These easy refrigerator pickles are made with fresh dill and garlic and come together in just 10 minutes! Super easy to make and packed full of delicious flavor!
If you have a garden it’s probably overflowing with fresh produce!
This is always my favorite time of the year and reminds me of summers growing up in Ohio.
One of the things we always did was pickle and preserve all our garden vegetables!
This easy refrigerator pickle recipe is super simple to throw together and packed full of garlic and dill flavor.
You can also use this same recipe with carrots which is why you’ll see a few sneaked into the photos because I love pickled carrots equally as much as I love pickled cucumber.
This recipe comes together in just 10 minutes and will be your new favorite way to use up all your summer cucumbers!
Table of Contents
Ingredients for easy refrigerator pickles
- Cucumbers or carrots – Both are so delicious and perfect for sandwiches and salads. Traditionally pickles are made with cucumbers but I’m a sucker for carrots too.
- Apple cider vinegar – This is the base of the pickling liquid. I like apple cider vinegar because it brings another level of flavor but you can use white vinegar in its place if that is all you have on hand.
- Water – This helps balance out the pickling liquid.
- Fresh dill – I really love dill with pickles so that is my herbal addition. You can use dried dill in place of fresh.
- Garlic – I love garlicky pickles so, of course, I needed to be in my easy version!
- Kosher salt – Not only brings flavor to the pickles but it also is a common ingredient in traditional pickling recipes.
The best cucumbers to use
For this recipe, I used traditional waxy cucumbers but you can easily use Persian or Kirby cucumbers.
Kirby cucumbers are the traditional pickle cucumber but can be hard to find in commercial grocery stores.
I’m keeping it easy by using what was easiest to find in the store.
I used Kirby cucumbers in my Dad’s Pickles recipe.
Are these shelf-stable?
NO!
The final products here are not shelf-stable jars because we are not using any canning processes. That means, no water bath or pressure canning techniques are used for this recipe.
These are meant to be kept in the refrigerator.
We’re simply pouring the brine and the vegetables into clean jars, and placing them safely in the refrigerator, where they will keep for 2 weeks.
Other flavors to add to refrigerator pickles
This pickle recipe I bare bones and delicious – simply garlic and dill.
However, this also means you can add a lot of other flavors to make things interesting and delicious.
Here are a few fun ways to add additional flavor:
- Fresh herbs – I added dill but you could also add fresh basil, cilantro, thyme, or even mint.
- Whole spices – Mustard seed, peppercorns, and bay leaves are pretty typical but you can also try other spices like whole juniper berries, celery seeds, star anise, or cloves.
- Make it sweet – Love sweet pickles? Add 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar to sweeten the pickling liquid. Adjust the sugar amount if you want it less or more sweet.
- Make it spicy – I love spicy pickles so try adding crushed red pepper flavor or whole dried hot peppers to bring a spicy zip to your pickles.
Storage of refrigerator pickles
Refrigerator pickles ARE NOT shelf stable and ARE NOT hot water bathed canned so they MUST be stored in the refrigerator.
I know it’s obnoxious to see all those words in bold but it’s really important that everyone understands these pickles are not the type that is canned and stored for a long period of time.
These easy pickles are to be stored in the fridge and eaten within 2 weeks for optimal flavor.
If they spend too much time in the fridge the vegetables will start to soften over time.
More delicious preserving recipes
- Overflowing with summer squash? Try my Sweet and Spicy Zucchini Pickles.
- Want a recipe for the BEST way to use onions? Try my Quick and Easy Pickled Red Onions.
- Need a fun and interesting summer recipe? Try my Pickled Cherries.
- Craving an easy way to use up beets? Try my Quick Pickled Beets.
- Love sweet and tangy flavors? Try my Vanilla Bean Pickled Strawberries.
Easy Refrigerator Pickles
Ingredients
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 4 sprigs fresh dill
- 2 cup cucumbers or carrots sliced
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, combine the water, vinegar, salt, dill, and garlic.
- Heat until the salt has dissolved and the mixture is just starting to simmer, about 5 minutes.
- Add the cucumbers or carrots to a large clean jar and top with the warm pickling liquid. Make sure the cucumbers or carrots are fully covered. If they aren’t top the jar off with cold water.
- Transfer the jar immediately to the fridge and allow it to sit for at least 20 minutes before serving.
- Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Nutrition
