Crunchy, Sweet, and Tangy Bread and Butter Pickles
I Love bread and butter pickles. That sweet tangy crunch layered into burgers, diced in tunafish sandwiches, or just grabbed straight out of the jar and snacked on. As a kid, sweet pickles were the only pickled thing I really liked. Dill pickles, pickled onions, pickled beets, etc… Ick. Or at least that’s what my palate at a minion’s age thought. Since then I’ve come to love and appreciate nearly every kind of pickled delight, especially after spending over 2 decades eating Vietnamese food. It seems like the Vietnamese pickle just about anything and Diane’s mom and, of course Diane, are seriously good at it. Her pickled, slightly spicy & crunchy baby white eggplant is a thing of wonder and pure deliciousness. But my first and true pickle love is still the bread and butter pickle.
Homemade Bread and Butter Pickles Recipe
Of course not all bread and butter pickles are the same. Most all have a good flavor, some just varying in sweetness or maybe given a spicy kick. But the real test for me is the crunch. The make-or-break factor for my favorite pickles is all about a great crunch.
Out of the commercially-made pickles I love Bubbies the most. Their Bread and Butter Chips are always a staple in our fridge. I want to love so many of the different artisan or homemade pickles I’ve tried from other brands, but so many times they have a lifeless texture. Where’s the coveted crunch? Maybe I just haven’t found the right one other than Bubbies.
Video for Bread and Butter Pickles!
Persian and Japanese Cucumbers for Best Pickles
Over the years we’d finally gotten our garden cucumbers to their happy place and can get quite the harvest. Usually growing either Persian cucumbers or Japanese cucumbers (unless the starters at the nursery have been mislabeled – had that happen more than once). The Persian and Japanese cucumbers have such a great crunch, even when we lag a little in picking them from the vines to make these bread and butter pickles.
Tips for Making These Sweet Pickles
So one summer I was determined to figure it out. After consulting the pickle masters (Diane and her mom, of course- their pickled stuff is the crunchiest), I had a plan of action.
- Using good cucumbers like we talked above: Persian cucumbers or Japanese cucumbers.
- Salt it and let it sit for an hour or two.
- Rinse, pat dry, and then let it sit out overnight to dry out a bit more.
- Then finish with the pickling brine and jar ’em up.
- Adjust sweetness to your personal taste. All recipe details are in the recipe box below.
I’m happy to report that the pickles are awesome. Great crunch, great flavor. I might not be buying any Bubbies for quite some time. Sorry Bubbies.
-Update- We’ve now been making these pickles for many years and they have become a staple in our fridge (although we still will buy Bubbies occasionally if in a time crunch and needs some pickles asap). Our homemade bread and butter pickles are still one of the best pickles we’ve found. Hope you love them too!
Canning and Storing the Bread and Butter Pickles
- These pickles are always best when stored in the fridge. They will maintain their crunch much better that way. Don’t freeze them. It will make the texture mushy.
- When storing in the fridge, we often won’t bother with using a hot water bath (just make sure you are using sterilized jars & lids). After the hot vinegar mix is poured over the cucumbers, we’ll turn the jars upside down to keep the hot liquid touching the inside of the lid for about 15-20 minutes. Then after flipping right-side up and allowing to cool, the lids will give their little pop down, indicating it is sealed. We always just keep them stored in the fridge.
- Stored in the fridge they’ll last with great quality for at least 8-12 months. Probably longer but we’ve never had a jar go un-eaten longer than that. But as always with any canned food, if it smells or looks funky, toss it out.
- These are shelf stable and don’t have to be stored it the fridge, but they won’t maintain as good of a texture. We find them to have a softer texture. If planning on storing the pickles at room temp., make sure to seal the jars thoroughly (no matter how store or seal the jars, make sure you are using sterilized jars & lids – that’s always important for any foods you store for an extended period of time). Most people will seal the jars for shelf storage by hot water bath canning.
