The BEST Half Sour Pickles recipe there is! These easy homemade pickles taste just like New York Crunchy pickles. No canning is needed to make these delicious pickles, just throw them in the refrigerator for a few days! Make them to find out why they’re so popular!
If I could stand on top of a mountain I would yell “I love pickles!”. I really do. They’re pretty, they’re crunchy, they’re full of flavor, they hit the right spot in the afternoon when you need a snack, they’re great on a burger, they’re great at 4AM standing in front of the refrigerator.
How to Make Half Sour Pickles
Pickles, they’re just really good.With the cucumber plants in full producing mode right now we have been picking (and pickling!) quite a few kirby cucumbers. Did you know cucumbers are one of the easiest vegetables to grow? We currently have 6 mason jars full of pickles in the refrigerator!
If you are in Brooklyn and are in need of a pickle, I’m your girl! I have been trying to get the perfect half sour pickles after years of swooning at all the NYC pickle places. Finally, I got it just right!
Half Sour Pickles Recipe
A few notes about these half sour beauties:
-These don’t have vinegar in them. You see I have a fear of the smell of vinegar, I just get freaked out. So I have been desperately trying to figure out how to make delicious pickles with seasonings to make up for the lack of vinegar. THIS IS IT! In this one instead of using vinegar we use sea salt water!
-I would leave these in your refrigerator at least 4 days before you bite into one. After that, good luck not finishing the jar in a day or 2. If you have control of your fingers going in the pickle jar though, these last for weeks.
-Kirby cucumbers are the best for pickles.
Refrigerator Pickles Recipe
-If you don’t have Kirbies, that’s totally ok, but I recommend if you are using big cucumbers to cut them up into spears first (they will fit better into the jar most likely too).
-Please don’t skip on the seasonings. These pickles soak alongside delicious garlic, fresh dill, peppercorns, coriander seeds, mustard seeds and bay leaves.
-This recipe uses a half gallon mason jar. The ingredients and amount of water to salt ratio in this recipe is for this sized jar.
-If your pickles are soft and not crunchy when done, please check out Ball Pickle Crisp. It works great to keep that fresh crunch!
Fresh kirby cucumbers just picked from the garden!
One of the yummy herbs in this recipe is coriander seeds. If you have a cilantro plant and you neglect it, it will turn into coriander seeds. Awesome, right? I always do this every year so I get fresh coriander to last until next harvest season.
You can use a mortar and pestle to crush your dry ingredients or you can be like me and just use a tool (I don’t know the name of this so let’s just go with “tool”) to bash it all together. A rolling pin works great too. So does a hammer.
Put your cucumbers in the jar, then add your garlic.
Then your crushed dry ingredients.
Pick a few pieces of fresh dill. Doesn’t it smell great?
Then add your salt water and fresh dill.
Keep filling your jar with water until your cucumbers are completely covered. In the jar above, a little bit of the salt water still needs to be added.
Now it’s the hard part.. waiting for a few days to eat them!
But when it’s time… it will be worth it!
If you are making batches as you harvest, and you use similar jars sometimes it gets confusing to keep track of the ones that have been sitting the longest. To do this I use chalk or a Sharpie and write on the lid. #1 = eat first, #2 = eat next, #3 = eat next next.. etc.
Enjoy! 🙂
Looking for more cucumber recipes? Try my Sugar Glazed Cucumber Bread (yes you can bake with cucumbers!), Frosted Cucumber Cookies and Cucumber Tomato Salad!
Update: I shared my favorite Pickled Okra recipe!
If you try this Half Sour Pickles recipe, please leave a comment or share it on Instagram with tag #brooklynfarmgirl – I’m always looking for photos to feature and share!
Half Sour Pickles
PrintIngredients
- 5 kirby cucumbers or however many you can fit into your jar
- 1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
- few pieces of fresh dill
- 3 bay leaves
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 cup sea salt
- 6 cups water
- additional whole coriander seeds and peppercorns to add on top
Instructions
- Wash your cucumbers.
- Dissolve your sea salt in the water.
- Grind up all the dry ingredients (coriander, mustard seeds, peppercorns, 2 bay leaves). If you don’t have a mortar/pestle, throw it in a plastic bag and use a rolling pin to crush them.
- Put the cucumbers in your jar.
- Put the minced garlic in the jar, then ground up spices, then pour the salt water mixture on top. If you have any water left, disregard it.
