summertime favorite!
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No canner needed for these crisp, tangy Refrigerator Dill Pickles. Once the spices are assembled, they come together in a snap…and might just become a new summertime favorite!

 

Have you heard that Cleopatra thought eating pickles made her beautiful? Or that Christopher Columbus rationed pickles during his famous voyage in order to prevent his sailors from getting scurvy? 

And then there are the generations of pregnant women who are said to have enjoyed these brined snacks with a side of ice cream!

Refrigerator Dill Pickles – No canner is needed and once the spices are assembled, these crisp pickles come together easily and may just become a summertime favorite!

While pickles have a compelling past, the current generation of creative minds is clearly adding to the story. Kool-Aid pickles, for example, have apparently become all the rage with kids in Mississippi.

The concept is simple. Take some prepared dill pickles and soak them in really strong Kool-Aid for a week or more. The sweet and sour snacks are said to sell out at fairs and delis, and at upwards of a dollar a spear, the margin of profit seems pretty good.

When I first heard about this vibrantly hued “treat,” I did a little reconnaissance work to make sure it wasn’t a joke. Sure enough, recipes for Kool-Aid pickles do exist and are often referred to as “Koolickles.”

Further investigation revealed earlier methods of creating a sweet and sour pickle, including poking a peppermint stick in the middle, where it would dissolve and produce the desired flavor. Some imaginative souls were said to dip the dill spears directly into Kool-Aid powder.

I have yet to plunge the following pickles into brightly colored punch, but over several years of refining my recipe, I discovered the merits of steeping them in a different solution. A simple overnight soak in salted water ensures pickles with maximum crunch and flavor, as it removes excess water from the cucumbers before pickling.

Refrigerator Dill Pickles – No canner is needed and once the spices are assembled, these crisp pickles come together easily and may just become a summertime favorite!

As I fiddled with the various flavorings in the recipe over time, a few friends and self-proclaimed dill pickle connoisseurs graciously served as taste-testers. The final brining step (followed by a side-by-side taste test) deemed the recipe complete. 

My generous sister-in-law, Christine, provided a steady supply of cucumbers from her prolific plants and deserves special thanks!

No canning is involved with this recipe, and the pickles will keep for weeks in the fridge as the vinegar acts as a natural preservative. You can eat them after 24 hours (and we do), but the flavor will continue to improve if you can wait. My brother-in-law considers four days to be the magic number.

Refrigerator Dill Pickles – No canner is needed and once the spices are assembled, these crisp pickles come together easily and may just become a summertime favorite!

PICKLE TRIVIA!

*The Department of Agriculture estimates that the average American eats 8.5 lbs of pickles a year.

*When the Philadelphia Eagles thrashed the Dallas Cowboys in sweltering heat in September 2000, many of the players attributed their win to one thing: guzzling down immense quantities of ice-cold pickle juice.

*In the Delta region of Mississippi, Kool-Aid pickles have become ridiculously popular with kids.

*Not everyone loves a sweet pickle. In America, dill pickles are twice as popular as the sweet variety.

Sources: Mental Floss, The Huffington Post

Refrigerator Dill Pickles – No canner is needed and once the spices are assembled, these crisp pickles come together easily and may just become a summertime favorite!

Additional pickle recipes you may enjoy:

Refrigerator Dill Pickles
Yield: 2 quart jars (recipe easily halves or doubles)
No canner is needed and once the spices are assembled, these crisp pickles come together quite easily and may just become a summertime favorite!
Ingredients

For the soaking step:

  • 6 cups cool water
  • 2 tablespoons kosher salt

To make the pickles:

  • 1-1/4 cups distilled white vinegar (5% acidity)
  • 2 tablespoons kosher salt (see notes)
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 2 cups cold water
  • 2 pounds Kirby or other pickling cucumbers, cut into halves or spears (slice off and discard blossom end as it contains an enzyme that can soften the pickles)
  • 16 fresh dill sprigs
  • 6 garlic cloves, peeled
  • 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
  • 2 teaspoons whole black peppercorns
  • 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Instructions

Soak the cucumbers: In a large, non-reactive bowl (such as ceramic or stainless steel), stir together the 6 cups water and 2 tablespoons salt.  Add the cut cucumbers, and let sit at room temperature for 12 hours.  (I place a small plate on top to ensure that all of the cucumbers are submerged.)  After 12 hours, drain but do not rinse.

