Refrigerator dill pickles are made with pickling cucumbers, fresh dill, garlic cloves and a handful of pantry staples. Crunchy, tangy garlic dill pickles are the perfect snack, with a sandwich or a burger.
Refrigerator pickle recipe requires no canning equipment, quick & easy, incredible flavor and ready to eat in 24-hours. These are my new favorite must-have pickle recipe! A must-have for any cookout, backyard barbecue, picnic or holiday dinner.
Once you try this pickle recipe you’ll never want to buy pickles from the grocery store again! They’re super easy to make and filled with a wonderful tangy, garlic dill flavor.
We’ve been buying refrigerated dill pickles from our favorite retailer and loved them. I was challenged to make homemade refrigerator pickles that were just as good- or even better! And let me tell you, these garlic dill pickles are incredible! (So flavorful and crispy!)
Anyone can make these incredibly delicious refrigerator pickles. Believe me, the jar of pickles will not last! If you enjoy zesty dill pickles, you’re going to absolutely love this refrigerator pickle recipe!
Feeling in the mood for more home canning recipes? Be sure and try Marinara Sauce, Bread and Butter Pickles and Pickles Peppers.
Why this recipe works
- Made with simple ingredients – Simple to make pickle recipe using easy to find ingredients.
- Prep ahead of time – Make them ahead of time and let the flavors marinade for several days or a week.
- Ease – Creates a crispy and tangy dill pickle within minutes with no canning equipment required for these refrigerator dill pickles.
- Flavor – Fresh dill, garlic cloves, along with everyday pantry staples and spices give these refrigerator pickles incredible flavor.
What you’ll need
- Pickling cucumbers – Either grow your own, buy at the farmers market or locate them in the grocery store. They have a thicker skin that holds up better when pickling and have less seeds.
- Vinegar – We use distilled white vinegar which helps to preserve and make them into pickles.
- Salt – Use pickling or Kosher salt which add flavor and is key to home canning. (Do not use table salt!)
- Sugar – Provides a little bit of sweetness and balance to the pickling brine.
- Pickling spice – Gives a wonderful flavor to this homemade pickle recipe. Make your own or purchase here. (I also put pickling spice into cheesecloth bags)
- Garlic – Adds a delicious garlic flavor. Save yourself time and buy pre-pealed garlic cloves in the refrigerated area of the produce section.
How to make make Refrigerator Dill Pickles
- Wash and slice the cucumbers. Cut the ends off and slice lengthwise into quarters to make spears or cut into ½-inch slices for dill pickle chips.
- Make the brine. Combine the ingredients in a large pot over medium heat and simmer for 10-minutes. Use a cheesecloth baggie to hold the pickling spice.
- Fill the jars. Add peeled garlic cloves, mustard seeds, celery seed and fresh dill into each jar. Divide the cucumbers evenly among sterilized canning jars. (Sterilize jars by running them through the dishwasher or placing boiling water for 10-minutes.)
- Pour brine over pickles. Remove the cheesecloth and press out any brine in it into your pot. Ladle the hot brine over each jar of cucumbers. Place lids with seals on the jars and let cool to room temperature.
- Chill the pickles. Place the jars into the fridge so the flavors can marinade. For the best flavor, let spears sit in the fridge for 48 hours before enjoying.
This refrigerator pickle recipe is a hit in our household and we hope you’ll enjoy them too! Crisp dill pickles are the perfect addition to any cookout, barbecue or backyard picnic. (And so easy to make!)
We grow our own pickling cucumbers on white PVC lattice. This keeps them up off the ground and helps save space in our vegetable garden. We train the cucumber vines to grow up the lattice and maintain them daily.
Don’t grow your own cucumbers? No worries, just buy at a local farmers market or farm stand. For this pickle recipe, I grew my own fresh dill. But, you can also ask your produce manager to order some for you.
