Quick and Spicy Refrigerator Pickles

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“I’ve been making these pickles for 5 years now and they are without a doubt my favorite pickle!” ~RAH

Everyone should know how to make a quick pickle

On this site I’ve worked through most of the basic techniques and processes related to cooking and food prep: I’ve turned flour and water into bread with the help of yeast, I’ve harnessed enzymes to make cheese, and bacteria to make yogurt,  I’ve preserved, whipped, frothed, churned, infused, extracted, fermented, dehydrated, foraged, emulsified, and jellied, and now, with these Quick and Spicy Refrigerator Pickles, I’m finally getting around to pickling!

Refrigerator pickles don’t require hot water canning , so they’re a good first pickling project.

All you really need to do is heat the vinegar, water, salt and sugar until the solids dissolve, then add spices, pour the mixture over the cucumbers, seal and refrigerate. You can eat them as soon as they’re chilled!

I put together an especially spicy pickling mix, with whole spices and hot peppers.

Since these are quick pickles, I beefed up the flavorings to make up for the short marinating time. Toasting the whole spices first deepens their flavor. I don’t strain them out, because I want them to keep flavoring the pickles as they sit in the jar. If you want to use ready made pickling spice, use about 3 tablespoons in place of the whole spices.

• yellow mustard seeds
• rainbow pepper corns
• allspice berries
• whole coriander seeds
• star anise
• cinnamon stick
• cardamom pods

Best cucumbers for picking

You want to find small, un-waxed cucumbers. Small cucumbers have thinner skin and fewer seeds.

1. Kirby Cucumbers: Also known as pickling cucumbers, Kirby cucumbers are the classic choice for making pickles. They are small, firm, and have a bumpy skin that helps them hold up well during the pickling process. Their size is ideal for fitting into jars and for achieving that signature crunch in pickles.
2. Persian Cucumbers: These cucumbers are slightly smaller and sweeter than traditional cucumbers. They work well for pickling because of their crisp texture and mild flavor. They’re especially great if you prefer a milder, less tangy pickle.

So many pickling projects to try…

Now that you’ve mastered the basic pickle, it’s time to move on to my other pickling recipes:

• How To Quick Pickle (almost) Anything!
• Quick Pickled Fennel
• Quick Pickled Rainbow Carrots
• Quick Pickled Jalapeños ~ easy recipe!
• Quick and Easy Pickled Red Onions
• Quick Pickled Vidalia Onions

Use wide mouth jars to make it easy to get your pickles in and out

I used Kerr wide mouth pint jars for this project. The wide mouth makes it easy to get your pickles in and out. These jars are so useful even after your last pickle is long gone. I use them to make and store salad dressing, (see my Authentic Caesar Dressing in 30 Seconds recipe) and even whip cream (check out my Mason Jar Cherry Crumbles with mason jar whipped cream.)

Notes ~

• These Quick and Spicy Refrigerator Pickles make a great host gift to bring along to a picnic or barbecue, but be sure to save some for yourself!
• Now that you’ve made your pickles, here are some fun recipe to use them in, that is, if you don’t gobble them all up first…first up, you need to make my Dill Pickle and Brat Soup, it’s a mind blowing recipe. And I predict you’ll become famous for this Dill Pickle Potato Salad, people are going to mob you for the recipe!

Quick and Spicy Refrigerator Pickles

3.97 from 26 votes

Are you ready for some instant pickle gratification?  My Quick and Spicy Refrigerator Pickles are ready in under an hour ~ and because they’re not processed in a hot water bath, they stay extra crunchy!

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Prep Time:15 minutes minutes

Total Time:15 minutes minutes

Servings: 2 pints

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Equipment

• wide mouth jars

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

• 8 small pickling cucumbers
• 2 fresh Serrano chili peppers, thinly sliced, seeds and all.
• fresh tarragon sprigs
• 2 bay leaves, fresh if you can find them
• 1 cup white or white wine vinegar
• 1 cup water
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 Tbsp kosher salt
• 1 Tbsp yellow mustard seeds
• 1 Tbsp rainbow pepper corns
• 1 tsp allspice berries
• 1 tsp whole coriander
• 2 star anise
• 1 cinnamon stick, broken in half
• 6 cardamom pods

Instructions

• Cut off the stem end of your cucumbers so that they fit inside your jars, with their tips ending just below the rim. Cut them lengthwise into quarters. Fit the cucumber spears tightly in the jars, with a couple of sprigs of tarragon, the bay leaves, and the Serrano pepper slices fitted in between the spaces.
• Put the spices in a dry pan and toast over medium heat for a few minutes, shaking the pan often. Set aside.
• In a saucepan, heat the vinegar, water, sugar and salt, stirring to dissolve the salt and sugar. Heat to a simmer, then turn off the heat and add the spices. Let cool.
• Pour the liquid into the jars, filling to cover the cucumber spears. Make sure the spices get into the jars as well.
• Cap the jars and refrigerate. You can eat them right away, but they will be more flavorful the next day. They will keep a couple of weeks in the refrigerator.

NEW FEATURE! Click here to add your own private notes.

Course: condiment

Cuisine: American

Author: Sue Moran

Keyword: cucumbers, pickles, pickling, preserves, refrigerator pickles, small batch, summer

Nutrition

Serving: 1 spear · Calories: 10 kcal · Carbohydrates: 2 g · Protein: 0.4 g · Fat: 0.3 g · Saturated Fat: 0.02 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.04 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 0.1 g · Sodium: 219 mg · Potassium: 64 mg · Fiber: 1 g · Sugar: 1 g · Vitamin A: 30 IU · Vitamin C: 1 mg · Calcium: 11 mg · Iron: 0.2 mg

Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although The View from Great Island attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.

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