You can add 1/2 teaspoon of calcium chloride to keep the crispness.

you could also soak overnight in lime ... rinse real well 4-5 times before pickling ...

But... ... you mean plan??!?

I might have some calcium chloride around, but I don't know if they'll last long enough to need it. :) Nancy, thanks for the tip.

Looks good!!!!!!!

I thought that the vinegar water ratio should always be more vinegar than water for safety.

But this isn't canned. It's just a canning jar in the fridge. The cold provides the safety, and the pickles aren't supposed to last more than a week or two, even so.

I'll have to remember to try that sometime.

My favorite quick zucchini pickle recipe came from someone here, I think. This is all I saved when I first got the recipe in 2012. I just use reg. onions because it's what I have, often have to sub dried pepper, etc. Recipe is forgiving w/ substitutions. Pickles certainly last longer than a week as recipe says, but they get stronger flavor as time goes on.

3 medium zucchini (1 pound / 16 oz / 450 g), thinly sliced


1 medium white onion, thinly sliced

3 shallots, thinly sliced

1 1/2 tablespoons fine grain sea salt

1/4 cup (small handful) fresh dill sprigs
1 small fresh red chile pepper, very thinly sliced
1/2 tablespoon yellow mustard seeds


3/4 cup / 180 ml cider vinegar

3/4 cup / 180 ml white wine vinegar

1/3 cup / 1.75 oz / 50g natural cane sugar


Toss the zucchini, onion, shallots, and salt together in a colander and place over a bowl to catch the liquids. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least a couple hours. Toss once or twice along the way. You're aiming to get as much liquid out of the zucchini as possible.

When you're finished draining the zucchini, shake off any water. At this point you want the zucchini as dry as possible. Place in a 1 liter / 1 quart jar along with the dill, chile pepper, and mustard seeds.

Combine the ciders and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, stirring until the sugar dissolves, and continue to boil for a few minutes. Pour the liquid over the zucchini and seal the jar. Let cool, then refrigerate. The pickles are good for a week or so.



Makes one large jar.Prep time: 120 min - Cook time: 5 min

I've been quick picking for over 20+ years. Realized that number of years because of 9-11. Well before. Many methods. I often make my brine, about a quart, a day ahead. My own pickling spice. No sugars. Let it come to room temp on the stovetop. Chill in fridge and use it to make 6hour or 24 hour pickles. Don't care for them much after 48 hours. At that point I chop coarse and add to salads and summer salads, pasta, bean/grain. Tuna, chicken.

If you have never tried, just make a small batch and taste as they 'brine'. Can even use your favorite bottle pickle juice and add some fresh veg. Top with some more vinegar and water to cover.

I've pickled it all. Though have my favorites. Usually make a batch every couple days.

The heat is to infuse the spices and melt the sugars. I've never put a lid on the hot jar. And prefer a wide glass bowl so we don't need to dig in.

Never a recipe. Just a guess 50/50-ish water/vinegar. No need to shop and purchase special ingredients. Especially now during covid.

I've posted a dozen times so sorry for being a 'yawn'...

Not a yawn, though I've seen your posts before. Good reading. I can't handle that much vinegar. I think that's why I liked the recipe for the peas, where this brine comes from. It's watered down. :)

I make quick pickles in all variations of brine in various dilutions via 1/4 vinegars to various waters. Less salts to no sugars for 20 years. Supportive of those looking for no salt for dietary reasons and no sugars if that is needed.

Not sure why you consistently fight me about my helpful posts to let others know that one can find a personal recipe that suits personal. Rather annoying,

Less salt. less sugars, no need for water to vinegar ratio. Make it your own. Like dressings. No need to make the ratio that some say is superior. More lemon/herb. Make it how you like it. Less oils, more citrus.

Best if I stay off your posts....too much covid stress to care about petty pickle discovery.

Just sharing and knew it would be an issue.

sorry I took the time.

What are you taking about "consistently fight me"?

