Crunchy, sweet, and tangy, these freezer pickes are homemade with love. They’re perfect on a sandwich, burger, or even on their own as a side dish!
You guys, I’ve been wanting to share this recipe with you all for a while now. It comes straight from my Great Grandma Lorrine… which in my family, means you KNOW it’s good. She was an amazing cook… and I SO wish I could cook with her today.
She made so many amazing recipes, but this was one she made that I distinctly remember her making and us eating them together at her house. Don’t you just love old family recipes that bring back memories? It’s one of the reasons I love cooking so much. Food evokes so many memories and brings families closer together!
Alright, alright… I’ll stop being sappy lol.
WHAT ARE FREEZER PICKLES
If you’ve never heard of freezer pickles before… fear not. A lot of people haven’t! Freezer pickles are homemade pickles that are made a little differently. Traditional pickles, like dill, are made by bringing the brine solution up to a boil, then pouring the hot brine over the cucumbers. In this method, the cukes are mixed with a room temperature solution, refrigerated to keep them cool, then frozen.
DO I HAVE TO FREEZE THESE PICKLES
Nope! Once you’ve combined the cucumbers, onions and peppers with the brine solution and refrigerated them, you can put the pickles in airtight containers and keep them refrigerated for several weeks. I will say though, when testing this recipe, I put one batch in the freezer and one batch in the refrigerator; and the freezer batch was much crisper with more of a crunch. So if you like a good crunchy pickle texture, I recommend freezing them.
HOW SWEET ARE THESE FREEZER PICKLES
They’re definitely sweet, similar to a bread and butter style pickle… but with more of a tang. Despite the large amount of sugar, these don’t taste ONLY sweet. The vinegar and spices mellow it out a bit.
CAN I MAKE DILL FREEZER PICKLES
I haven’t tried or tested that, but I think it would work just fine! Use any dill refrigerator pickle recipe, (this one looks good), then freeze them like you would for this recipe.
WHAT CAN I USE THESE FREEZER PICKLES FOR
Just about anything you’d like! They’re amazing on a burger, hot dog (sounds weird, but it’s good!), chicken salad or cold cut sandwich, or even just a side dish. It may seem odd to have a big pile of pickles on your plate, but these are so different from the traditional dills, you’ll DEFINITELY want more than one or two!
HELPFUL TOOLS
- Mixing Bowls – this set comes with airtight lids, so it’s perfect for refrigerating these pickles for that first 24 hours.
- Mason Jars – in case you’re looking for some, I like the wide-mouth jars like these.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
- 7 cups thinly sliced pickling cucumbers (approximately 4 medium sized cucumbers)
- 2 - 3 yellow or sweet onions , peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 - 2 green bell peppers , seeded and thinly sliced (optional)
- 2 Tbsp kosher salt
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 Tbsp mustard seed
- 1 Tbsp celery seed
Instructions
- Add cucumbers, onions and green peppers (if using) in a large non-reactive mixing bowl. Sprinkle with kosher salt and stir to combine. Let sit for 1 hour. Transfer mixture to a colander to drain and rinse to remove excess salt.
- Wipe out the same mixing bowl, then add drained and rinsed cucumber mixture back to the bowl.
- In another small mixing bowl, combine sugar, apple cider vinegar, mustard seed and celery seed. Stir together to combine. If the sugar isn't mixing well, add bowl to the microwave (make sure it's microwave-safe!), and heat for 30 seconds or so, until the sugar will dissolve into the vinegar when stirred.
- Pour liquid over the cucumber mixture in the bowl and stir to combine. Cover tightly and refrigerate for 1 full day. Transfer freezer pickles to freezer-safe containers and freeze for up to 6 months.
- To eat: Thaw pickles out in the refrigerator overnight. Once thawed, pickles should be eaten within 2 weeks. Enjoy on their own, on top of a burger, on top of hot dogs, on top of sandwiches, or however you'd like!
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Chef Tips
- Pickling cucumbers worked best when I tested this recipe, but regular cucumbers will work in a pinch.
- Peel the cucumbers if you don't like the bite of the cucumber skin.
- Add a pinch of black pepper if you like a peppery bite.
- I recommend freezing in smaller containers, so you can just thaw out 1 container at a time and keep the rest frozen for another time.
- I've successfully frozen these pickles in glass containers (leave about 1/2" of headroom at the top to allow to expansion), plastic containers, and freezer-safe resealable plastic bags.
