Quick Pickled Cucumber

Quick Pickled Cucumber is an easy pickle that’s ready to eat in a few hours and will keep 2 –  3 weeks in the fridge. Flavour the light pickling liquor with whichever herbs and spices you fancy: I like dill, mustard seed or chilli.

Without the strong flavour of traditional, long-life pickles which need maturing, Quick Pickled Cucumber goes with so many dishes. Try with burgers and kebabs, in sandwiches and salads, with cold meats and cheeses, or with fish and rice dishes.

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QUICK PICKLES

Sometimes called refrigerator pickles, quick pickles are a great condiment to have tucked away. And they really are incredibly quick to make: just 20 minutes or so.

With regular pickles, you often start by soaking in salt water (brining) for around 24 hours. And that’s before you get going on the pickling itself. But for quick pickles you simply chop or slice your veg, pop it in a clean jar and pour over a mix of seasoned, diluted vinegar.

Traditional pickles, like my rather good Thai Pickled Shallots, also need to be left to mature for two to three months before you can even think about nibbling a few. But my Quick Pickled Cucumber, although best left overnight, can be enjoyed within a couple of hours of making.

Of course, there is a downside to lighter, quicker, pickles. And that’s their short shelf life. They need to be stored in the fridge and used within 2-3 weeks. However, I think the ability to make quick pickles on a whim, to go with whatever you’re eating the next day, is a great boon.

So easy, it’s worth making even just a single jar of whatever takes your fancy. And when that’s gone, make something else!

QUICK CUCUMBER PICKLE

You’ll find a recipe card at the end with full ingredient amounts and instructions. But do read the whole of the post first extra tips and images to guide you.

MAKING A PICKLING LIQUOR

To make two medium jars of Quick Cucumber Pickle, you’ll need around 400 ml of pickling liquor. I use approximately two thirds vinegar and one third water. If you want an even lighter pickle, do half vinegar, half water. Strong vinegars such as malt aren’t recommended. Cider vinegar, red or white wine vinegar, or rice vinegar are all good.

To balance the vinegar’s acidity, we need to add sugar. Tastes naturally vary, so just use the amounts in the recipe card as a guide. The vinegar, water and sugar are gently heated, only to dissolve the sugar. It doesn’t need to get hot (which would soften the cucumber).

It’s at this point you also add any dry seasonings and spices. Above, I’ve added salt, peppercorns and warmly spicy Aleppo pepper flakes. Other flavourings you can try include fennel or coriander seeds, or bay leaves.

Once the sugar is dissolved, take the pan off the heat and let it cool. While that’s happening, slice a large cucumber and pack it into two clean jars. Then you simply pour the cooled pickling liquor over the cucumber. Make sure the slices are completely covered by the liquid.

Want to flavour your pickle with fresh ingredients like herbs, garlic, onion or ginger? To keep them vibrant, it’s best to toss them with the cucumber rather than heating with the vinegar and water.

Here I mixed them with chopped dill. When heating the pickling liquor I added yellow mustard seeds along with the salt, pepper and sugar.

And that’s it. Screw on the lids and set the jars aside until completely cold. Then you can pop them in the fridge until needed.

STORING & SERVING QUICK PICKLED CUCUMBER

While the cucumbers will have developed a pickled flavour after a few hours, they’re even better the next day. You can serve them with virtually anything that benefits from the tangy hit of pickle.

Here’s just a few ideas:

• burgers e.g. Pork Burgers
• kebabs e.g. Lamb Kofte Kebabs
• sandwiches
• salads e.g. Potato Salad
• Patés and spreads e.g. Smoked Mackerel Paté, Potted Ham, Potted Cheese
• with cold meats and cheeses
• fish dishes e.g. Scandi-Style Salad
• rice dishes

With their lighter pickling liquor, quick pickles do not have the same keeping qualities of standard pickles. As we haven’t brined them, they won’t remain crunchy for as long either. But they’ll be absolutely fine in the fridge if used within 2-3 weeks.

And with so little effort involved, it’s easy to rustle up a batch of Quick Pickled Cucumber whenever you like.

If you’ve made this recipe, I’d love to know what you thought. Please do leave a comment and rating.

5 from 2 votes

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Quick Pickled Cucumber

An easy pickle that goes with so many foods: salads, sandwiches, burgers, kebabs, cold meats, cheeses, fish and rice.

Store in the fridge and use within 2-3 weeks.

Course Side Dish, Preserve, Pickle

Cuisine Vegetarian, Vegan, plant-based, World

Keyword preserving, pickling

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 2 minutes

Total Time 17 minutes

Servings 2 medium jars

Author Moorlands Eater

Ingredients

• 260 ml cider vinegar (wine vinegar or rice vinegar can also be used)
• 140 ml water
• 20 - 30 g sugar
• 12 peppercorns
• ¾ tsp salt
• 1 large cucumber

Optional flavourings (choose any: see Recipe Notes for more suggestions)

• 2 tsp Aleppo pepper (or half the amount of hot chilli flakes)
• 2 tsp yellow or black mustard seeds
• 1 heaped tbsp chopped dill

Instructions

1. Wash two medium sized jars (with plastic lined lids) in hot, soapy water.

   Rinse then dry thoroughly.

2. Stir together the vinegar, water, sugar, peppercorns and salt in a small saucepan and gently heat just until the sugar is dissolved.

   Note: if using the optional Aleppo pepper or chilli flakes and/or mustard seeds, include these in the pan too.

   Take off the heat and set aside.

3. Cut the cucumber into slices 2-3 millimetres thick.

   If using the optional chopped dill, toss the cucumber slices with it.

4. Pack the cucumber into the jars then pour the flavoured vinegar over the top.

   Make sure the vinegar completely covers the cucumber slices.

5. Screw on the lids, and when completely cold store in the fridge.

   Leave at least 2 hours before using, although overnight is better.

   Use within 2-3 weeks.

Recipe Notes

Other flavourings to add to the vinegar include: fennel or coriander seeds, bay leaves.

Other foods to toss with the cucumber include: chopped or sliced onion, garlic, or ginger.

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