Because I contradicted you saying your post was a yawn? That I thought it was good reading, as were the previous ones? I don't know anything about pickling! I'm trying to learn from you. You said you used more vinegar, I said I can't take a lot of it. That's not fighting you. That's discussion. Because too much vinegar makes me cough, and I deal with it better than most of the rest of the family.

I know we have previously misunderstood each other. That has obviously happened again. Please know I value you posts and your expertise.

I've done zucchini spears in the fridge with slices of fresh lime, sprigs of lime basil, a few garlic cloves, a sliced onion... whole mustard, peppercorn, a dried pepper- aji lemon drop is my fave for this. Salt, no sugar, about a 50/50 ratio of water/vinegar, with a 50/50 mix of white and unseasoned rice vinegars.

I'm pretty sure one could shift the water/vinegar ratio to less vinegar since the lime slices add a bit more acid to the jar. I think the taste is better using the two vinegars instead of just straight white vinegar, but that ratio could probably be adjusted too to taste.

I only started fridge pickling 2 years ago, and though I thought I'd pickled just about everything (except watermelon or rind), I was wrong, as I've never pickled zucchini or sugar snap peas! I bet both are good, and I'll have to remember that.

I one of the oddballs in that I don't like store bought pickles,other than bread and butter. They are just too tart for me, but refrigerator pickle... now that's a different story - love it! I like that it can be mild, or tart, but mostly I like that you can pickle so many different things. I never knew that until I started : ) I'm usually the last to know these things... :-)

ETA: You asked what a favorite thing to pickle was... I'd say red onions for an hour in the fridge (they turn a pretty pink, softer, but still have a crunch, and are milder - good in salads), as well as raw green beans.

Green beans! My farm box this week had a large bag of green beans. What would you put with green beans?

I've been enjoying both the red onion and the pepper strips (which donated their zing and became more like bell peppers) from the zucchini pickles.

What would go well with green beans?

Beesneeds, interesting about the combination of vinegars. Something else to keep in mind.

Make Dilly Green Beans! from the Ball Blue book.

I actually stuck in everything I could find last time... carrots, raw green beans, asparagus, celery, cauliflower, almost always a garlic clove or two (which I don't eat but it seems to add another little dimension of flavor)... I'd slice and toss any veg you have to spare : ) The green beans were just right the next day and 3rd day... still crisp and lightly pickled, but having lost that full on raw flavor.

Wow! Thanks, Beesneeds, for all the ideas!!

I need fridge space for the bread bowl, but when that's done with I'm going to try some green beans. I don't have any dill, but I could sacrifice a serrano or jalapeño, and I have plenty of garlic. I think spicy sounds good!

Would dry work? I have a whole bunch of dried Szechuan peppers, which are similar to chiles de arbol.

Oh my yes, dry peppers work.. just like if you put chili flake into your pickles- they are just different peppers. I grow and process (smoked or unsmoked, dehydrated) several kinds of seasoning peppers. Different heat levels and flavor profiles. Lovely for cooking and pickling.. fermented, fridge, or canned kinds of pickles :)

Main reason why I use green beans for dilly and yellow for hot is so we can instant ID which kind of bean by color :) I can my pickled beans, but often enough there's a jar of each in the fridge at any given time.

Don't be afraid to try out different vinegars. If a recipe calls for X, but you want it more whatever, try some of another vinegar. This works best for fridge pickles depending on the vinegar. Some balsamic don't translate well through the heating part of the brine making, so add them after you are done with the heat to blend your solids. I used a rum balsamic flavoring to rice vinegar with mushroom soy for a batch of garlic bulbis once- it was divine.

Another thing I do sometimes is use dehydrated citrus. When the stuff is cheap here, I slice and dehydrate some up. A dry slicer two of something in the bottom of your jar is nice when fresh sliced isn't available. I've tossed dehydrated orange, blood orange, lemons, limes, clementines into jars for that bit of citrus whatever I'm looking for.

I got a zucchini today, intending to pickle it. It ended up as a layer in my lasagna. Substitute for a layer of noodles.