Easy Refrigerator Garlic Dill Pickles Jar-by-Jar (Better Than Canned!)
Quick and easy refrigerator garlic dill pickles require no processing and can be put up in minutes and stays crisp for up to a year with amazing flavor. Customize them to be as garlicky, dilly, or spicy as you’d like. Much better than canned, you can even make them one jar at a time as your cucumbers ripen.
✩ What readers are saying…
“Oh. My. Goodness! I made these last year with “cocktail” cucumbers from Costco – maybe next year I’ll get my garden in earlier and be able to grow my own. Without a doubt, the BEST PICKLES EVER!!” -Linda
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After making and canning jams and salsa, pickles were the next thing I made on my self-taught canning journey.
First, all that vinegar meant they were super safe, so my newbie-canner self didn’t need to worry about that, and second, I love small pickles even though I hate cucumbers (go figure)! Growing my own and picking them as small as I like was the answer.
I started with traditional water-bath canned dill pickles so they could be stored on a shelf, but quickly moved to pickles that are stored in the refrigerator, or “refrigerator pickles.”
Why Make Refrigerator Pickles?
Here are a few reasons why I (and my family) came to prefer the refrigerator pickles:
- They stay crisp.
- They stay crisp.
- They stay crisp.
Yep, it’s the main reason why I don’t water-bath can them anymore. Even with classic traditions of grape leaves and/or alum, canned pickles just don’t have that sharp snap that we’ve come to love.
But there are actually five MORE reasons why you might want to preserve your pickles this way too:
- They take less time. I can finish a quart in less than 20 minutes.
- If you’re growing the cucumbers, you can do 1 or 2 quarts at a time as they ripen. This is especially good for small gardens that can only fit a few cucumber plants and would never have enough for a full canner load.
- There’s no heating the house with a canner on the stove during the height of summer (it’s 104 in the shade at my house today!).
- The recipe can be altered with seasonings and garlic without the risk of food poisoning that comes with playing around with recipes for water-bath canners.
- You can use any glass jars and lids, even recycled mayo and olive jars, unlike when canning.
Okay – but how long do refrigerator pickles last?
Guess what? I’ve eaten pickles from jars that are 18 months old and they were wonderful!
That said, I’m going to say that in general, 9-12 months is the ideal time to store them. So plan to make as many quarts as you need to last that long (for us, that’s about a jar a month to get us into the next cucumber season).
Here’s an important safety note about home canned pickles:
I know there are some people that “can” their pickles this way all the time, just letting the heat from the vinegar mixture “seal” the jars (a process known as “open kettle” canning) before storing them on a shelf without any water-bath canning.
The people who have done this – for many years in some cases – say that “nothing has happened” in their experience. I hear and read this all.the.time.
However, the USDA says that this practice is not secure and that there is a danger of food poisoning as well as spoilage. Here’s a good article on the subject.
My take on it is this: IF the rare occurrence did in fact happen with one of my home-canned foods, would it be worth it? What about if it might cause intestinal problems?
My answer is NO- it’s only food and never worth sickness (or a life, heaven forbid) and I will never even take that chance, especially when it’s so easy to take the recommended precautions.
So, off my soapbox and onto our fully refrigerated pickles!
Ingredients & Supplies
- Cucumbers – enough to fill a quart jar, minimum. You can multiply the recipe for however many jars you can make. If all you have are pint jars, you can use two of them.
- Apple cider vinegar – it’s a little more mild, which I prefer, but you can use white vinegar
- Canning & pickling salt – you can also use a pure sea salt.
- Fresh dill heads – if you don’t have access to fresh dill, you can use dried dill seeds.
- Garlic cloves
- Homemade pickling spice – or a store bought organic pickling spice.
- Sugar
- Red pepper flakes (optional, but SO good)
- Quart canning jar(s), OR any quart-sized recycled jar, sterilized in boiling water for 10 minutes or run through the dishwasher as a guard against spoilage. (Confession: I never do more than wash well with hot soapy water, but do as I say and not as I do!) PRO TIP: I prefer regular mouth jars for pickles because the shoulders of the jar help hold the small pickles at the top under the brine.
- Plastic canning storage lids (or reused lids or lids and bands) – this is a time it’s okay to reuse old canning lids since they are not actually sealed for refrigerator storage (to ensure proper seals in fully canned products always use new lids- this is not the area to scrimp- your time is worth it).
- Metal canning funnel – my recommendation since we’re pouring in a hot brine.