- Another drawback to storing the pickles at room temp instead of the fridge, is that when you can the jars, the hot water bath will often cook the pickles a bit and soften their texture. That’s another reason why we always fridge store them and then seal the jars with by just turning them upside down for a bit.
- When stored in the at room temperature when correctly processed, the will last over a year. However, the texture softens the longer they are stored that way. And as mentioned above, as with any canned food, if it smells or looks funky, toss it out.
Enjoy!
Todd
Bread and Butter Pickles Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 pounds (1.36 kg) crisp cucumbers , sliced 1/4-inch thick
- 1/2 medium (0.5) onion , thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup (75 g) kosher salt or sea salt
- 2 cups (480 ml) white vinegar
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) water
- 1 cup (200 g) sugar
- 2 Tablespoons (30 ml) mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) celery seeds
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) turmeric
Equipment
- Canning Funnel optional
Instructions
- Place the cucumbers and onions in a colander resting in a large bowl or in the sink. Toss with the salt and let stand for 1-2 hours (the cucumbers will release a lot of water during salting).
- In a colander, throughly rinse the salt off the cucumbers and onions. Place in a single layer on a couple of sheet pans lined with paper towels. Cover with another layer of paper towels and let dry overnight.
- The next day, combine the vinegar, water, sugar, mustard seeds, celery seeds, and turmeric in a large saucepan. Heat to a boil, cook until sugar is completely dissolved, and then remove from heat.
- Pack your sterilized canning jars with the cucumbers and onions, leaving about 1/2-inch space from the top of the jars. Pour the vinegar mixture over the cucumbers and onions to fill the jars. Seal the jars according to manufacturer's instructions. (Because we store in the fridge, we don't bother with using a hot water bath to can the pickles (however always use sterilized jars & lids). After the hot vinegar mix is poured over the cucumbers, turn the jars upside down to keep the hot liquid touching the inside of the lid for about 15-20 minutes. Then after flipping right-side up and allowing to cool, the lids will give their little pop down, indicating it is sealed. When done this way, we always keep them stored in the fridge.)
- Store in the refrigerator and allow to sit for several days before opening to allow the flavors to fully develop. Best served chilled.
Video
Nutrition Information per Serving
Is Turmeric necessary?
No, it’s not really necessary. But the turmeric adds a nice color to the pickles and a hint of the flavor doesn’t hurt. Turmeric is good for you!
More easy recipes:
- Quick Pickled Sugar Snap Peas with Mint
- Inside a watermelon mojitos
- Spring Sweet Pea/Asparagus Pickles
- Curry Cauliflower Pickles & Love of salty crunch
- Vietnamese Style Pickled Carrots from Eating Local Cookbook
- Spicy Shrimp Ceviche
- bbq grilled cheese sandwich
This sweet pickles post was originally published in 2014. Re-published in 2019 with new updates. Here’s a great and unique cucumber recipe.
I couldn’t believe I can make my own sweet pickles at home. This was an easy recipe to follow. I sliced mine a little thinner but they still turned out great. Next time I won’t slice them too thin so I can have more of the crunch.
This is my favorite pickles recipe. I’m replacing my store-bought stuff with these made at home.
Iโm very interested in making these pickles! Can I use Weck jars instead of the regular Mason canning jars?
Can you use pickling onions in this recipe?ย
Pickling onions would be great in it. Enjoy!
Wondering what I did wrong. My jars did not seal. My jars were hot, but maybe by the time I put room temp cucumbers in them and the brine, wiped them down and turned them over, they just weren’t hot enough anymore. Can I still keep in fridge and enjoy them for the next few months? Thanks!
Hi Teresa,
For the jars to seal by flipping, the temperature of the brine is what helps create the seal. As it cools the liquid contracts, creating a bit of a vacuum and sealing the lids a little tighter.
You can still keep them in the fridge fine, even if they didn’t seal completely.
