How to Use Aldi Pickle Jar for Easy Refrigerator Dill Pickles

The Aldi Pickling Jar and Garlic Dill Pickle Ingredients.

Aldi shoppers joke about the "Aisle of Shame," but the truth is that this chain consistently sells great cookware and gadgets cheaply. One such gadget is the Aldi Pickle Making Jar, which allows buyers to make pickles that require refrigeration (as opposed to canning). This jar lets you make a quart of delicious Garlic Dill Pickle Spears in about 10 minutes (plus several days of fermenting).

Aldi has a way of making old-fashioned kitchen projects feel simple again. Among these kits and tools:

• A butter churner that transforms cream into homemade butter.

• A bread-making kit that allows the user to make sourdough or other homemade breads.

• Plus, todays favorite - the fermentation (or pickle-making) jar..

These "homesteading" tools are $10-15 and are a lot of fun. Suddenly, homemade dill pickles feel less like a canning project and more like a Saturday afternoon snack plan.

That is exactly the right way to think about it.

The Aldi pickle jar is great for refrigerator dill pickles, the crisp, garlicky kind you keep cold and eat within a few weeks. It is not a canning-jar setup, and you shouldn't use it to make shelf-stable pickles for the pantry.

If you want pantry-stable pickles, try our recipe for Dilly Beans (dill-pickled green beans). You can easily use this recipe for sliced cucumbers to make shelf-stable dill pickles.

Canning Dilly Beans at Home with a Simple Recipe

But if a canning project feels like too much for this afternoon, how about these refrigerator pickles? Used the right way, though, it is one of the easiest homesteading-style gadgets to enjoy. You need cucumbers, dill, garlic, salt, vinegar, water, and a little patience.

Aldi-style pickle jars are best for small batches you plan to keep in the refrigerator.

Know what the Aldi pickle jar is for

The pickle jar is a small-batch tool. It is made for quick refrigerator pickles, not long-term food preservation. Canned pickles and refrigerator pickles may look similar in the jar, but they are very different kitchen projects.

Canned pickles are processed to sit safely on a pantry shelf. They usually require sterilized jars, approved acidity levels, the right vinegar-to-water ratio, and processing in a boiling water bath. You must test and follow the recipe closely.

Refrigerator pickles are stored cold from the start. They brine for flavor and texture, then stay in the refrigerator until eaten. They do not go through the same shelf-stabilizing process as canned pickles.

That means the Aldi pickle jar is perfect for:

• A small batch of dill cucumber spears

• Half-sour style pickles

• Quick pickled green beans

• Pickled Carrot sticks

• Pickled Cauliflower florets

• A jar of crunchy mixed vegetables for sandwiches, salads, and snack plates

  
  

It is not meant for:

• Pantry storage

• Water bath canning

• Pressure canning

• Making jars to keep for months

• Selling or gifting as shelf-stable preserves

  
  

If you remember only one thing, make it this: keep the jar in the refrigerator the whole time. Take out what you want, close it, and put it back.

Most refrigerator pickles are best eaten within about 3 to 4 weeks. After that, the texture can soften, the flavor can get too strong, and the vegetables may move too far into fermentation for what most people expect from a simple refrigerator pickle.

Small batches solve that problem. Make only what you can enjoy in under a month.

Gather what you need for one 1-quart jar

This recipe works for the Aldi pickle jar if it holds 1 quart. It also works in any clean 1-quart glass jar with a tight-fitting lid.

The best cucumbers for pickling are small, firm, and fresh. Baby cucumbers, mini cucumbers, and Kirby cucumbers all work well. Large slicing cucumbers can work in a pinch, but they tend to have more seeds and a softer center.

For the crunchiest pickles, choose cucumbers that feel firm, not bendy. Avoid cucumbers with wrinkled skin, soft spots, or a hollow feel.

Ingredients for Garlic Dill Refrigerator Pickles.

Ingredient	Amount
Fresh baby, mini, or Kirby cucumbers	1 pound
Water	1 1/2 cups
Rice or White vinegar	1 cup
Kosher salt	1 tablespoon
Garlic cloves, peeled	4
Black peppercorns	1-2 teaspoons
Fresh dill, with or without crowns	1 small bunch
Crushed red pepper flakes	1/4 teaspoon, optional

If the cucumbers are small, leave them whole. If they are too tall for the jar, cut them into spears or thick coins. Spears are the easiest shape to pack tightly into a tall pickle jar.

A note on salt: use kosher salt if you can. Table salt can make brine taste harsher, and iodized salt may cloud the brine. Cloudy brine is not always a problem in refrigerator pickles, but kosher salt gives a cleaner flavor.

A note on dill: dill crowns are the lacy flowering tops of the dill plant. They add classic pickle flavor. Fresh dill fronds also work. If you have both, use both.

Good refrigerator pickles start with firm cucumbers and simple seasonings.

Make the brine and pack the jar

Start with a clean jar. Refrigerator pickles do not require the same sterilizing steps as canned pickles, but clean equipment still matters.

Wash the jar and lid in hot, soapy water. Rinse well. Dry the outside so it is easier to handle.

Then prepare the cucumbers. Rinse them under cool water and trim off any stems. For spears, slice each cucumber lengthwise into halves or quarters. If you want whole pickles, check that they fit under the shoulder of the jar with enough room for brine.