Directions
Prepare the Cucumbers
1. Scrub the cucumbers well. I use a scrub brush with a handle which I prefer over palm veggie brushes (the one I’m using isn’t available, but this one is similar).
My favorite pickles are from the smallest “baby” cucumbers and it’s the main reason I grow my own. I used to pay a lot for baby pickles in the store after realizing that I couldn’t pick out only the little cucumbers at farms (yeah, for some reason they frowned on that, ha).
2. Find the blossom end of the cucumbers.
That would be the end that doesn’t have the stem where it attached to the vine. (You may laugh, but I had to learn these things!)
Apparently, there’s a wicked enzyme here in this little end that will turn your pickles to a soft, NOT CRISP, pickle. And since we’re making this recipe in order to get a crisp pickle, let’s not cut this corner, OK?
3. Just cut a little off.
We do not want pickles with sawed-off ends. This I tell you from experience (hey, if a little’s good, then a lot’s great, right?).
4. Repeat with all your cucumbers.
PRO TIP: When dealing with a larger amount of cucumbers (for 3 or more jars) I separate the cucumbers into 3 piles by size as I clean them: large, medium, and small. Then it’s easy to fill the jars with the larger cucumbers, then medium and ending with the baby size to fill in the cracks.
Make the Pickles
1. Fill each clean jar with:
- Four cloves of garlic, sliced in half to release all the garlicky goodness. Easily adjust this to your taste – it’s safe to do more or less.
- 1-2 heads of dill, depending on how big the heads are – if you’d like even more dill flavor you can add a teaspoon of dried dill seed as well. No fresh dill available? You can simply use more dill seed!
- Red pepper flakes – optional, but really do add to the flavor. You can try everything from a few shakes to 1/2 of a teaspoon for each jar, depending on the spiciness level you’d like to achieve.
2. Pack the cucumbers into the jars, right on top of the other ingredients.
You can pack them as tight as you can, but allow enough room at the top for the brine to cover all the cucumbers.
3. Add vinegar and water to a large saucepan along with pickling spice, pickling salt, and sugar.
Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Pour the hot brine into the jar(s) using a canning funnel and ladle.
Fill to cover the cucumbers, leaving about 1/4″ headspace (the space between where the brine stops and the very top of the jar rim).
Since these will be stored in the fridge, we don’t have to be quite so particular about the headspace.
Anything that covers your cucumbers, but doesn’t touch the lid is okay.
5. Label the lid with the day as well as the month and year.
You will need to let these “cure” in the refrigerator about 3 to 4 weeks before they’ve pickled enough to eat, so you will want to have the day that you made them on the label.
6. Store in the refrigerator.
I think they are best after a month, so usually we wait that long at least to eat the first pickles, and they will continue to improve over the months in storage.
Update: I’ve gotten some questions, so I’ll clarify that the waiting period isn’t a safety issue, it’s to let the brine penetrate all the way to the center of the cucumbers for the best tasting pickle (in my opinion). If you taste them and decide you like them earlier – go for it.
That’s it – you’ve just made the BEST dill pickles you will ever eat!
Reader Raves
“Love this recipe! Thank you so much for sharing and also for sharing your best practices. Not going to lie – normally I skip right down to the recipe, however with your useful extra information and easy to follow writing I really enjoyed your entire post from start to finish.” -Anna
“Sooo good, last year did a half bushel, this year my son and I did a bushel and a half. Everyone just loved them.” -Dave
“They were so delicious! I made 2 jars and now about to make more because I ate them too fast.” -Vivian
“I made this and it comes out exactly as described. I am making them again and have this recipe printed and saved in favorites! 100 out of 10 it’s that good.” -Carol
I sure hope you love these easy refrigerated dill pickles like we do – make sure to leave a rating and review so I will know how you liked them!
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Easy Refrigerator Garlic Dill Pickles (And Why It’s Better Than Canning)
Equipment
- 1 quart jar canning or reused jar
- 1 storage lid
- 3 quart saucepan
- ladle and funnel
Ingredients
For each quart (increase as needed for each quart added):
- 1 quart pickling cucumbers enough to fill a qt. jar, washed and blossom-ends cut off
- 4 garlic cloves peeled and sliced in half
- 1 to 2 large fresh dill heads add up to 1 tsp. dried dill seed, if desired for more dill flavor*
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
- 1¼ cups cider vinegar (or white vinegar)
- 1¼ cups water
- 2 teaspoons pickling spices
- 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon salt, pickling or sea salt
- 1½ teaspoons sugar, or to taste
Instructions
- Prepare the number of quart jars equal to amount of pickles you have by running through the dishwasher or boiling for 10 minutes in a pot of water to sterilize.
