Refrigerator Pickles
by Sommer Collier — last updated on Jul 14, 2025 
Best Homemade Refrigerator Pickles Recipe: How to make pickles, no canning required! These perky crisp dill pickles make great sandwich toppers.
Refrigerator Pickles
Pucker up for the Best Homemade Refrigerator Pickles we’ve ever tried! These zesty garlic dills are quick and easy to make, and also pack a punch of flavor.
Sommer’s Recipe Notes
If you don’t like hot water canning, our Refrigerator Pickles are a great solution. You can make one jar or multiple jars of refrigerator pickles, and they are ready to eat after just one day of refrigeration.
Another beauty of Homemade Dill Pickles is that you can put them in any clean jar with a lid. You don’t need to buy canning jars because you don’t actually can them in the traditional way. Simply pack the jars with cucumbers, a bit of onion, and dill. Make the brine and pour it over the top. Then pop the pickles in the fridge.
If you are using unconventional jar sizes, you may need to adjust the amount of brine to fill the jars you have.
It is also fun to cut the cucumbers in whatever shape you like. I made long sandwich slices, spears, and crinkle-cut round slices. With a large enough jar and small enough cucumbers, you could leave them whole as well. Have fun with it!
Recipe Ingredients
Here’s what you’re going to need for this pickle recipe…
- Pickling Cucumbers – These are not regular cucumbers! Look for shorter cucumbers with bumpy skin.
- Vidalia Onion – This is a type of sweet onion grown in Georgia. If you can’t find these, just go with a regular sweet onion.
- Fresh Dill Weed – You’ll know this produce item by its distinct aroma. It also gives these pickles their signature dill taste.
- Apple Cider Vinegar – This has a mellow fruity flavor that melds well with the spices that go along with this recipe. (white vinegar works too!)
- Water – To fill the jar to the top.
- Garlic Cloves– You can’t go wrong with garlic!
- Pickling Salt – If you can’t find pickling salt, use kosher salt instead.
- Granulated Sugar – This balances the savoriness of the pickles but doesn’t overpower it.
- Whole Black Peppercorns – Whole black peppercorns are used instead of ground pepper for a milder taste.
- Whole Yellow Mustard Seeds – Super-small, yet these seeds are packed with bold flavor!
- Red Pepper Flakes – Adjust the spice level to your liking by adding more or less to your pickles.
How To Make Pickles
I use small pickling cucumbers with thick bumpy skin. They hold up well and stay crunchy. It doesn’t take too many cucumbers to fill a jar either; I was able to fit three 4-inch long sliced cucumbers in a pint-sized jar.
Zesty garlic dill pickles are my favorite. However, you can adjust this recipe to your own tastebuds to make it less garlicky or even sweeter.
Find the full Refrigerator Pickles recipe with ingredient proportions, detailed instructions, and a video tutorial in the printable form at the bottom of the post.
Serve These Quick Pickles On…
- Grilled French Onion Steak Sliders
- Best Slow Cooker Carnitas
- Smash Burger Recipe
- Ultimate Southern Chicken Salad
- Honey Pepper Pimento Chicken Sandwich
- Best Hamburger Patty
- Best Ever Tuna Salad Sandwich from Simply Recipes
Homemade Refrigerator Pickles Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 3 pickling cucumbers, each about 4 inches in length, sliced evenly
- 1/4 cup Vidalia onion, sliced
- 3-5 sprigs fresh dill weed
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pickling salt, or kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
- 1/4 teaspoon whole yellow mustard seeds
- Pinch crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Pack a clean pint-sized jar with sliced cucumbers, onion slices, and dill sprigs. Leave a 1/2 inch of space at the top of the jar for liquid.
- In a small pot heat the vinegar, water, garlic, and all spices until the mixture comes to a simmer and salt and sugar dissolve.
- Cool the brine down to warm and fill the jar so everything is covered with brine.
- Close the lid tightly and refrigerate for 24 hours before eating.
Notes
Nutrition
Frequently Asked Questions
Homemade pickles should last for two months in the refrigerator in their jar. However, the longer they sit, the less crunchy they become.
The pickles themselves are pickling cucumbers soaked in brine (water, vinegar, and salt) mixed with pickling spices. As the cucumbers soak in the mixture, they are transformed into pickles.
This question is easy. These pickles are the best! Obviously! They are homemade and straightforward to make. Knowing exactly what you are putting into your body is so empowering, especially when it tastes just as good, if not better than, store-bought.
If you are not a fan of cucumbers, consider using this pickle brine with green beans, cauliflower, bell peppers, or hot peppers.
More Pickled Recipes
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I make a batch of these at least once a week and all my friends and family absolutely love them. This is the best pickle recipe that exists. Has anyone tried killing them? I would like to get some longer shelf life out of them
I grew cucumbers this year (only thing I grew lol) and just used this recipe with some fresh out of the garden! I followed the recipe exactly and I think it turned out really tasty! Thank you!
I do water bath pickles and so easy. Make your brine and no need to heat. Just stir until dissolved and pour over pickles. I prefer spears and packed tight. Set into water, coming up to shoulder of jar. Heat to boiling.
urn off heat and let sit 1 minute than remove jars. After 5 minutes turn jars upside down and let set until cold before removing jar rings. They always seal this way. My brine for sweet dills is 1 cup sugar, 1cup vinegar, 1 tsp salt, 2/3 cup water. Double recipe as needed. Can also use this recipe for pickling beets, green or yellow beans (precooked) It is called Pickling Brine For Everything.
These pickles are insanely good! You’re right—they really are the BEST homemade refrigerator (or any other kind) pickles! Will be recommending to everyone!
Hi! Omg these pickles are amazing!! Am I able to can them so they can be shelf stable in my pantry? How long would you recommend they’re heated for?
Thanks!!
I don’t have fresh dill. Can I use dried?
Hi Laura,
Yes, you can! Generally you use 1/3 of the amount when converting fresh herbs to dry.
Great! Less sweet than other recipes I’ve tried. Will definitely make them again.
Absolutely delicious! The only change I made was to substitute a sliced serrano pepper for the crushed red pepper. Heat was perfect and so was the recommended 1/4 tsp. of sugar ((not too sweet, just a hint). I wasn’t sure about using apple cider vinegar, but it blended very well with the rest of the flavors. Plus, I don’t need to make a huge batch, which is perfect for a small garden where my yield is fairly low each week. I will definitely be making more as my cucumbers continue to come in throughout the growing season.
How long do the Pickles last in the refrigerator??
Pickles don’t go bad as long as you keep them in their brine, they may get too sour for you. Max two years I’d say, but they only get better with time.
This is summer is the first time I made pickles. Rave reviews from family and friends. I know you have said they last a couple months in the refrigerator. What are your thoughts on canning them in a water bath for longer storage?
I just got the pickles jarred up. It smells heavenly. Is it possible to also can this recipe? I’d love to have it all year long. Also, I assume I can also slice the pickles up in this recipe.
I’ve made these twice. Delicious! But now I have too many cucumbers and would like to can them in the water bath. Can I use this recipe to do that?
They were so easy to make and delicious. The one thing I changed was to up the garlic from two cloves to four–we love garlic in my family and they were a huge hit at our July 4th cook-out.
I went to the farmers market and picked up 3 giant cucumbers and speared them for 1 per 32oz mason jar. For 3 mason jars I used 3 cups of water and vinegar and had just a little left over. Glad to have a recipe that I am not just winging it!