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Molly says
Best recipe I’ve tried so far. I added jalapenos in some of my batches to add some spice.
Trish says
These are perfection!
Cate says
I hate pickles ! But when I made these I tried one….they are AMAZING!
Barb says
Best recipe ever , made these last year , and am on my second batch this year , so tasty , so crispy , so good 🤗 Thanks for the recipe !
Tina Young says
These are sooo good. When I’ve eaten them can I reuse the brine to make more and, if so, how long can I use it? These don’t last long!
The Chunky Chef says
I’m so glad you enjoy this recipe! I haven’t reused the brine before, so I can’t say how well that would work out and/or how long it could be used.
Pixie@cheerfullyvegan.wordpress.com says
My husband goes through pickles at the speed of light if I don’t freeze them quickly enough. Therefore, I have had brine left that was very fresh still. I did reuse it successfully.
Sue says
I made these I used Armenian cucumbers because that is all I had and they were delish.. My favorite recipe so far.. I could not believe you could freeze them and still be good and crunchy so I froze 1/2 the batch and just refrigerated the other half… But you were right the frozen ones were crunchier. Amazing! This will be my go to pickle recipe forever. I need to try the dill version..
Verna says
When freezing, do you freeze with liquid or without?
Amanda says
With 🙂
Karen says
These are delicious and so easy to make. I froze a bunch so my family and I can enjoy until next year, if they last that long.
Pixie @ cheerfullyvegan.wordpress.com says
I have not frozen these yet to see how that part of the recipe works, but I snitched a taste 18 or so hours into the refrigerator resting phase. Oh, man!!! These are delicious! They don’t taste exactly like the ones my mom made (and I have no way to learn what her recipe was, sadly), but they are close enough. They are delicious! Thank you for helping me save my massive overabundance of cucumbers for wintery days.
Pixie @ cheerfullyvegan.wordpress.com says
Just an update – these are just as wonderful out of the freezer. I rarely get a chance to eat many, because my husband thinks they are a late-night snack after I’m in bed! The first time he ate an entire small jar of them and I came out in the morning to find just the brine left in the jar on the counter. I now am hoarding the last few bags in the freezer for the depths of winter!
Roberta Robertson says
These are so easy to make. I love the crispy crunch of pickle in the sweet & tangy brine. A friend gave me some of these about 20 years ago,I loved them then I love them now. Thank you for stirring up that memory.
Valerie Whincup says
I would like to make this recipe, but I was wondering can I make 1/2 of the recipe. Also can I use a red pepper instead of a green one. Thank you.
Amanda says
Yes and yes 🙂 Just makes sure you halve ALL of the ingredients.
Virginia Sisson says
I had a bumper crop of the most delecious cucumbers!! I didn’t want them to be wasted so I tried this recipe. Oh my goodness!! These are the best sweet pickles on the planet! Sweet, tangy, and simply delecious. They are SO easy to make too. Thank you for my new favorite recipe!
Julie Vigar says
Easy peezy, taste great!
Carol says
I made these. Easy to make. Delicious.
Claudia Evens says
Made these and made the Martha Stewart freezer pickles as well. Your recipe is better and tastier than Martha Stewart’s. I also used regular pickling vinegar instead of the apple cider and reduced the sugar by a half a cup. They turned out great and my husband loves them.
Kerin says
I make these every year and people rave over them at New Year’s Eve parties. Yes, they stay that crisp. I personally do not care for apple cider vinegar, so I use regular vinegar, but either one works.
Virginia Barile says
Do you reduce the amount of the liquids & sugar if not using onion and peppers?
Amanda says
I’m not entirely sure, as I’ve only tested this recipe as written.
Gwen says
Oh my pickle heaven goodness!!! Made these and they are yummy! Substituted Anaheim peppers for the bell peppers since that’s what I had.
No canning experience required at all…just use ziplock bags if no jars or save your pasta jars etc.
I did stick mine in freezer for a few days.
Easy, easy!!
Jamila Vrba says
Amazing!! Honestly I don’t love regular pickles, but the sweetness and crunch of these are incredible! Plus it was so much easier than canning.. Honestly th 🙌😍.
Alaina says
Would I be able to can this recipe? And can I replace the apple cider vinegar with white vinegar?
The Chunky Chef says
I’m sure they can be canned, but I don’t know how it would effect the taste/texture, as these are created as an alternative to canning. You can use white vinegar though 🙂