Tart but balanced with a hint of sweet and spice, these homemade pickles will keep you coming back for more!
Hubby loves pickles – I mean really loves them. He puts them on sandwiches, wraps, burgers, hot dogs, you name it. So after many disappointing, overpriced store-bought versions – I decided to make them at home. That was a few years ago and I’ve been making these ever since. They are delicious!
What makes this pickle recipe so good is the flavor – of course – and the fact that they are so simple. The incredible flavor comes from onion, garlic, mustard seed, celery seed, white vinegar, and sugar. Turmeric adds color to the brine and red pepper flakes offer a little heat.
The simplicity is rooted in this being a refrigerator pickle. That means there’s no canning process involved, which can be time consuming. Instead, you make a hot brine that’s poured onto sliced pickling cucumbers and let them sit in the refrigerator for a few days. Then they’re ready to eat. That’s it!
While the original recipe calls for brining them in a large bowl, we opted to brine them in canning jars. That saves us the hassle of transferring them to jars later. You can adjust the spices to suit your palate, just be sure to use the freshest pickling cucumbers for the best result.
If you grow your own pickling cucumbers, this is a great way to use them. You’ll probably save money, too. Pair them with our favorite potato salad for your next cookout, or eat them right out of the jar as a snack.
Once you make these crunchy delights, you’ll leave those floppy, tasteless supermarket pickles on the shelf for good!
The Best Homemade Pickles
Ingredients
- 6 cups thinly sliced pickling cucumbers about 2 pounds
- 2 cups thinly sliced onion
- 3 cups white vinegar
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. mustard seeds
- 1 tsp. celery seeds
- 1 tsp. ground turmeric
- 1 tsp. crushed red pepper
- 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
- 4 garlic cloves thinly sliced
Instructions
- Layer 3 cups of cucumber and 1 cup of onion in a quart-sized canning jar. Repeat procedure with the remaining cucumber and onion in a second canning jar.
- Combine vinegar, sugar, salt, mustard seeds, celery seeds, turmeric, crushed red pepper, black pepper and garlic in a small saucepan; stir well. Bring to a boil; cook 1 minute.
- Pour hot brine over cucumbers and onions in jars; let cool.
- Screw lids onto the jars and chill at least 3 days. Pickles may be stored in the refrigerator for up to one month.
Notes
- Use only fresh cucumbers to ensure crispy pickles. Older cucumbers will be soft and rubbery.
- Pack the cucumbers and onion into the jars, but leave a little space for the brine.Â
- For extra spicy pickles, add more red pepper flakes. To tone the spice level down, reduce or eliminate the red pepper.
- This recipe calls for double the brine of the original recipe. I found the original amount always came up short.
- Avoid getting your face near the brine while it’s cooking and hot. The vapors from the vinegar will cause your eyes to water!
- While it’s best to let the pickles sit in the brine for at least three days, I’ve used them after only a couple of days and the flavor has been very good.