Quick Pickled Cucumbers | Easy Refrigerator Pickles Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the ratio of vinegar to water for refrigerator pickles? ›

The basic ratio for quick pickles is 1:1 vinegar to water, and includes some combination of salt and sugar. Another ratio that is commonly followed is the 3:2:1 method, using three parts vinegar, two parts water, and 1 part sugar.

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.

While white vinegar is the go-to for pickles and was the vinegar we always used growing up, there are more interesting vinegars you could try that would add more flavor to your pickled cucumbers. Some of our favorites are: Apple cider vinegar.

Sterilizing jars and standing over a steamy water bath for hours is not the most pleasurable way to spend a summer day! You can skip that whole process and make the next best thing – refrigerator pickles.

As long as you can remember equal parts vinegar to water, and ½ cup sugar plus 1 tablespoon salt for every 2 cups of total liquid, you will be able to easily adjust this formula for the amount of pickling brine you need to fill your pickling jars.

Shriveling happens most often in very sweet or sour pickles. Using too strong a salt, sugar or vinegar solution at the beginning of the pickling process causes shriveling. Measure ingredients carefully when preparing a cucumber pickle that requires the addition of sugar, vinegar or salt over a 3-day to 2-week time.

Pickling Cucumbers

Most varieties make crispy, firm dill pickles when picked at approximately four inches in length (Figure 1). If they grow to the five-to-six-inch range before they are harvested, they may be used fresh for slicing, as long as the seeds haven't begun to harden.

For best quality, pickle fruits or vegetables within 24 hours of harvest, or refrigerate for no more than a few days. Remove all blossoms from cucumbers and cut a 1/16-inch slice from the blossom end. The blossoms contain enzymes that can cause softening of the final product.

How long do refrigerator pickles last? Homemade refrigerated pickles last at least three to four weeks in the fridge, McClellan says. Any longer and the quality will start to decline. You'll notice the brine goes from clear to murky and cloudy, and the pickles start to lose their texture.

Most pickle recipes call for distilled white vinegar. This is the clear, colorless vinegar made by fermenting grains. It has a mellow aroma, tart acid flavor and does not affect the color of light-colored vegetables or fruits.

How to pickle quickly? ›

Quick pickles are made by adding hot brine to fresh veggies and letting them sit in the fridge. You can eat them almost immediately for a crunchy, lightly flavored snack, but they're best if you give them at least 24 hours. For true pickle flavor, wait a week.

Quick pickling, or refrigerator pickling, involves a simple boil-and-pour method of pickling. You take all of your ingredients, apart from the product that is being pickled, and bring them to a boil. The heating process helps activate the flavors in the brine and marry them together.

Refrigerator Pickles – Preparation

Wash glass jars with hot, soapy water, then place on a baking tray and heat in the oven at 160°C for 10-15 minutes. Place the lids (and any spoons) in a pan of boiling water for 5 minutes. Salt, sugar and vinegar are all preservatives so avoid reducing these.

The Best Jars for Storing Pickles

Any container with a tight-fitting lid will do. I like to use canning jars, but I replace the metal lids and bands with plastic lids. These lids are much easier to take on and off, and you don't have to fumble with two pieces each time you open the jar.

Be sure you're using a clean container to pack your pickles (we may be quick pickling, but we're not barbarians!), though you don't need to sterilize it. Mason and other glass jars are just as good here as they are in traditional canning, McClellan says.

For use around the home, combine vinegar with water in a 1:1 solution to clean and freshen many surfaces. Use this solution on glass, windows, walls, cupboards, floors, sinks, stovetops and coffee makers.

They will be more sour than brine pickles. Believe it or not, I add a wee pinch of vanilla to my refrigerator pickles. Mellows them out without sweetening and you can't taste the vanilla. Also be sure your pickles aren't soft.

Most applications call for a 1:1 ratio of water to vinegar so the strength of the acid isn't too intense or damaging, and it can be stored in a jar or a spray bottle for easy access. Here's how we use white vinegar to clean 18 things in our kitchens.

Vinegar used for pickling must at least 5% acidity. Look at the label to be sure that the vinegar you are using is 5% acidity. Sometimes vinegar will be labeled as grain; 5% acidity is the same as 50 grain. Most white and cider vinegars used for making pickles and salsa are 5% acidity, but not all.