Food and Recipes Side Dishes Vegetable Side Dishes Bread-And-Butter Pickles 5.0 (1) Add your rating & review Once you try a bite of crisp, flavorful homemade bread-and-butter pickles, you'll never go back to the store-bought kind. By Southern Living Test Kitchen Southern Living Test Kitchen The Southern Living Test Kitchen has been publishing recipes since 1970, four years after the first issue of Southern Living Magazine appeared on newsstands. The Southern Living Test Kitchen team includes a team of professionals with deep expertise in recipe development, from pastry chefs and grilling experts to nutritionists and dietitians. Together, the team tests and retests, produces, styles, and photographs thousands of recipes each year in the state-of-the-art test kitchen facility located in Birmingham, Alabama. Southern Living's editorial guidelines Updated on August 2, 2024 Rate PRINT Share Close Photo: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel Active Time: 55 mins Total Time: 4 hrs 25 mins Yield: 10 (1-pt.) jars When you're craving a snappy bite or a couple of fresh slices to add some zip to a sandwich, you'll want to reach for bread-and-butter pickles. While we've been known to shell out for a jar at the store, it's much more cost-effective, delicious, and fun to make your own. Once you try homemade bread-and-butter pickles, you'll never go back to the store-bought kind. Let us convince you: This easy pickle recipe will ensure you have an abundance of pickles ready to go for whatever occasions arise. Whether you're packing sandwiches for a picnic, throwing together a charcuterie board, or making a bite at lunchtime, these sweet and tangy pickles will be the perfect complement. Learn how to make bread-and-butter pickles. The recipe requires just a couple of steps and only eight ingredients, most of which you probably already have on hand. It will also use up all your leftover summer cucumbers, ensuring none go to waste. Why Are They Called Bread-and-Butter Pickles? It’s said that Omar and Cora Fanning of Illinois were the first to use the phrase “bread and butter pickles” for their family pickle business in 1923. Mrs. Fanning made an agreement with a local grocer to trade pickles she made using small cucumbers from her crops, which were typically wasted, for bread, butter, and other groceries. She used a centuries-old recipe for sweet and sour pickles and labeled them as bread-and-butter pickles. The name stuck, and these sweet and tangy pickles became a popular item from the Midwest to the South. Ingredients for Bread-and-Butter Pickles To make bread-and-butter pickles, you'll need: Small pickling cucumbers: Pickling cucumbers are small in size, with a crunchy texture, and mild flavor. Sweet onions: The sweetness of the onion helps bring a rounded flavor to the pickles. Pickling salt: Salt helps draw out moisture from the cucumbers, replacing it with the brine solution. Pickling salt is salt packaged without any anti-caking agents, with could cause a cloudy brine. White vinegar: The acidity of vinegar helps lower the pH of food and assists with long preservation. Sugar: Sweetness is needed to balance the acidity and saltiness of the brine, especially for sweet bread-and-butter pickles. Mustard seeds: Added for a hint of tangy spice. Ground turmeric: Adds an earthy flavor and signature yellow tint to the brine. Ground cloves: A pungent, warm spice. Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel How To Make Bread-and-Butter Pickles The full recipe for homemade bread-and-butter pickles is below. But before you get started, here's a brief recap: Step 1. Salt cucumbers and onions: Combine cucumbers and onions in a large Dutch oven; sprinkle with salt, and add water to cover. Cover and let stand 3 hours; drain and rinse with cold water.Step 2. Make pickle brine: Combine vinegar, sugar, mustard, turmeric, and cloves in Dutch oven; cook 5 minutes. Step 3. Boil cucumbers and onions: Add cucumbers and onion to brine; bring to a boil, and remove from heat.Step 4. Pack pickles: Pack hot cucumber mixture into jars, and process in a hot water bath to seal. Chill pickles before serving. How To Serve Bread-and-Butter Pickles These sweet and sour pickles are delicious for just about any occasion where a pickle is in order. Top your next burger or sandwich, add to potato salad, or just snack on them right out of the jar. Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel How To Store Bread-and-Butter Pickles After canning, store these pickles for up to a year in a cool, dark place. Store opened jars in the refrigerator for up to three months. Editorial contributions by Katie Rosenhouse. Ingredients 6 1/2 lbs. small pickling cucumbers, cut into 1/4-inch slices (about 33 cucumbers) 4 large sweet onions, thinly sliced 1/2 cup pickling salt 5 cups white vinegar (5% acidity) 4 cups sugar 2 Tbsp. mustard seeds 1/2 Tbsp. ground turmeric 1/2 tsp. ground cloves Directions Soak cucumbers and onions: Combine cucumbers and onions in a very large Dutch oven; sprinkle with salt, and add water to cover (about 18 cups). Cover and let stand 3 hours. Drain well. Rinse with cold water. Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel Boil pickle mixture: Combine vinegar, sugar, mustard seeds, turmeric, and cloves in Dutch oven; cook over medium heat 5 minutes. Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel Add cucumbers and onion; bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel Fill jars: Pack hot cucumber mixture into hot jars, filling to 1/2 inch from top. Remove air bubbles; wipe jar rims. Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel Cover at once with metal lids, and screw on bands. Process, in 2 batches, in boiling-water bath 12 minutes; cool. Chill pickles before serving. Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel Frequently Asked Questions Can I skip the canning process for these pickles? You can make and refrigerate these pickles without processing the jars to seal. Eat refrigerator pickles within a few weeks for optimal freshness. How quickly can these pickles be eaten? These pickles are best served after 24 hours to allow the brine to work its magic, but an even longer wait is preferred (up to a week) for the best flavor. Rate It Print Additional reporting by Katie Rosenhouse Katie Rosenhouse Follow us Katie Rosenhouse is a pastry chef and food writer with over 15 years of experience in the culinary arts. She's worked as a pastry chef in some of the finest restaurants in New York City, as a culinary instructor, and as a recipe developer. learn more