Easy Refrigerator Bread and Butter Pickles
These easy refrigerator Bread and Butter Pickles taste exactly like the ones my mom used to can. Except, these Refrigerator Pickles are no muss, no fuss!!!
If you’re new to canning or don’t have all the proper equipment for the full-fledged canning process, this simple recipe for homemade sweet pickles is the perfect place to start!
Reader Endorsement:
From Vermaast via Pinterest: I made 24 pints of these bread and butter Pickles and they came out great. They are delicious.
Why You Must Make
- If you’ve never made pickles before, this is an easy recipe that doesn’t require processing.
- They’re sweet and delicious!
- Perfect for snacking or adding to a sandwich!
Expert Tips
If you’re lazy like me and don’t want to go through the full routine of actually canning pickles, these refrigerator pickles bread and butter pickles are perfect for you! The process will still take a few hours, but it’s a very simple procedure. Happy preserving!
Buying and Prepping Your Cucumbers
- Use the freshest, unblemished cucumbers you can find. Pickling cucumbers are smaller than the variety you may use in your salads, so look for those.
The Pickling Process
- Before brining, wash your cucumbers without soap to remove any dirt or contaminants.
- To make these pickles, slices of cucumber and onions were heavily salted and covered with ice. Over three hours, the ice began to melt and the vegetables were brined.
- A double rinse is needed to remove excess salt and then, the cukes and onions were added to a hot pickling mixture of vinegar, sugar, and spices.
- The ratio of vinegar and sugar can vary among recipes as well as the spices used. This recipe hits the mark of perfection for me! Feel free to tweak it to your taste buds. For example, these sweet pickles are pretty sweet, you may want to decrease the sugar, but I find these perfect!
Storing Your Refrigerator Pickles
- These bread and butter pickles were packed in jars and cooled before screwing on the lids and refrigerating. Now isn’t that simple?
- Since this method did not involve sterilization, they should be eaten within a couple of weeks (some sources say they’re good for 6-8 weeks).
- If you grow pickle-sized cucumbers in your garden, make an extra batch and share these with your friends and neighbors!
Frequently Asked Questions
Unlike true canned pickles that need to be processed in a water bath to make them shelf-safe, refrigerator pickles are actually heated at a higher temperature for a shorter amount of time. This does not hermetically seal them, so they must be stored in the refrigerator for a limited amount of time.
These refrigerator pickles are nothing more than a subclass of sweet pickles. The origin of their name may come from the Great Depression when they were possibly used as a sandwich filling when combined with bread and butter.
Refrigerator pickles will keep well for 3-4 weeks as long as they’re stored in the refrigerator. Watch the brine and if it starts looking murky or if the pickles’ texture starts to deteriorate, it’s time to discard them.
You May Also Like:
- Homemade Claussen Knock-Off Pickles from Foodie with Family
- Kool-Aid Pickles from Tornadough Alli
- Easy Pasta Salad with Pickle Relish
- Cubano with Sliced Dill Pickles
- Pickled Onions
- Easy Dill Pickle Dip
- More Snack Recipes
Note: I purchased my canning labels from Felix Doolittle. Watch for sales around the holidays.
Easy Bread and Butter Pickles
Easy, refrigerator bread and butter pickles like my mom used to make!
Ingredients
- 2 pounds pickling cucumbers, sliced
- 8 pearl onions, sliced
- ¼ cup canning salt
- 2 cups sugar
- 2 cups white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon mustard seed
- 1 teaspoon celery seed
- ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
- A pinch of ground cloves
Instructions
- In a large container, combine the cucumbers, onions, and salt. Cover with crushed ice and mix well. Let stand for 3 hours. Drain; rinse and drain again.
- In a large pot, combine the sugar, vinegar, mustard seed, celery seed, turmeric, and cloves and bring to a boil.
- Add cucumber mixture, then return to a boil. Remove from the heat.
- Carefully ladle the hot mixture into jars.
- Let cool, then screw on lids and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.