- Place the garlic and dill in the bottom of each jar, along with optional red pepper flakes. Pack the cucumbers on top, leaving about 1/2 of headspace (you want the brine to be able to cover the cucumbers).
- In a large saucepan, combine water, vinegar, spices, salt and sugar. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Ladle the brine into the jar leaving 1/4 inch of head space to cover the cucumbers. Attach lids.
- Let cool to room temperature, label the lids with day and year and then store in the refrigerator.
- The pickles can be eaten after 3-4 weeks and continue to improve over the months of storage.**
Notes
Nutrition
More Easy Pickling Recipes To Try
- Garlic Spiced Canned Pickled Beans
- Quick & Easy Sliced Pickled Jalapenos
- Easy Pickled Beets for Canning or Refrigerator, Jar-by-Jar
Note: this article was originally published in 2009 and has been updated with current information, all new photos, clearer formatting and printable recipe.
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I am excited to try this! I’ve been making dill pickles from my garden for years, and am looking forward to having them turn out crisper! You say use 1-2 heads of dill but I don’t see them in the pictures of the ingredients or the jars. They are very visible in mine…? Sometimes the seeds (on the whole head) are still green and sometimes they are fully ripe, brown seeds — depends on what they are doing at the time of pickling. Seems like either is ok, but I’ve always wondered. Thanks!
If you look closely, Susan, you’ll see small heads of dill peeking out from the bottom of the pickles in the jars – and one small head in the ingredients list.
Some years I have a good dill crop and put in more heads and sometimes not (which was obviously the case when I took these photos, lol).
When I have less fresh heads, I use more dried dill seeds.
And yes, I like to use the leafy fronds as well as dried and green heads if I have them – I think it’s all kinds of dill flavor in the different stages!
Oh, yes! OK, thanks, can’t wait to try!
Can the cucumbers be substituted for beets? I found an almost identical recipe for pickled beets, but they said they only store for 6-8 weeks.
Yes, I have done this often – in fact I have beets in the fridge from last fall and they are crisp and perfect (there’s no safety issue with refrigerating them in vinegar, only a condition issue).
I’ve made pickles using the canning method and just love them, but I also wanted to make pickles that I did not have to use this method, and this is perfect!
Glad this was helpful, Myre!
My husband and I have been gardening/canning for years and are always looking for something different to try or new to grow in our garden. I came across your garlic dill pickles recipe and have to say they are a huge hit! It has been 6 months since I put them in the fridge and they are still very crisp and flavorful. We are down to the last 2 quarts and our 5 1/2 year old grand-daughter called yesterday to ask grandpa to grow more so we can do more of those really good pickles! I still will look for other things to try, but these pickles will have to stay on the list for this coming summer and beyond! Green beans are also something we can LOTS of, so next I think I’ll try your no blanch green beans for some of them. Thanks!
Glad you – and your family – like these, Karen! Thanks so much for the review.
Have you tried these with sliced cucumbers? Thanks!
I haven’t because I don’t care for those (they remind me too much of cucumbers which I don’t like, lol).
Pretty sure they’d work just the same, though!
Love this recipe! Thank you so much for sharing and also for sharing your best practices. Not going to lie – normally I skip right down to the recipe, however with your useful extra information and easy to follow writing I really enjoyed your entire post from start to finish. So not only thank you for the recipe but everything else too!
Wow, thank you so much, Anna!! I’m so glad to know that the tips were useful to you.
I made this and it comes out exactly as described. They are right too the longer in the fridge the better they taste! Just like the store bought ones! I am making them again and have this recipe printed and saved in favourites! 100 out of 10 it’s that good! @anotegoncottage.com
Wow, 100 out of 10? That’s high praise – thank you, Carol! I’m thrilled you like these that much.
Does the lid need to pop with this recipe ?
Nope – it’s a refrigerated product, so it’s good with any kind of lid and no popping of the 2-piece lid is needed.
I followed your directions and packed my quartered pickles into two jars. There was a quarter inch headspace after I added the brine. But after it cooled the spears floated up and now the top of each one is at the surface. As they age in the fridge will this cause a problem? Should I go into my garden and stuff a few more in?
I haven’t noticed a problem with pickling of all the cucumbers, even if parts floated up. I wouldn’t add more at this point, but if you have any glass weights you could always add one if you’re worried. There’s no safety issue since they’re refrigerated, it’s more of a taste issue.
