Quick And Easy Dilly Pickled Green Beans

So Quick And Easy You Can Make Them One Jar At A Time

Crisp, crunchy, dilly pickled green beans don’t have to be just a sweet memory! Hands-on preparation is quick, but allow time for the brine to cool and about 12 hours for the beans to marinate in the refrigerator. You can whip out a quart jar while you clean up the kitchen after dinner, and the kitchen stays cool because these are refrigerator pickles. That means they remain crisp and fresh in the refrigerator, with no canning required.

Back in grandma’s day, pickling and canning was a hot, messy, whole-day process. True, she had a whole row of beautiful jars to show for her efforts, but today, we live at a much different pace. Still, we crave some of the goodies she made for us when we were growing up.

A Quick Quart Of Dilly Pickled Green Beans, Plus Refrigerator Time

Thankfully, there’s no shame in being “vegaholics” because Papa and I are a couple of them! If there were reward cards for shopping with my favorite produce guy, I’d be racking up points. Andy and his wife are open seven days a week from May to December, and most of the time, I hit Andrew’s Garden about three days a week.

We eat green beans three or four days a week all summer long. I buy the hand-picked beauties in half-pound bags. When I cook them, I snap off the stem end only because we love the look of whole green beans! Using my ancient stovetop pressure cooker, I can bring them to crisp-tender perfection in a flash. With just a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of kosher salt, we are in a state of green bean bliss.

But I’ve been feeling adventurous about pickling and canning this summer, so I’ve been pulling up many old recipes to try. I thought it would be fun to turn some of these gorgeous green beans into pickled green beans, but I didn’t want to sign up for making a whole canner load. Luckily, this is a pickle that is quick and easy! These are my two favorite words in the kitchen!

About one pound of green beans makes a quart of dilly pickled green beans. I was a little picky about which beans I used, nothing too skinny or too plump, sort of the swimsuit competition in green bean selection. I wanted impressive-looking whole beans, so I snapped off only the stem ends, leaving the cute tip on the end for looks.

I put a pot of water on, and when it began to boil, I dropped the beans in for a quick blanching. As soon as the water resumes boiling, I set a one-minute timer. I took the pot off the stove, drained the water, and then plopped them into an icy bath to stop the cooking.

Take a look at those brilliant green beans! This brief blanch softens them slightly; it does not sterilize them or make this recipe safe for pantry storage. An immediate ice bath stops the cooking and helps preserve their color and crisp texture. Drain well and refrigerate the cooled beans while the brine cools.

How To Make 1 Quart Of Pickled Green Beans

Start by making the brine. Combine the 3/4 cup each of white vinegar, apple cider vinegar and water with the sugar, salt and garlic in a saucepan. Both vinegars should be labeled 5% acidity. Bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar and salt dissolve. Cool the brine promptly in an ice-water bath without letting bath water enter the saucepan. Keep the prepared beans refrigerated while it cools.

You don’t need to sterilize the jar but do make sure it is squeaky clean. Put the red pepper flakes, peppercorns, onions and optional small chiles in the bottom of the jar. Wash the beans, dill and chiles before preparing them. Next, begin stuffing green beans into the jar vertically. They need to be crowded in the jar tightly. I found it easier to lay the jar on its side and add beans one or two at a time. It’s a tight squeeze!

I rotated the jar as I went along and tapped it on the counter to tamp down the beans! Finally, all the beans were jarred! Tip: A regular mouth jar helps keep the beans corralled better than a wide-mouth jar! Who would have guessed? By the way, I was out of peppercorns when I made this recipe, so I substituted some fresh ground seasoned pepper.

Finally, I stuffed in two heads of fresh dill. That’s the flower part of the dill plant. You can see all the little dill seeds on each head, and the smell is amazing! Stuff those heads of dill down among the beans. They obligingly fold up like little umbrellas so they fit snugly.

Finally, pour the cooled brine over the contents of the jar, including the garlic. Cover the beans completely, leaving about an inch below the lid. If needed, make more brine using the same proportions; do not dilute it with plain water. Cover and refrigerate immediately at 40°F or colder. Let the flavor develop for about 12 hours in the refrigerator, never on the counter. Refrigerate the beans within 2 hours of blanching, or 1 hour if the room is above 90°F.

Safety update: Keep this small-batch recipe refrigerated and use it within 4 days of preparation. This conservative limit follows USDA guidance for cooked leftovers; it is not a tested long-term pickle preservation process. The earlier overnight-counter and three-week storage advice has been removed. These beans are not shelf-stable and must not be canned using these directions. Enjoy them on relish trays, in salads, on burgers or as a chilled snack.

Dilly Green Beans

Yield: 12 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Additional Time: 12 hours

Total Time: 12 hours 15 minutes

Crisp, crunchy refrigerator garlic dill green beans, about one quart. Allow 12 hours of refrigerated marinating plus time to cool the brine; use within 4 days of preparation. Prep and cook times are estimates.

4.4 Stars (14 Reviews)

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Ingredients

• 1 pound freshly picked, unblemished green beans
• 3/4 cup white vinegar (5% acidity)
• 3/4 cup apple cider vinegar (5% acidity)
• 3/4 cup water
• 1-2 Tbsp sugar, to taste
• One clove of garlic, peeled
• 1 tsp kosher or pickling salt
• 1/3 cup onion, sliced thin or chopped
• 1/2 tsp peppercorns
• 2 heads of fresh dill
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, or to taste
• 2 small chiles, optional

Instructions

1. Make the brine by combining both kinds of 5% acidity vinegar, the 3/4 cup water, salt, sugar and garlic in a saucepan.
2. Bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar and salt dissolve.
3. Cool the brine promptly in an ice-water bath, keeping bath water out of the saucepan. Keep the prepared beans refrigerated while the brine cools.
4. Wash the beans, dill and optional chiles. Snap the stem ends off the beans.
5. Bring a pot of water to a boil.
6. Add the beans; when the water returns to a boil, blanch for 1 minute.
7. Drain the beans and immediately chill them in an ice bath. Drain well and refrigerate while you finish preparing the jar and brine.
8. Put the dill, onion, peppercorns, red pepper flakes and optional chiles in a thoroughly washed quart jar.
9. Pack the beans into the jar, rotating and gently tapping the jar as needed.
10. Pour the cooled brine and garlic over the beans to cover them completely, leaving about 1 inch below the lid. If needed, prepare more brine in the same proportions, not plain water. Cover and refrigerate immediately at 40°F or colder.
11. Let the flavor develop for about 12 hours in the refrigerator, never on the counter. Use within 4 days of preparation. Refrigerate within 2 hours of blanching, or 1 hour above 90°F. This is a refrigerated dish, not a shelf-stable canning recipe.

Do you have a favorite quick pickle recipe you’d like to share? We’d love to hear from you!

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