Make the brine: Combine the vinegar, remaining 2 tablespoons salt, and sugar in a small non-reactive saucepan (such as stainless steel, ceramic, or Teflon) over high heat.  Stir until the salt and sugar are dissolved. Remove from the heat, and stir in the cold water.  Make head tip: At this point, the brine may be refrigerated until ready to use.

Stuff the drained cucumbers into two clean quart-size jars. Divide the dill, garlic cloves, coriander seeds, peppercorns, mustard seeds, and red pepper flakes evenly between the jars.  Pour the vinegar mixture over top.  If necessary, add a bit of cold water to the jars to ensure the cucumbers are covered. As long as the jars are well packed with cucumbers, you should not have to add much water.  Place the lid on the jars and refrigerate.  After 24 hours, the pickles will have good flavor, but the flavor will continue to improve over several days.  (My brother-in-law declares that pickle perfection occurs on Day 4.) The pickles will keep in the refrigerator for at least one month, if they last that long.

Options: Christine likes to add 1/4 teaspoon celery seed (not celery salt) to each quart jar, and several family members like a spicy dill version.  For that, I add one Serrano or red chili pepper, which I slit down the side, to each jar.  For spicier pickles, add additional peppers or a hotter pepper variety to suit your taste.

Notes
  • The brining step creates a slightly crisper pickle and removes any bitterness than is sometimes present in pickling cucumbers. It also allows the pickling solution to more deeply penetrate the cucumbers.  That said, the pickles will still taste quite good if you choose to forego this step. In this case, increase the salt in the vinegar mixture to 3 tablespoons.
  • I often reuse the brine, often without the brining step, when I have a few extra cucumbers that need to be used. Simply add the cut cucumbers to the brine and let them steep.

What is pickling salt?  Pickling salt (also called canning salt or preserving salt) is pure granulated salt (sodium chloride).  It doesn’t contain anti-caking ingredients or iodine, which can turn pickling liquid cloudy or make the pickles dark.  Pickling salt’s granules are finer than kosher or table salt, making them easy to dissolve in a brine. That said, the finer granule means, tablespoon for tablespoon, you end up using more salt and your pickles will taste saltier.  Morton and Ball are two common brands available at grocery stores, usually in the salt section or next to the canning jars in hardware stores.  To avoid clumping, pickling salt should be stored in an airtight container away from moisture.

Is pickling salt really necessary?  While pickling salt is certainly designed for pickling, it isn’t the only salt that can be used. Kosher salt is a great alternative.  Generally speaking, it’s recommended to use a brand like Diamond Crystal, which is pure salt with no additives.  Morton contains anti-caking agents, although I have used this brand and was hard-pressed to notice any clouding. Pure sea salt can also be used in pickling.  Again, the size of the grain will affect the level of saltiness.

Although table salt is perfectly safe to use in pickling, it isn’t recommended because the quality of pickles may suffer due to its additives.  I have not tried table salt to offer a first hand opinion.

Bottom line:  I use kosher salt because it’s what I have on hand and prefer the slightly less-salty taste created by the larger granules.

 

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I’m also happy to report that Just A Pinch Recipes included this pickle recipe in a collection of 18 Go-To Refrigerator Pickle Recipes. The roundup includes a little something spicy, something sweet, garlicky and even half sours.

For those who may not be familiar, Just A Pinch Recipes is a coming-together of hometown cooks that feels like and old-fashioned recipe swap. They aim to share timeless, proven recipes that have passed through generations-a mission I wholeheartedly embrace!

 

 

 

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Comments

  1. Karen Bragg

    I just made my first batch of these pickles. They are perfect! I didn’t soak them the full 12 hours-more like 6 or 7. Drained them and followed the recipe. We waited four days and tried them today with lunch. They were very crisp with a nice snap when I bit into the pickle. I have loads more cucumbers and intend to make a couple more batches. The soaking in salted water really does make a difference. Thanks for a great recipe!

