This amazingly easy Bread and Butter Pickles recipe can be finished in the refrigerator or made using a traditional canning method. Either way, you’ll love making the tangiest, sweetest, and slightly spicy sweet pickles with just the right crunch at home!

Opened jar of bread and butter pickles with more jars in the background.
Sommer headshot.

Sommer’s Recipe Notes

We have already shared the wonder of making pickles from scratch using a tried-and-true refrigerator method… These Best Homemade Refrigerator Pickles are bright, slightly sour, and bursting with the taste of fresh dill.

And while we love our classic dill pickle recipe, we thought it was time to try our hand at another southern favorite: Sweet Pickles – made in the fridge!

Why You’ll Love This Perfectly Perky Bread and Butter Pickles Recipe

  • Versatile and Delicious – Sweet pickles are great for snacking, topping burgers and sandwiches, and adding bold flavor and snappy texture to almost any meal!
  • Easy to Customize – Make the pickles more or less spicy and add some extra oomph with just a few tweaks to the ingredients list.
  • Refrigerate or Can – Because the pickling liquid is boiling-hot when it goes in the jars, you can make this either a quick refrigerator pickles recipe or as sweet pickles for canning.

You won’t believe how easy it is to prepare the sweetest, snappiest sliced pickles in just a few simple steps!

Using a fork to get a sweet pickle slice from a jar.

Ingredients and Tips

  • Pickling cucumbers – Choose smaller cukes with thin skins, like Persian or English cucumbers.
  • Sweet onion – Sweet and crisp Vidalia onions are my favorites in the summer!
  • Seasonings – We use a classic pickling brine ingredients like kosher salt, whole mustard seeds, crushed red pepper, and celery seeds.
  • Granulated sugar  Just simple white cane sugar is perfect.
  • Apple cider vinegar and white vinegar – Use both for a quality pickle brine that has a delightfully tangy and not overwhelming taste.

Recipe Variations

  • Personalize the spice level – Feel free to add more or less red pepper flakes to make these pickles more mild or have a greater kick of heat.
  • Other aromatics – Add some extra flavor by including either whole cinnamon sticks or whole (peeled) garlic cloves to the pickling liquid. Cinnamon has a more warm, spice-y (not hot) flavor, while adding garlic will give the pickles an earthy flavor more similar to dill pickles… But, you know, without the dill.
  • A pinch of color – I love to add some turmeric powder for that lovely classic yellowish pickle color. But you can leave it out if you want.
  • Adjust the quantity – As-is this recipe yields approximately 64 servings throughout four large pint jars. Simply halve the ingredients to make just two pints.
Fresh cucumbers on a kitchen counter.

How to Make Bread and Butter Pickles

Tips for Success – If you are planning to make refrigerator pickles, let them sit at room temperature for one hour before putting them in the refrigerator.

However, if you plan to can the pickles you should do so immediately and follow the proper canning procedure at this point.

Either way, you prepare them, you should let the pickles rest at least 48 hours before eating. The texture and flavor will improve over the next week.

Find the full Bread and Butter Pickles recipe with detailed instructions, storage tips, and a video tutorial in the printable form at the bottom of the post.

How to Store Homemade Pickles

Refrigerator pickles keep well for about 2 months. But note that they tend to lose their crunchiness the longer they sit.

Pickles that have been canned can last 1-2 years at room temperature if sealed properly.

Serving Suggestions

Enjoy homemade sweet pickles as a snack right out of the jar, pair them with bites of cheddar cheese, or include them on a complete charcuterie board or antipasto platter.

Serve them as a condiment on the side with savory Southern dishes like Smoked Brisket, fiery Nashville Hot Chicken, and Smoked Pork Belly Burnt Ends. And they are perfect for making Cuban-pressed sandwiches and are a classic topping for hamburgers and smash burgers. Or go great on top or the side of nearly any sandwich, like Reubenssliders, our fabulous copycat Chick-Fil-A Hot Pepper Pimento Chicken Sandwich!

You can even chop them up and use the sweet pickle relish and juice to make other recipes like tuna salad, our Best Easy Remoulade Sauce, and Homemade Tartar Sauce.

Overhead view of an opened jar of bread and butter sweet pickles with a fork.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are bread and butter pickles?

They are essentially a sweet pickle. Traditionally, Bread and Butter Sweet Pickles include a smidge of spiciness to help balance the sweetness.

What makes “bread and butter” pickles different than dill pickles?

Bread and Butter Pickles are a type of sweet pickle. They include different spices than dill pickles, plus a lot more sugar. Therefore the flavor is sweet and spicy, not as sharp and herby like dill pickles.

Are bread and butter pickles good for you?

Sweet pickles are relatively wholesome! Just keep in mind that the pickle brine here does use a lot of salt, so they are high in sodium.

What’s the difference between canning or refrigerating Bread and Butter Pickles?

Pickles that are preserved using the traditional water bath canning method will keep shelf-stable for up to 2 years, unopened. On the other hand, refrigerator bread and butter pickles need to be kept in the fridge (obviously) and need to be eaten within 2 months.

Using a fork to remove bread and butter pickle slices from jars.

Similar Recipe You Might Like

Check out the printable recipe card below for the nutritional information, including calories, sodium, and fiber percentages.

homemade bread and butter pickles
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Bread and Butter Pickles Recipe

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Chill and Pickling Time: 2 days 1 hour
Total Time: 2 days 1 hour 25 minutes
This amazingly easy bread and butter sweet pickle recipe can be finished in the refrigerator or made by using a traditional canning method.
Servings: 64 servings

Video

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Set out a large mixing bowl and a mandolin slicer if you have one. Slice the pickles into even 1/8 inch rounds. Then quarter and slice the onion into short segments.
  • Place the cucumber slices and onions in the bowl, and toss with kosher salt. Set in the fridge to rest for 1-3 hours.
  • Meanwhile, set out four clean pint jars. Divide the mustard seeds, crushed red pepper, celery seeds, and cinnamon sticks between the four jars.
  • Once the cucumber slices I’ve had plenty of time to rest, release their juices, and absorb the salt, rinse them in cold water to remove the excess salt. Divide the cucumber slices and onions between the four jars.
  • Set a small saucepot over high heat. Add the sugar, apple cider vinegar, white vinegar, and turmeric. Bring to a boil.
  • Once boiling, carefully ladle the hot pickling liquid into the jars, dividing it evenly. If some of the cucumbers are still sticking out of the top of the jar, uncovered, add a tablespoon or two of hot water to the jars. Screw the lids on tight and shake the pickle jars.
  • If planning to make as refrigerator pickles, let the pickles sit at room temperature for one hour, then moved to the refrigerator. If planning to can the pickles, follow proper canning procedure at this point.
  • Let the pickles rest at least 48 hours before eating. The texture and flavor will improve over the next week.

Notes

Refrigerator pickles should last at least two months if kept cold. Canning pickles can last 1-2 years if sealed properly.

Nutrition

Serving: 1oz, Calories: 29kcal, Carbohydrates: 7g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 1g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 443mg, Potassium: 25mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 6g, Vitamin A: 20IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 6mg, Iron: 1mg
Course: Appetizer, Condiment, Side Dish, Snack
Cuisine: American
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