Insanely Easy Homemade Pickles

Pickles are a love or hate condiment, but for those of us who love them, they are incredibly easy to make and last a very long time in the refrigerator. Using just a few fresh and clean ingredients, it can be made to taste and beats the store bought kind by miles in both quality and price! Also, as an added bonus, the pickling juice works amazingly well for marinating chicken in since it imparts flavor and keeps the meat moist and juicy! My homemade version of the Original Chick-fil-a Sandwich is a great example of how you can use both the picking juice and the pickles!

Here’s why you’ll love this recipe:

• This recipe is simple to make and takes just ten minutes
• It uses fresh and wholesome ingredients
• It can be customized to suit your taste and spice preferences
• Both the pickles and the brine can be used in various recipes so nothing will be wasted!
• This condiment is perfect for most diets including vegans, vegetarians, paleo, and keto diets.
• Ideal as a condiment, snack or as an ingredient for other sauces like Tartar Sauce or Homemade Thousand Island Dressing

To make these simple pickles you’ll need a jar with a lid to keep them in. I love using mason jars for this.

In terms of ingredients you’ll need the following:

• Water: tap, filtered, or bottled water works just fine.
• Distilled white vinegar: This is the most common vinegar used for pickling however you can use any vinegar as long as it has at least 5% acidity.
• Sliced cucumbers: Feel free to use any cucumber of your choice, I went with regular for simplicity sake but you can use a pickling cucumber.
• Fresh dill: This is optional but adds great flavor to your pickles.
• Raw organic sugar: or evaporated cane sugar can also be used.
• Salt: I use a pink Himalayan but you can also use sea salt.
• Garlic: Opt for using fresh cloves if you can.
• Red pepper flakes: Adds a touch of spice that blends well with your brine
• Black peppercorns: these provide your pickle brine with a deep earthy spice
• Mustard seeds: these seeds vary in range from being mild to pungent and spicy. The darker the seed the spicier the aromatic flavor.

Creating your pickle brine isn’t limited to just these ingredients. You can add a number of other spices (or combinations of your favorite warming, sweet and aromatic spices) to create your own unique blend. Some additions can include: Onion, chipotle pepper, ginger, bay leaves, star anise, cloves, cardamom, coriander, cinnamon stick, celery seeds or a stalk, fennel seed, juniper berries, allspice etc.

Making your pickles is as easy as placing the fresh dill and sliced cucumbers into a jar and the rest of the ingredients into a saucepan. Once we’ve brought the seasoned vinegar to a low simmer and the salt and sugar have dissolved, we’ll cool it before adding it to the jar of dill and cucumbers (it’s okay if the liquid is a little warm).

On goes the lid and into the refrigerator it goes for as little as two hours. Eight hours seems to be the mark for the best pickling, but your pickles can be kept in the refrigerator for up to two months. Enjoy them however you like and don’t forget that you can make use of your brine as well!