Hope you love the pickles!
been making Bread&Butter for a few years, yours sound better will try this year. Can I substitute rice vinegar for part of the white vinegar?
found really good information on your website ,THANKS
We haven’t tried rice vinegar in them yet, but it sounds great. If you try, let us know how it comes out.
Enjoy!
My first shot at canning! Result: Absolutely delicious!!! Thankyou so much for sharing. this is my go to recipe for life!!!
Do you have a Kosher Dill recipe by chance? Asking for a friend…lol!
Yay! So glad you enjoyed it. We are working on finalizing the recipe for the kosher dill version. Stay tuned and keep checking back! Or subscribe to our email notifications for new recipes. Thanks Amanda!
it’s so cool that I could create my own pickles at home. Love the crunchy and sweet of the pickles.
I followed your recipe exactly, something went wrong. Canned 12 pints, brine was very nice, put 2 jars in the refrigerator and waited 3weeks…..opened. 1 jar…..so salty and a little bitter at the end, I’m so disappointed, my first attempt at pickles. Any hope in saving or fixing these?
Hi Mary,
Regarding the saltiness, it sounds like you might have missed part of Step 2 didn’t rinse the sliced cucumbers after salting. The final pickle shouldn’t be salty. You could try to rinse them all again and re-brine them, but they’ve sat in their saltiness for a while, so it might be too late.
As for the bitterness, it could be the type of cucumber you used. We have noticed on some varieties of pickling cucumbers, the last 1/2-inch or so of one end can be bitter. We’ll usually use persian cucumbers because they don’t have the issue, have a great crunch, and are a great size. If using pickling cucumber varieties that you aren’t fully familiar with, try eating one raw first to see if one of the ends is bitter, and if so, pay attention to which end (stem or other end) then trim that end and discard before pickling.
Iโm going to try these today but Iโm not keen on the yellow colour. Can I leave the turmeric out?
Definitely. That’s the best part about making your own, you get to make them how you like them.
How long are these good in the fridge for once sealed?
As long as you used sterilized jars & lids, theyโll last with great quality for at least 8-12 months. Probably longer but weโve never had a jar go un-eaten longer than that. But as always with any canned food, if it smells or looks funky, toss it out.
How many pints does this recipe make. Need to have enough jars…
Hi Helen,
There are 2 cups in a pint, so about 3 pints for 3 pounds of cucumbers (like we mention in the headnote, the recipe will make about 6 cups of pickles). It will vary a little depending how thick you cut, the size and shape of the cucumbers, and how tightly you pack it. So maybe have a extra jar or small jar on the side just incase.
I had never made bread and butter pickles. My husband said this recipe is a “keeper”. I have now made several batches. Super easy, super quick!
This was my first time growing cucumbers only because the hubby likes them. I grew up thinking they were gross but loved my bread and butter pickles. I just checked my garden and thought those would make some nice pickles and your recipe and pictures looked the best how I like mine. I’m giving this a shot today, never canned before so wish me well! Thanks for your recipe as well! God bless
Made these today! The vinegar brine is very tasty. I used 1 3/4 cup of sugar, as we like ours a bit sweet. It was spot on. The tang of the sweet and sour aspect was amazing. We love the onions in our pickles as well and often they are the first to go when we have them. So, I increased the onion to two medium-large sweet onion (vidalia). I also added peppercorns 1 tsp and 1/2 tsp red chili flakes for a tiny bit of heat. Thanks so much for taking the time and making the effort to share the recipes!
Iโm in the process of making these pickles. My questions for you are – should the pickles be completely dried before I pour the brine? And, should I let the brine cool before I pour into the jars?
Hi Andrea,
The pickles don’t need to be dried before adding the brine. The drying overnight is to remove excess liquid from the inside of the cucumber slices so they are crunchier after pickling. Any residual on the outside is insignificant.
The brine doesn’t need to cool before adding to the jars. It actually helps seal the jars if it is still hot.
Hope you love the pickles. Enjoy!