The Best Fresh Refrigerator Pickles

I recognize that sometimes my mind acts like a butterfly or squirrel. I can be on one “kick” and then move easily into another dish or food product that catches my eye or intrigues me to the extent that I jump into my pantry to see if I have all the ingredients I need to make the dish that has captured my imagination. Today’s “butterfly” is making the Best Fresh Refrigerator Pickles!

I mean, come on! Tell me the truth! When you are dreaming of a great pastrami sandwich, like the one at Katz’s Deli in New York, does that picture not include a great pickle? Well, for me it does!

This interest in fresh homemade pickles came from visiting Freedom Farms French Valley. They are a local farm here in Temecula that sells to the public on Saturdays. Whatever they sell is produced on the premises. I recently checked them out to find some fantastic produce, including heirloom tomatoes, various types of squash, and cucumbers. They also happen to sell fresh refrigerator-type pickles, which I bought and subsequently devoured!

After “devouring” my bottle of pickles, I had to buy some cucumbers to replace the ones I ate (cucumbers bought from the Farm). I was informed I could reuse the pickle brine from my 1st purchase to make more pickles. This method is only good for a couple of reuses. Eventually, the brine will go bland from brining new batches. The answer to my problem was, of course, to make my own.

Ingredients

I spent a good amount of time researching, which included a very close examination of the ingredients in the bottle of pickles I purchased (it would have been easier if they provided me the recipe, right?).

Some ingredients were easy to determine and were consistent with many pickle recipes. Mustard seeds, garlic, coriander seeds, and bay leaf were some of the traditional ingredients I could easily determine either from taste or from sight. You will notice there is no Dill in my recipe. As much as I love Dill pickles, the Freedom Farms version did not appear to use Dill. I wanted to attempt to copy their version, which I loved. However, don’t hesitate to use fresh Dill if a Dill pickle is what you are craving.

Pickling is not rocket science and is easy once you come upon a recipe that you and your family will love. If you enjoy a good pickle, you will love this recipe. You can always adjust the specific ingredients or the type of vinegar used. My recipe will be a great starting point for you.

If you want to make your own N.Y. Style Pastrami to go with your pickles, check out my recipe here!

Please let me know what you think in the comments below, and as always, thanks for Spending Time in My Kitchen!

The Best Fresh Refrigerator Pickles

Recipe by David Frank – Spending Time In My Kitchen

Prep time

30

minutes

Cooking time

20

minutes

Resting Time in the Fridge

2

Days

You need (3 to 4-16 oz Mason Jars) for this recipe

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 Cups Distilled White Vinegar (optional: Apple Cider Vinegar)

• 6 – 8 Cucumbers (Persian, Kirby, Farm Fresh!) 2 lbs≈

• 2 Cups Cold Water

• 3 tsp Mustard seeds

• 1 tsp Red peppercorns

• 2 Tbl Coriander seeds

• 1 tsp Bay leaf, crushed 3 small bay leaf crushed

• 3 tsp Shallots, minced

• 1 1/2 Tbl Garlic (cloves), minced

• 2 Small hot red chiles (ex. chile de arbol) or 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes – leave whole)

• 3 Tbl Salt

• 2 Tbl Sugar

Directions

• Combine vinegar, salt, and sugar in a small saucepan over high heat. Whisk the ingredients well. Cook until salt and sugar have dissolved.
• Pour the mixture into a bowl and whisk in cold water. Set aside in the fridge until ready to use.
• Remove brine from the fridge after it has completely cooled. Set aside.
• Add remaining ingredients to a bowl (mustard seeds, coriander seeds, minced garlic, chopped shallots, crushed bay leaf, red peppers or flakes) and mix well.
• Slice cucumbers into spears. Fill the quart mason jars with sliced cucumbers.
• Add the remaining dry pickle ingredients from the bowl evenly between the jars.
• Add the brine evenly between the jars of pickles. Add additional water to the jars if needed to cover the pickles.
• Place jarred pickles in the fridge and let them rest for a minimum of 2 days. They are better if you let them rest for an additional 2 days. Give them a taste after 2 days to test the flavor. Let them sit for an additional 2 days to see if your family likes them better.
• Enjoy!

Notes

• The best cucumber types for pickling are Boston Pickling, National Pickling, Kirby, and Puccini. Depending on where you are in the world and what your local farms are producing. Have fun pickling!
• You might have a question about whether the pickles might be ready after a couple of hours. I would plan at least to rest them for at least overnight in the fridge at a minimum. Give them a taste as they rest, so you can get a feeling for taste and texture.

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @dfkitchentime on Instagram and hashtag it #spendingtimeinmykitchenfoodblog