If you’re looking for a delicious, quick, and easy pickle recipe, you’ve got to try out this bread and butter pickle recipe. The best part is that it makes a small batch or you can double it and make more!
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There are so many great reasons for making pickles!
- It uses up your extra garden harvest.
- It is a fairly quick process if you’re using a fresh pack recipe.
- And they can store for up to a year if sealed right.
So why wouldn’t you want to give it a try?
I’ve been substituting regular cucumbers for Armenian cucumbers and they are some of the best homemade pickles I’ve ever had.
But whichever cucumbers you choose to use, this recipe will work great!
How to Make Bread and Butter Pickles
Below I’ll cover all the steps for this quick and easy recipe or you can watch it in my YouTube video as well!
Easiest Bread and Butter Pickles Ever
Ingredients
- 1 packet of Mrs. Wages Bread and Butter Pickle Mix
- 6 3/4 cups distilled white vinegar (5% acidity)
- 7 cups sugar
- 16-18 medium Armenian cucumbers or 9-11 lbs. of pickling cucumbers
How to Prepare Cucumbers
Everybody likes a crunchy pickle and it’s one of the hardest parts about making them homemade. They tend to be a little mushy sometimes.
But the best way for them to turn out crunchy is to can them the day that you harvest. A fresh cucumber will always turn out the best.
But if you have to wait a couple of days you can put your cucumbers in a large bowl topped with pickling salt and ice and keep them in the fridge.
This can even be done for just a few hours before making your pickles to help with the crunch.
I also like to use Pickle Crisp, which are granules that are added to each jar, and it seems to help out.
Prepare Jars
Wash jars in hot soapy water or a dishwasher, whether they are new or old.
Then submerge the jars into a large pot filled with water until they are covered and bring the water to a simmer around 180 degrees F. Keep the jars simmering until they are ready to use and remove one at a time as it’s being filled.
You should heat the jars for at least 10 minutes before you fill them to help prevent breakage.
Preparing Lids and Bands
Always use new lids when canning, but the bands can be reused.
Wash the new lids and bands in hot soapy water but don’t use anything abrasive because it could damage the seal on the lids.
Old canning guidelines say to bring the lids to a simmer and keep them warm until they are ready to use. However, the most recent guidelines say it is no longer necessary.
Preparing Water Bath Canner
Fill your water bath canner halfway full with water and bring to a simmer. Then place the canner rack above the water and as jars are filled put them on the rack.
If you’re looking for a quick way to get your large water bath canner to a simmer and boil, I use a propane wok burner that heats up extremely fast. You can find out more about it by checking out my article, The Simple Product That Made Canning Better Forever.
Now that all of your materials are ready it’s time to start preparing the recipe.
Recipe Instructions
First, wash your cucumbers and cut a 1/16″ off of the blossom end.
For more crunchy pickles you want to use the freshest cucumbers possible. So try to can on the same day that you harvest.
Second, combine the Mrs. Wages bread and butter mix, vinegar, and sugar into a large nonreactive stockpot. Bring to a boil and then immediately remove from the heat and set aside.
Third, if you’re using pickling cucumbers, you can leave them whole or sliced, but sliced is recommended. If you’re using Armenian cucumbers then cut them into spears or slice them thinly.
Fourth, pack your sliced cucumbers into your hot jars adding as many cucumbers as you can fit but leave a 1/2 inch of headspace.
Fifth, cover the cucumbers with the brine while still leaving the 1/2 inch of headspace.
Then if you want, put a rounded 1/8 teaspoon of Pickle Crisp, into the jar for pints or 1/4 teaspoon into a quart jar. It will help make your pickles crunchier and if you can’t find it at your local store you can get it on Amazon.
Sixth, remove the air bubbles with something such as the bubble popper and measurer that comes in this canning kit.
Seventh, continue by putting on the lids, bands, and processing.
How to Remove Air Bubbles
Use a nonmetallic spatula and put it inside of the jar between the cucumbers and the side of the jar. Then press the spatula back against the cucumbers and it will release any air that is trapped.