- If you'd like to store them longer, refer to a canning manual or website for directions.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
24Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 73Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 1180mgCarbohydrates: 18gFiber: 0gSugar: 17gProtein: 0g
Each summer, we’d pile into our unairconditioned station wagon and take the eight-hour trek up to visit our North Dakota relatives. There were no seat belts nor radio in that car, either. My dad was a frugal man! We’d kill time by picking out our favorite farmhouses and playing license plate games as we headed north on I-35. Once our trip corresponded with a total eclipse of the sun, so we drove across the Canada border for an awesome show by Mother Nature.
More typically, we’d create our own adventures with our cousins. We climbed into the barn lofts, visited the dogs and horses, ate homemade caramels and tacos, and helped make bread and butter pickles. My dad was more of a dill and garlic sort of guy, but, like my mom and her clan, I loved those sweet pickles flavored with mustard and celery seeds.
I’m certain my aunt, Angela, actually canned hers, but I took the easy route with these easy bread and butter pickles. At that age, I was much more interested in eating refrigerator pickles than paying attention to the process, but I’m delighted it was so easy to replicate the taste.
71 Comments on “Easy Refrigerator Bread and Butter Pickles”
These pickles just scream summer to me! They look delicious!
I adore pickles… these look spectacular! I also have memories of piling into an old station wagon (in the back trunk area) and going on trips. My parents were very frugal too. My goodness we lived crazy simple lives then. Now I can’t imagine going any where without my kids in car seats. 🙂 It was nice reading about your childhood memories. 🙂
Love, love, love these so much. I could just sit with a fork and the jar and eat to my hearts content!!! Love your little stickers too, reminded me I have some that I have never used!!
Childhood memories….I’ve always been a pickle-a-holic, bread & butter, dill, you name it I eat it! I wish I had learned to can from my grandmothers, if I only knew then what I know now about how precious those memories would be later.
I made bread and butter pickles for the first time last year at the request of a 88 year old neighbor. She would be delighted if I made them again for her. On a side note, I absolutely love your labels!
Yum Liz! This is such a great idea! I have been wanting to make bread and butter pickles. Saving your recipe.
I remember those cars long ago without seat belts. How did we ever survive? Thanks for sharing your easy pickles recipe. Nice to see another one that doesn’t require canning.
Bread and butter pickles are some of my favorite things. I love the sweet and salty bite they have. I’ve actually been adding all sorts of pickles to savory entrees lately and have been loving the flavor! Your pickles look amazing and I’m in LOVE with your Made By Elizabeth sticker on the jar!
Wow I had no idea it could be this easy! thanks for sharing this Liz we’d eat them all in a few weeks for sure! Nice gifts too!
Liz these look delicious! My husband would love it if I made homemade pickles for him.
My grandmother mad the best bread and butter pickles ever! They bring back memories too. Love the tip today.
Love bread & butter pickles. Have always made them by Aunt Joyce’s method, very similar in recipe & method. Just no cloves.
Thanks, Paula! Yeah, I only put in a pinch as I wasn’t sure if I really wanted a predominant clove flavor 🙂
I always wondered what on earth bread and butter pickles were! I’m definitely trying this recipe Liz.
Bread and butter pickles are my favorite sandwich “must have”. I bet I could eat this jar in 3 days if nobody stopped me 😉
What sweet memories of family, games and pickles, Liz. Without the radio (and iPhones!) we all might talk to each other more =) At any rate, as a person partial to bread and butter pickles, I am happy to have the great mystery of pickling revealed =)
Your pickles turned out beautiful Liz! Love the color the turmeric brings-enjoy:@)
This looks fantastic.. I love home made pickles…
Your pickles look fantastic, I am not usually fan but I really want to eat these crunchy ones now! 😀
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
I have a vague recollection that my stepfather’s side of the family made bread and butter pickles when I was a child, Liz. But, like you, I never really paid attention to the process. I thought they started with pickles already and added spices and sugar. Guess I’ll have to ask my mother. Meanwhile, I’m going to make some of yours. They look crunchy and delightful! Thanks for sharing!
Sometimes I am just craving for simply delicious pickles 😀
Thanks for the pickling tip! Your jars look ready for selling in batches!
Julie
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