Your New Favorite Cucumber Salad Starts With An Empty Pickle Jar

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Don't toss that pickle jar! Make a fresh and tasty cucumber salad with the leftover brine.

Active Time:
15 mins
Total Time:
1 hr 15 mins
Servings:
4

This might be the easiest cucumber salad you'll ever make. Instead of fussing with a complicated dressing, leftover pickle brine packs in so much flavor with minimal effort. All you need to do is add a pinch of sugar and pepper to balance the salty, acidic brine. The result is a zingy, crunchy salad. Be sure to chop the tomatoes, because as the salad marinates, the juices of the quartered tomatoes meld with the pickle brine to add a nice sweetness that really transforms the leftover liquid into something new.

pickle jar cucumber tomato salad - Southern Living

Robby Lozano; Food Stylist: Renu Dhar; Prop Stylist: Claire Spollen

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup leftover dill pickle brine (from 1 [32-oz.] jar)

  • 1/4 cup tap water

  • 1 1/2 tsp. granulated sugar

  • 1/4 tsp. black pepper

  • 1 medium (10 oz.) cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced into half-moons (about 2 cups)

  • 1 cup (5 oz.) cherry tomatoes, quartered

  • 1/2 cup sliced red onion (from 1 small [6 oz.] onion)

  • 1/3 cup sliced celery (from 1 medium [1 oz.] rib) 

  • 1/4 cup mixed chopped fresh dill and parsley

Directions

  1. Create new pickle brine:

    Combine pickle brine, water, sugar, and black pepper in a (32-oz.) jar. Seal jar and shake until sugar is dissolved, about 1 minute.

    Southern Living Pickle Jar Tomato Cucumber Salad making the dressing in the jar

    Hannah Hufham; Food Stylist: Nicole Hopper; Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel

  2. Add vegetables to pickle jar:

    Pack cucumber, tomatoes, onion, celery, dill, and parsley into jar. Seal jar and shake until brine evenly coats vegetables.

    Southern Living Pickle Jar Tomato Cucumber Salad packing the ingredients in the jar

    Hannah Hufham; Food Stylist: Nicole Hopper; Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel

  3. Chill salad:

    Chill in refrigerator for at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours, flipping the jar occasionally to ensure vegetables marinate evenly.

    Southern Living Pickle Jar Tomato Cucumber Salad shaking up the salad in the jar

    Hannah Hufham; Food Stylist: Nicole Hopper; Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel

  4. Serve:

    Transfer salad to a bowl and serve with a slotted spoon or tongs. Serve chilled. 

    pickle jar tomato-cucumber salad - Southern Living

    Robby Lozano; Food Stylist: Renu Dhar; Prop Stylist: Claire Spollen

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