Refrigerator Bread and Butter Pickles
A wonderful, simple recipe for homemade refrigerator Bread and Butter Pickles. No canning equipment required! Just prepare and pop in the fridge!
About five years ago, I vowed to spend the summer learning how to can and had grand plans to can ALL THE THINGS. I bought a book, read it, and had a list of recipes I wanted to try. Then I blinked, and summer was almost over. Oops. Then I saw this recipe for refrigerator bread and butter pickles, and I was immediately drawn to it because there was no canning equipment required. You could make these pickles in just about no time and pop them straight in the refrigerator. Score!
Bread and butter pickles have always been my absolute favorite sandwich pickle. A dill spear is great on the side of a burger for munching on, but give me bread and butter pickles on a big sandwich any day. They’re a little sweet and little zesty and with a kick. Love them!
You start out with beautiful little pickling cucumbers…
(If you have especially small regular cucumbers, you could use those, as well!)
You’ll slice up the cucumbers into pretty little pieces, about ¼-inch thick (you don’t want them to be super thin). I found this little wavy slicer thing (a very technical term) at the checkout in Bed Bath & Beyond about 10 years ago. I can’t find it on their website anymore, but I did locate it on Amazon, if you want the cute fancypants crinkle cut (which I happen to love).
Otherwise, just grab your favorite knife or a mandoline and slice away!
Once the cucumbers are all sliced up, you sprinkle them with salt, toss to combine, cover the bowl and pop them in the refrigerator for about an hour and a half.
After that hour, you rinse the cucumbers with cold water, drain, and then toss together with the thinly sliced onion.
Set those aside and get your pickling concoction together. You’ll combine white vinegar, cider vinegar, white sugar, brown sugar, mustard seed, celery seed and ground turmeric in a saucepan and get it to a simmer, making sure the sugar dissolves.
Once you reach that point, pour the liquid over the cucumbers and onions and let it sit at room temperature for about an hour.
That’s it! You’re done! Transfer the pickle and onion mixture (including the liquid) into the container you wish to store them in (I love these jars – they’re the perfect size!) and pop them in the refrigerator. After about 24 hours you will have absolutely delicious pickles!
I just made this recipe again last week with pickling cucumbers from my father-in-law’s garden, and they are delicious as always!
If You Like This Refrigerator Bread and Butter Pickles Recipe, Try These:
- Sweet and Spicy Zucchini Refrigerator Pickles
- Quick & Easy Refrigerator Dill Pickles
- Dill Sandwich Pickles
Three years ago: Peach Crumble Pie
Four years ago: Chocolate & Peanut Butter Cheesecake Bars
Watch How to Make Refrigerator Bread and Butter Pickles:
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Refrigerator Bread and Butter Pickles
Ingredients
- 5½ cups (731.5 g) about 1½ pounds thinly sliced (about ¼-inch) pickling cucumbers
- 1½ tablespoons (1.5 tablespoons) kosher salt
- 1 cup (160 g) thinly sliced sweet onion
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (255 ml) white vinegar
- ½ cup (119.5 ml) apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup (55 g) light brown sugar
- 1½ teaspoons (1.5 teaspoons) mustard seeds
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) celery seeds
- ⅛ teaspoon (0.13 teaspoon) ground turmeric
Instructions
- Combine cucumbers and salt in a large, shallow bowl; cover and chill 1½ hours. Move cucumbers into a colander and rinse thoroughly under cold water. Drain well, and return cucumbers to bowl. Add onion to the bowl and toss with the cucumbers.
- Combine the granulated sugar, white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, mustard seeds, celery seeds and ground turmeric in a medium saucepan; bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves.
- Pour the hot vinegar mixture over cucumber mixture; let stand at room temperature 1 hour. Cover and refrigerate 24 hours. Store in an airtight container in refrigerator up to 1 month.
Notes
- I do not recommend using this recipe for canning or long-term storage.
- The jars pictured in the post are Bormioli jars - love them!
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
This recipe was originally published on August 25, 2011.
Beatiuful! And it’s made of ingredients we almost always have on hand—what could be better? :)
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I follow you all the recipes and they are all too good… Keep posting. Thanks and regards 24BestBuys.com
Delish pickles.
Perfect for anytime when you have too many cucumbers
Tttt
Everyone loves these pickles. I can’t make enough.
I have made these they are excellant !!!!! Best bread and butter pickles i ever made.
I made these last week, and I’m making
Them again now. I follow the recipe exactly except
I used seedless English cucumbers and cut them thicker.I love them! Thanks! PS super
Easy to make
Haven’t made yet but going to. As a teenager I used to make this with zucchini/courgette , (beautiful ), it had thinly sliced red capsicum/ red pepper in it as well. The recipe had got lost over the years so very happy to have discovered it again.
I don’t like pickles either but love these, only ones I eat and straight out of the jar. Lol
I am not a fan of bread & butter pickles, but my husband sure is. I made these for him and a neighbor and both of them said these were the BEST they’ve ever had! Now, to make your homemade bread (which I certainly am a fan of). Thanks for all of your great recipes.
Just made these today and can’t wait to eat the. They taste amazing! Thanks for your recipe!
I tweaked a few things in the recipe, but my friends and family really enjoyed them!! Thank you!
These were very easy and quite tasty! Thank you for the recipe!