More Home Canning and Pickle Recipes
- Bread & Butter Pickles
- Pickled Peppers
- Marinara Sauce
- Raspberry Rhubarb Jam
- Raspberry Peach Jam
- Mixed Berry Jam
Recipe FAQs
This is the most common choice for pickling and has 5% acidity. It’s clear in color, has a mellow flavor and will not discolor your produce.
Boil the brine to dissolve sugar, salt and infuse with pickling spice, slice the cucumbers, add them to sterilized jars and pour hot brine over. Cool to room temperature and refrigerate.
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Refrigerated Dill Pickles
Ingredients
Refrigerated Dill Pickles
- 10-12 pickling cucumbers (cut lengthwise)
- 3 cups water
- 2 cups distilled white vinegar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons pickling or kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons pickling spice
- 5 teaspoons mustard seed
- 1 ¼ teaspoons celery seed
- garlic cloves (peeled)
- fresh dill or dill seeds
Instructions
Refrigerated Dill Pickles
- Sterilize your jars by either running them through the dishwasher or simmering in boiling water for 10 minutes.
Make the brine
- In a large pot heat the water, vinegar, sugar and salt over medium heat and bring to a boil.
- Add the pickling spice to a piece of cheesecloth or cheesecloth bag and let simmer for in the brine for about 10 minutes. Stir occasionally with a spoon.
- Wash the cucumbers in cold water and cut the ends off. Cut the cucumbers into spears, halves or ½-inch rounds.
Fill the jars
- In each jar, add 1 teaspoon mustard seed, ¼ teaspoon celery seeds, several peeled garlic cloves and several fresh dill pieces. (or use dill seeds)
- Divide the cucumbers between the jars. They should fit rather tightly.
- Ladle the hot pickling brine over the cucumbers, covering them completely. Leave about ½-inch head space.
- Wipe any brine from the edges of the jars with a clean damp paper towel. Put lids with rings on the jars.
- Let the jars cool to room temperature before placing them in the refrigerator.
- For the best flavor, let marinade in the fridge for about 3 or 4 days before enjoying. They will last in the fridge for about 2 months.
Recipe Notes
Using Pickling Spice:
We highly recommend using a cheesecloth baggie. They are super convenient and keep the pickling spice contained. (Pickling spice often has pieces of chopped bay leaves and can be harmful if swallowed.)Slicing cucumbers:
Cut cucumbers lengthwise for spears, halves or cut into chips.Fresh Dill:
Fresh dill is best. You can easily grow your own from seed OR ask the produce manager at your local grocery store to order you some. This recipe makes about 5-6 pints (16-ounce) jars of Dill pickles.Nutrition
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Donna says
Just finished this wonderful recipe. Can you tell me how long they last in fridge.
Jessica Robinson says
We’ve had them stay fresh in our fridge for well over 3 months. Not that they will last that long! So happy to hear you really enjoyed them!
Jill Baer says
I just finished making these and had to make another batch of the recipe of brine. There was nowhere near enough for 10-12 lbs of cucumbers. I think you need to check your amounts. And I would have liked to have commented on this on the Pinterest post for them but strangely comments have been turned off. I hope that the pickles taste good because your recipe is not written in a very logic fashion.
Jessica Robinson says
Jill,
Gosh, I’m so sorry you misread the ingredients. If you read the ingredients and instructions on the recipe card, it states “10-12 pickling cucumbers.” No where does it say anything about pounds. I’m sorry you perhaps misread it. And, we certainly do NOT have comments turned off on Pinterest. Please let us know if we can help you further.
Linda says
I have made a lot of refrigerator pickles.
this is now my favorite recipe. The pickles
are crispy and tasty.
Jessica Robinson says
Hello Linda!
So happy to hear that you enjoyed them! We keep them stocked in our fridge at ALL times!
Chris Church says
Best dill pickles I’ve ever had!
Suzy Richards says
What a great recipe, they are incredible dill pickles, and so crisp! I also tried your tip for the pickling spices and it works great. Everyone loved them.
Jessica Robinson says
So glad to hear you loved it!