Refrigerator dill zucchini pickles are the perfect recipe to make with that extra garden zucchini. Thin sliced zucchini is pickled in the refrigerator with fresh dill and garlic. No canning or cooking required!
Recipe summary
Flavor: Classic salty and sour dill pickles made with sliced zucchini, fresh dill, and garlic.
No canning needed: Refrigerator pickles don't require any cooking or canning. They're stored in the refrigerator after just 10 minutes of prep!
Yield: 32 ounces (two pint size jars)
Similar to: Bread and Butter Zucchini Pickles, Zucchini Relish
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Ingredients and substitutions
- Zucchini - You'll need one pound of small to medium zucchini for this recipe. Small zucchini don't have hard seeds and have a mild, slightly sweet flavor, making them perfect for pickling. Zucchini can also be substituted with cucumbers to make a classic refrigerator pickle.
- Flavor - Fresh dill, peppercorns, and garlic cloves add bright, fresh flavor to your zucchini pickles. Optionally, add ½ teaspoon of red pepper flakes for a spicy dill pickle. Garlic can be substituted with ½ a small, thin sliced onion.
- Vinegar - White vinegar or apple cider vinegar works well in this recipe. It's important not to adjust the amount of vinegar and water in this recipe, as the vinegar is what's pickling your zucchini and acting as a preservative.
- Water - Combined with vinegar and salt, it creates a brine.
- Kosher salt - Kosher salt can be substituted with sea salt or non-iodized table salt. Iodized salt can change the color and flavor of your pickles, and is not recommended.
How to make zucchini pickles
- Use a mandoline slicer to thin slice your zucchini.
- In a glass bowl, stir together brine ingredients.
- Pack two 16-ounce jars with pickles, dill, garlic, and peppercorns.
- Pour brine over pickles and make sure jars are filled to the top before sealing and storing in the refrigerator.
How to slice zucchini
Use a mandoline slicer, the slicing side of a box grater, or the slicing attachment on a food processor for slicing your zucchini. Using a slicing tool, rather than slicing by hand, not only saves time but also makes perfectly even slices.
⅛" creates a very thin pickle, and ¼" creates a sturdier, thin, pickle slice. I sliced mine to ¼" in the photos. Either thickness works in this recipe.
- OXO Good Grips Chef's Mandoline Slicer
- Fullstar 6-in-1 Mandoline Slicer For Kitchen
- Professional Box Grater, Stainless Steel with 4 Sides
Frequently asked questions
Zucchini has a very mild flavor and takes on the flavors of the other ingredients. Because the flavor of pickles comes from the ingredients added, they don't really taste different than pickles made from cucumbers.
The texture is slightly different, since zucchini have less water content and a more buttery, velvety texture. Zucchini pickles also seem to maintain their crispness longer than cucumber pickles.
In short, the differences are small. If you didn't tell someone you made pickles with zucchini, they may not notice.
No, your jars do not need to be sterilized for a refrigerator pickle recipe.
Sterilized jars are necessary in canning because the canned food is stored for long periods of time at room temperature. Jars are sterilized to remove every trace of bacteria and fungi before adding food. This ensures the food does not spoil when kept at room temperature.
Since this recipe is not intended for canning, and your jars are stored in the refrigerator at all times, there is no need to sterilize your jars beforehand. Any clean, dry jars will work.
This is a recipe for refrigerator pickles, not canned pickles. I haven't tested this recipe as a canning recipe, so I can't say how it would turn out. Here's a great recipe for canned dill zucchini pickles: Food Life Design - dill zucchini pickles recipe
This recipe calls for two pint size (16 ounce) glass jars. This recipe works with any combination of sizes that equals 32 ounces total, like four 8-ounce jars or one quart size (32 ounce) jar.
📖 Recipe
Refrigerator Dill Zucchini Pickles
Ingredients
- 1 pound small zucchini, thinly sliced
- 8 sprigs fresh dill
- 2 teaspoons black peppercorns
- 4 whole garlic cloves
- 8 ounces water
- 8 ounces vinegar, apple cider or white
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
Instructions
- In two pint size jars, add fresh dill, peppercorns, and garlic cloves. Then, pack jars tightly with sliced zucchini and set aside.
- In a bowl, add water, vinegar, and salt, stirring until salt is dissolved. Pour over zucchinis until jars are filled to the top. Any remaining brine can be discarded. If your jars aren't tightly packed (or you're using different jar sizes), you may need to make additional brine.
- Tightly seal, gently shake to disperse ingredients, and refrigerate for 2 days to allow zucchini to pickle. Store zucchini pickles in refrigerator for up to 2 months.
Recommended Equipment
Notes
- Storage: Refrigerator pickles are not canned, and therefore not shelf stable, and must be stored in the refrigerator at all times. Your pickles will keep for 1-2 months tightly sealed in the refrigerator.
- Can I use cucumbers? Zucchini can be substituted with cucumbers (any variety) to make a classic dill pickle.
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