- Add a few pieces of fresh dill on top.
- Add in your additional coriander seeds, peppercorns and bay leaf.
- Make sure your cucumbers are completely covered in water and close the jar.
- Put in the refrigerator. Let them sit for at least 4 days before eating.
- Enjoy!
Video:
Notes
For a crunchy pickle add 1/4 teaspoon Ball Pickle Crisp Granules at the end.
Gerry says
Pamela, you have given us THE BEST recipe! Your recipe is pretty forgiving as long as your water-to-salt ratio is strictly followed, and also paying attention to your great easy to follow advice. I also found that if the cukes are quartered or sliced they can be ready in just a few days. Thank You! Thank You! Thank You!!!
Pamela says
Hey Gerry, so happy to hear that you’re loving these pickles! Thanks for commenting and letting me know!
Eileen says
I am so happy to how found this recipe. I am allergic to vinegar and love pickles. I will be making these soon.
Barbara says
Wow, I sound illiterate. They turned out, not there. And I ate a whole quart, not a who quart. I will blame my index finger for the typos, as I sliced it on a mandoline slicer last night. 🙂
Barbara says
So, I discovered this half sour pickle recipe last week, and I can’t stop making them They taste exactly line the ones we used to get in NYC when I was a little girl growing up in Connecticut. My dad worked in the city and he would bring them home on the train a couple of times a week!
First I made two quarts. There turned out so well, I ate a who quart in one day. In fact, I added more pickles to the brine and stuck them back in the refrigerator. Two days later, when a friend stopped by, I offered her a bite. She took home the second jar. I brought home another 10 lbs of pickles from another friend’s garden yesterday. I made four more quarts last night.
These are some of the very best pickles I’ve ever eaten, even in the Jewish delis! Thanks for sharing!
Pamela says
Hey Barbara, your comment made my night! I’m so happy you enjoyed these pickles and they reminded you of your childhood – thanks for the smile! Keep enjoying!
Lara says
I made this recipe, screwed it up a bit, left them in way too long in the fridge, and seriously, these are the best pickles I’ve ever had. I have a huge glut of huge cucumbers in my garden and I’m just going to pickle away. Thanks for this recipe!
Pamela says
Hey Lara, thanks for letting me know you made these pickles! I’m so happy you like them!
Brigitta says
So I’ve tried about 6 different fermented pickle recipes this summer and they all tasted-MEH. I don’t know if I didn’t wait long enough, too long or what but they don’t taste like the traditional 1/2 sours you get in a kosher deli. I’m interested in yours because you put them right in the fridge, which should technically slow fermentation down, instead of leaving them out to ferment on the counter in warm temps. Do you know if your method actually ferments the cukes or if the cukes just absorb the salted water? Thanks!
Leanne says
How long will these keep in the refrigerator? I’d like to try these, but need to know how long they’ll keep if I make more than one batch.
Leanne says
Please disregard, I just saw the question answered above. Can’t delete my comment for some reason.
Penny says
How long will these last in the refrigerator? The reason I ask is that I just made some pickled veggies (a gallon) and need to eat those first.
Pamela says
I prefer to eat them within a few weeks but I’ve kept them for over a month and they’ve stayed crunchy and fresh. Enjoy!
picklehead bob says
these are delicious! just maybe if you pre-cut larger cucumbers into spears (before brining) then i would use half the amount of salt, as the brine soaks in further than with whole cukes and they can get pretty salty.
Pamela says
Glad you liked the recipe Bob!
Patty R says
I love these pickles but I want to make them in quart and pint sizes. How much spices would you use for each jar?
Pamela says
Hi Patty, there are 2 quarts in a half-gallon and there are 4 pints in a half-gallon so you will have to do the math accordingly. For example if you want to do 1 quart, half the recipe. Enjoy this recipe!
Liz says
I make them every summer. I just made a batch earlier today. They always turn out delicious. ????
Pamela says
Awww, that makes me so happy to hear Liz!
Theresa says
We teen loves pickles, we need to try this after the farmers market. Thanks for sharing at the #InspirationSpotlight party @DearCreatives Pinned & shared.
April J Harris says
Oh I love pickles too! Thank you for sharing this yummy recipe with us at The Hearth and Soul Link Party. I love how you crush your spices – great idea! Scheduled this post to pin. Hope to ‘see’ you at the party again this week.
Janice Wald|MostlyBlogging says
Thanks for bringing your post to the Blogger’s Pit Stop last week.