Hi,tried your recipe yesterday,,slight variation,we like pickles a bit sour,we do can fruits etc,different ways,the wold is a little crazy with super hygiene,wonder how our parents and their parents survived,no refrigerators etc, guess common sense must prevail, pickled many things many ways,and I’m still here,nice site you have,cheers Bill
Great, hope you enjoy them, Bill.
Hey just a quick question – after curing in the fridge for a few weeks, you mention “storage”. Is that cold/root – wine cellar storage or do these have to remain in the fridge until they’re eaten? I expect those who do larger quantities will follow the more rigorous and onerous canning process…
My bad, sorry. I guess I missed the `store in refrigerator’ part of the post lol
🙂
Yes, you’re right – my brother-in-law cans his because he doesn’t have fridge room. We just don’t eat them because they aren’t crisp, so I do the amount we can store in our garage fridge so we actually do eat them!
I have also used this recipe for zucchini when I have had and over abundance of them and everyone loved loved them. I do use for cubes. I have gifted them to friends and business associates and anyone I give them to love them.
Good idea, Peggy, thanks!
Soo good,last year did a half bushel,this year my son and I did a bushel and a half. Everyone just loved them.
Yay – so glad you and your family like this recipe as much as we do!
Dear Jamie,
Must you add the sugar to the dill pickles? how does it tone down the garlic, dill, rep peppers and ACV?
I realize your family taste buds are driving this recipe, just wondering if you ever had made without sugar. Thanks, Jamie
I point people to your site all the time! How I successfully made good bread using spelt!
thank you again.
This is one of those recipes you can totally adapt to your own tastes, Shannon, since it’s refrigerated and makes one quart at a time. You can try one without any sugar and see if your family likes it. You can also try one with less and see about that.
For us, that little bit of sugar really does a lot to temper the vinegar and just seems to allow the other flavors to come out more.
Thank you for helping to spread the word about AOC! I’m so glad you had success with spelt in the bread recipe. 🙂
Can more garlic be added? I’m obsessed with garlic and dill pickles 🙃
Since this is a refrigerated product (vs. being canned to be stored at room temp), it’s okay to add more garlic!
I found your recipe and decided to give it a go. My first time making pickles. I got tired of lugging home huge jars of crappy pickles for the kids. I reused a Vlassic pickle jar and followed the recipe faithfully. I had to stop myself a few times from opening that jar before a month had passed to sneak a taste. Finally, the day has arrived. I think they are really good (and crunchy!) but my family thinks they are too sour. They are way more intense than store bought pickles. So, how would you suggest backing off the tartness? Can I use less vinegar? Would they mellow out in the fridge after a few more weeks if left alone?
Gosh, obviously we love these just as they are, Jeff, but every one has different tastes – which is why it’s great to make your own foods! Here are some things to try:
First – did you use all apple cider vinegar or distilled white? Apple cider vinegar is milder so I use that exclusively with pickles.
Second – you can add more sugar. Start by doubling the amount and taste the brine. You can also make jars with varying amounts to find what your family prefers.
Third – you can also decrease the vinegar to 1 cup and increase the water to 2 cups. Since these are being canned, it’s fine to adjust any part of the recipe to your tastes and still be safe.
Let me know how it goes!
Does it have to be cider vinegar or will white work too?
White vinegar will work, I just prefer the milder flavor of cider vinegar.
Can I add garlic after I already put the batch in. Got water
The batch in the refrigerator? I think so- you can open the lids, add garlic, and replace them. Refrigerate for a month to allow the garlic to flavor the pickles.
Sounds good, but you didn’t give amounts of each ingredient? What is the water to vinegar ratio? How much salt?
Click the arrows to go to the full recipe (at the top of the page and the bottom).
These pickles look delicious. I prefer making refrigerator dill pickles too…they definitely do end up being more crisp!
Amazing!! Been looking for a non canning recipet for a while. Got a small batch of cucumbers this year and tried this with my first one. I had 4 friends over and they said best pickles they ever had. Thanks!!
Yay – happy to know this, Abe. 🙂
I don’t have a lot of refrigerator space so I make mine in a gallon jar .after 3 weeks of sitting in the frig can I then can them in a water bath so I can make more and keep them on a shelf.
Oh, well I use to can these all the time, we just prefer them crisp from the fridge. Can I ask why you fridge them first and then can?
You didn’t provide measurements for vinegar, water, salt & other ingredients. How do you make this with an incomplete recipe? Not to bright young woman
CLICK on the arrows at the top or the bottom of the page to go to the full recipe!
If you go to the top and read the complete instructions you will see nothing was left out.