    Reply
    1. Ann Post author

      Thanks so much for the lovely feedback, Karen. I’m delighted the pickles are a hit and that you’ll be able to make several more batches. Enjoy!

      Reply
    1. Ann Post author

      Hi Diana, For really fresh tasting dill pickles with the classic flavor, I do prefer to use fresh dill. However, if you’d like to try with dried, I’d use about 1 tablespoon.

      Reply
    1. Ann Post author

      Hi Judy, You could but it won’t give you the level of pure, fresh dill flavor that you may be accustomed to with dill pickles. If you prefer a more subtle dill flavor, however, it’s worth a try!

      Reply
  2. Nadja

    Hi Ann!
    Last summer I made so many jars of these pickles, I’ve still got a jar left and they are still good – and it’s the beginning of June now!! Surprisingly, most of the spears aren still crisp (the soft ones are still good for cooking). I did NOT use salt for soaking (just cold water), but I put a large grape leaf into each jar . I also found out that you can use tarragon (of which I have plenty) instead of the dill -the “French” taste of those tarragon pickles goes very well with paté and ham. So thank you very much – your recipes literally go a long way 😉 Greetings from Vienna, Austria – Nadja

    Reply
    1. Ann Post author

      Hello again to you all the way in Austria, Nadja! I’m delighted to “hear” from you again and equally happy that these pickles have stood the test of time. Thank you for your suggestions regarding the use of tarragon, the grape leaf for added crispness, not using the salt for soaking, etc. as others may enjoy trying!

      Reply
  3. Connie Post author

    I enjoy your Sunday News food articles. Fun to read and I have saved many of your recipes in my Try These Sometime cook book.
    I did make the refrigerator pickles and they were easy to make and very good. So this past week when your recipe featured Pickle Brine pork or Chicken…….I tried it! Chicken marinated in some of the Refrigerator Pickles’ Juice!! Two of your recipes. Very good and not overpowering with the strength of the pickle juice. The chicken was very tender. I “encouraged” my husband not to over cook on the grill and he did a great job. We tried the Liquid Gold Mustard Sauce and it complimented the chicken flavors. (Third recipe here if you are counting.)

    Thanks for your hard work and fun and easy instructions in the Lancaster Sunday News!

    Reply
    1. Ann Post author

      Thank you for your wonderful comment, Connie. This is the sort of feedback that keeps me motivated to keep doing what I do week to week. I’m delighted you’ve tried and enjoyed so many of my recipes…and great job to your husband on not overdoing it on the grill! 🙂

      Reply
  4. LKT

    Oh Wow – I cannot tell you how excited I am to try this recipe. My husband and I have been looking for a way to make pickles without all of the preservatives and excess processed sodium. I have printed out the recipe and will definitely be trying it this weekend. Hopefully by this coming Friday we should have fresh made pickles. Thank you for this!!

    Reply
  5. Jason Post author

    Just dug into my first jar (I made everyone wait two days for the flavors to develop), and they are crisp and completely delicious. These won’t last long!

    Reply
  6. Nora Post author

    I made a batch over the weekend and just tasted. This recipe is my favorite dill pickle to date – and I’ve tried many. Love that it isn’t difficult. Will make again!

    Reply
  7. Autumn

    Made these skipping the soaking step and omitting the salt. Tried them this morning and they are terrific! In a few more days they’ll be even better.

    Also made a half gallon of pickled onions and another with carrots, celery, onions and sliced jalapenos–equally terrific, and a fun way to spend a few hours of our Saturday!

    Thanks for the recipe for the perfect pickling liquid. We don’t eat salt, and it’s impossible to find (edible and affordable) salt-free pickles or other pickled vegetables on the market. Next we’re doing cabbage.

    Reply
    1. Ann Post author

      Thanks so much for your comment, Autumn. I thrilled these were such a success and I’m glad you mentioned that they worked so well without salt. It may be helpful to others who are trying to limit their sodium intake. Good luck with the cabbage!

      Reply