Now make the brine. Add the water, rice or white vinegar, and kosher salt to a small saucepan. Warm the mixture just until the salt dissolves. You do not need to boil it hard. Stir it, then remove it from the heat.

Let the brine cool before pouring it over the cucumbers. Hot brine can soften the vegetables more than you want, especially in a small jar.

While the brine cools, pack the jar.

1. Add the peeled garlic cloves to the bottom of the jar.

2. Add the black peppercorns.

3. Add the crushed red pepper flakes if you want a little heat.

4. Stand a layer of cucumbers upright in the jar.

5. Tuck dill around the cucumbers.

6. Keep adding cucumbers until the jar is full but not crushed tight.

7. Pour the cooled brine over the cucumbers.

8. Leave about 1 inch of headspace at the top.

9. Seal the lid.

10. Place the jar in the refrigerator.

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  Cut cucumbers into spears if larger.

• 

  Put garlic and peppercorns in bottom of jar.

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  Put in pickles and dill.

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  Pour in brine.

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  Leave in one inch headspace.

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  Screw on lid and refrigerate.

Headspace is the empty space between the top of the liquid and the lid. Leaving a little room helps prevent overflow when you move the jar or when the cucumbers shift.

If the cucumbers try to float above the brine, gently press them down with a clean spoon. Some pickle jars come with an insert or weight that helps keep vegetables submerged. If yours does, use it. If not, pack the cucumbers snugly enough that they stay under the liquid.

The brine should cover the vegetables. Any pieces that sit above the brine may dry out or age faster.

Give the pickles enough time to develop flavor

The hardest part of making refrigerator pickles is waiting.

After one day, the cucumbers will taste lightly seasoned. After two days, they usually move into that half-sour stage, salty, garlicky, and still very fresh-tasting.

By day five, the flavor is much more developed. The cucumbers will taste like proper dill pickles, with a bright brine, garlic in the background, and dill throughout.

For the most even flavor, turn or gently shake the closed jar once a day for the first few days. Do this over the sink in case the lid is not perfectly tight. Then return the jar to the refrigerator right away.

Use clean utensils when removing pickles from the jar. Fingers can introduce extra bacteria, crumbs, or oils. A clean fork or tongs helps the pickles last longer. The Aldi jar has a built-in silicone "lifter" that lets you pull up the pickles by the handle without spilling the brine.

Your finished pickles should smell fresh, salty, dill-heavy, and garlicky. The brine may get a little cloudy as the jar sits, especially with garlic and natural fermentation activity. That can be normal for refrigerator pickles.

Throw the batch away if you see mold, smell anything rotten, notice a slimy texture, or feel unsure. A small jar of cucumbers is not worth taking a chance.

Pour cooled brine over the cucumbers, then refrigerate the jar right away.

Keep the jar cold and use the pickles within a month

Once the lid goes on, the jar belongs in the refrigerator. Do not leave it on the counter to “finish.” This recipe is designed for cold storage.

Refrigerator pickles are best when eaten within 3 to 4 weeks. They may still look fine after that, but the texture and flavor often decline. Cucumbers can soften, the garlic can get sharper, and the brine can become more intense.

Labeling the jar helps. A small piece of masking tape on the lid works fine. Write the date you made the pickles so you won't have to guess later.

Try easy variations with other vegetables

Once you get comfortable with cucumbers, the same jar can handle many other crisp vegetables. The key is to cut everything into pieces that fit well and pickle at roughly the same pace.

Green beans are a great choice. Trim the ends and stand them upright in the jar just like cucumber spears. They stay crisp and look beautiful with dill and garlic.

Carrot spears work well too. Peel them, cut them into sticks, and pack them tightly. Carrots stay firm, so they may taste best after several days in the brine.

Cauliflower florets are another good option. Cut them small enough to fit neatly into the jar, but not so small that they crumble. Cauliflower pairs especially well with garlic, dill, and a pinch of red pepper flakes.

A favorite of mine are pickled cocktail onions. I start with a bag of frozen pearl onions. Thaw and pickle them as usual. These cocktail onions can be used in martinis or eaten from the jar. You can also make picked red onions using sliced red onions instead of cucumbers in this recipe.

You can also mix vegetables, but keep the batch simple at first. A jar of cucumbers and green beans works better than a crowded jar with six different vegetables cut in six different sizes.

Good add-ins include:

• Mustard seeds

• Coriander seeds

• Sliced jalapeño

• A small bay leaf

• Extra garlic

• Fresh dill stems

• A few onion slices

  
  

Use a light hand with strong ingredients. Garlic, hot pepper, and onion get stronger as they sit. What tastes mild on day one may taste bold by day five.

Make the most of a simple Aldi kitchen gadget

The charm of the Aldi pickle jar is that it keeps the project small. You do not need a case of jars, a huge pot, or a full afternoon of canning. You can turn a pound of cucumbers into crisp refrigerator dill pickles with a few pantry staples and a little fridge space.

Just keep the safety line clear. This is a refrigerator pickle method, not a canning method. Store the jar cold, use clean utensils, and eat the pickles within a few weeks.

That makes the How to Use Aldi Pickle Jar for Easy Refrigerator Dill Pickles idea as practical as it is fun. Buy the small cucumbers, grab the dill, make the brine, and start with one jar. In a day or two, you will have half-sour pickles. By day five, you will have a crunchy homemade batch ready for sandwiches, snacks, and straight-from-the-jar bites.