Janice, Pit Stop Crew
Mary says
These pickles look so yummy. I can just smell the burger and slap these babies on there. A New York minute for sure.
Christy Roppel says
HI!
In your description/instructions you say:
Put the minced garlic in the jar, then ground up spices, then pour the salt water mixture on top. If you have any water left, disregard it.
Add a few pieces of fresh dill on top.
Add in your additional coriander seeds, peppercorns and bay leaf.
So, when we put in our spices with the minced garlic, do we only use half of them? You mention additional….
If you could further explain, that would be great.
Oh, do you think you could ferment these with this recipe?
Thanks so much!
My hubby hates Vinegar….we call it the “V” word! haha!
Leslie says
My one-year-old LOVES pickles, so I think that we’re definitely going to have to give this recipe a try when cucumbers come in around here. Thanks so much for sharing at the #happynowlinkup!
Sandra L Garth says
Oh my these look good and there’s nothing like the smell of fresh dill.
Sandy says
My daughter and I truly love Half Sour Pickles! Going to try your recipe, it sounds great and easy to do. By the way, your “tool” is called an adjusting wrench. 😉 But, I think I’ll try a heavy weight Wine Bottle? 😀
Jess says
Yum! These sound amazing! Pinned!
I would love for you to share this with my Facebook Group for recipes, crafts, tips, and tricks: https://www.facebook.com/groups/pluckyrecipescraftstips/
Thanks for joining Cooking and Crafting with J & J!
kristin mccarthy says
I am obsessed with these! Definitely doing this. Hoe long will they stay without going through the canning process.?
Larry brody says
I love pickles !!!!! I’m going to Rein’s deli in Connecticut and buy a 5 gallon bucket of half sour pickles cause I love half sour pickles but in California and there is no such thing as a real half sour pickle. Once I eat all the pickles can I just add kerby cucumbers to the bucket to make more using the old brine. If I can how long will it take. Also doi have to skim them? Or just let them sit then eat?
Pamela says
Hi Larry, you can reuse the brine (I wouldn’t use it more than twice) if you are going to keep them in the refrigerator. Also if the brine is cloudy at all – I wouldn’t use it as it’s probably not good anymore. I would let them sit in the brine for 5 days (in the fridge) before you eat them. Obviously the brine is going to be a bit weaker than fresh pickles. Once you’re done with those pickles – I recommend that you make this recipe – I think you’d enjoy it!
Arthur says
I just mixed up 2 batches of the brine/spice mix and I am pickling red peppers, green tomatoes and cucumber spears. I will let you know how they come out.
Pamela says
Yum – that sounds delicious! Enjoy Arthur!
Jamie Wilson says
Hi Pamela How do you make the sea salt water ?
Pamela says
Hey Jamie, dissolve the sea salt in the water – this is done by just adding the salt to water and stirring.
Mel says
I grew up on Long Island and loved the half sour pickles you could find in almost any deli. These remind me of home. So good! Thank you 🙂
cklequ interior says
I’ve been looking for this pickle recipe for years. These are amazing.
I even went out and bought a mortar and pestle to speed things up.
Now all I have to do is remember to make another batch more often. I always seem to wait until they run out. Thanks for this!
Pamela says
This makes me so happy to hear! Enjoy your new mortar and pestle, here’s to many more pickles in your future! 😉 Enjoy!
Denn Russell says
I was in NY ~ 25 years ago, & had the best lunch in a deli near the launch for the “Statue of Liberty”. They had the greatest pickles – they said they were “half sour”. I’m Living in Minneapolis, and have never found any as good – until your recipe! Thanks! Denn Russell
Pamela says
Hey Denn, your comment makes me so happy to hear! Glad you’re enjoying these pickles and remembering NY! Take care.
Ronoc says
These were a little too salty.
Pamela says
Hey Ronoc, sorry to hear they were too salty for your tastes. Since they’re a fan favorite here I hope you give them a another shot and try a little less salt for your liking. Thanks for stopping by.
Rose Reinhardt says
Hi Pamela,
I have made these pickles and they are amazing. I tried halving the recipes and it did not turn out well. So I tried again following your recipe exactly and they were great, and when we tasted them I realized you have to make the whole recipe because you want to eat all of those wonderful pickles. Thanks for that great recipe
Pamela says
Hey Rose, I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed the pickles! And I agree about the whole batch because they don’t last very long! 😉