Repeat several times.
Putting on the Lids and Bands
After you pack each jar, fill it with brine, and remove the air bubbles, wipe down the rim to make sure it is clean, and put a lid on the jar.
Then screw on a band and tighten until it is fingertip tight, you don’t want to over tighten.
After the lid and band are on, place the jar on the canner rack.
Processing
Once you have all jars filled and placed on the canner rack, carefully lower the rack into the water bath canner. The jars should be 1-2 inches below the water and so add in additional boiling water if needed.
Turn the heat to a medium/high and once the water is at a rolling boil then start a timer for processing.
- Process pint jars for 10 minutes.
- Process quart jars for 15 minutes.
After the pickles have been processed, turn off the heat and carefully take the jars out of the canner, and set them on a towel.
Let the jars rest at room temperature for 24 hours. Anything that has not been sealed after that time should be put in the refrigerator and used within a week.
When Can You Eat the Pickles?
This great recipe is ready within 24 hours! Which is part of the reason why I love it. It’s really hard waiting weeks to try something. But you should put the pickles in the fridge before eating them because they are best when they are cold.
How to Know if Jars Have Sealed?
Jars will usually make a popping sound when they seal.
But to double-check, you can press on top of the lid and if the center does not flex up and down then it is sealed.
How to Use Extra Brine
Extra brine can be stored in the fridge in a sealed container for up to a week.
This is great if you’re just making a small batch of bread and butter pickles because then you can make a few jars later on in the week if you harvest more cucumbers.
How to Store the Pickles
Store the pickles in a cool, dry, and dark area around 50-70 degrees F. They should be good for up to a year.
But once a jar is opened it needs to be stored in the refrigerator.
Recipe Variations
The great thing about pickles is that you can pretty much add anything that you’d like.
You can add cucumbers and onions into each jar. You can add in sliced carrots, peppers, garlic, or really anything that sounds good!
The best part is the brine can be original but you can just add in a variation to a few jars to see how they turn out. You don’t have to change the entire recipe for all of them.
This bread and butter pickle recipe can make a small batch and you’ll have leftover brine or you can make a full-size batch, or even double it!
The possibilities are endless!
My Canning Essentials
Bread and Butter Pickles
A quick and easy recipe for delicious bread and butter pickles.
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Prep Time 30 minutes mins
Cook Time 10 minutes mins
Course Snack
Cuisine American
Servings 4 pints
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 packet Mrs. Wages Bread and Butter Pickle Mix
- 6 3/4 cup White Distilled Vinegar 5% acidity
- 7 cups sugar
- 14-18 medium Armenian Cucumbers or cucumbers of choice
Instructions
Prepare and process jars. Keep hot.
Wash lids and bands. Be sure that you are using new lids.
Fill water bath canner half full and bring to a simmer. Set canner rack on top.
Combine vinegar, Mrs. Wages mix, and sugar in a non reactive saucepan and bring to a boil. Then turn off heat.
Cut off 1/16" of the blossom ends of the cucumbers and then slice in spears or thin slices.
Remove jars one at a time from hot water and pack with cucumbers. Then poor over brine leaving a 1/2 inch of headspace. Add in pickle crisp to each jar to help with crunchiness.
As soon as each jar is packed, wipe down the rim and put on a lid, then screw on a band until fingertip tight.
Place all ready jars on the canner rack and then carefully submerge into the water bath canner. The water should be 1-2 inches above the tops of the jars so add in more boiling water if needed.
Bring water to a rolling boil and process at a rolling boil for 10 minutes if you're making pints. 15 minutes for quart size jars.
After the pickles have processed carefully remove the jars from the canner. Let them sit at room temperature for 24 hours.
Test seals by pressing on the center of the jar and if it doesn't flex up and down it is sealed. All unsealed jars can go in the fridge for up to a week.
Keyword armenian cucumber pickles, bread and butter pickles
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