With a late season bloom of cucumbers, I'd like to try my hand at refrigerator pickles. I'm not of the mind to wait a few months to mellow and Claussen are nowhere to be found in my AO for the past few months.

What's ARF got on refrigerator pickles? My Dr. says I need to cut down my salt diet but what does he know?

Damn right ... knows nutin ... you only live onced ...

Make my pickles Sweet and hot ...

Bump. Recently did a batch of Claussen clones that weren't terrible if not a little salty. Not exactly the same but close enough that those six jars didn't hang around in my house. Might try experimenting with less salt and different onion/garlic/red pepper flakes/mustard seed/dill ratios to see if I can get it a little closer.

Here is my easy-as-pie recipe that people always clamor over:

Brine: 1 gallon water + 1 gallon white vinegar (5% acidity) + 2 Cups canning/pickling salt. This should make 8 quarts worth if they are packed pretty tight.

These dry ingredient amounts are for EACH QUART jar. I add these directly to the jar then pack with sliced pickling cukes.

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
2 tsp dill seed
1/2 tsp black peppercorns
4 cloves fresh peeled garlic, either smashed or roughly chopped

Heat brine to a boil, pour into packed jars to 1/2" headspace, finger-tighten lids/rings. refrigerate once cool.

Should be ready to eat in 4-days if using sliced cukes. I use a currugated slicer to get those wavy-looking slices usually.

Cucumbers are winding down, but through some trial and error, I have come up with a few solid recipes. All of these I made in quart jars, and they have that good snap that you dont get with processed/heated pickles. Its important to note, I boil the brine to dissolve salt/sugar, but I DO NOT put it into jars until its back to room temperature.

Garlic Dill. These are pretty close to the Klaussen branded ones which I cant find anywhere, and significantly cheaper than $5-6 a jar that youd pay for those. These do not stick around in my house for very long.

Brine:
3 cups water
1 cup white vinegar
1/3 cup Kosher salt

To each quart jar add:
1tsp minced onion
1tbsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp dill
1 tsp mustard seed

Spicy garlic dill. These have a little tingle, not as heavy on the garlic flavor and no onion. My daughter requests one of these in her lunch almost daily.
3 cups water1 cup white vinegar
1/3 cup Kosher salt

To each quart jar add:
2tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp dill
1/2 tsp red pepper flake

Bread and butter. These are a bread and butter clone, but with less sugar. I dont particularly care for some bread and butter pickles because I find them too sweet, these hit the spot.

3 cups water1 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup Kosher salt

2tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp dill
1 tsp Mccormick pickeling spice
1 tsp mustard seed

Let the jars sit on the counter for two days, inverting a couple times a day to mix everything together. Chill, enjoy.