Quick Fresh-Pack Dill Pickles

Name: Quick Fresh-Pack Dill Pickles
Yield: 7 pints
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 8 lb of 3- to 5-inch pickling cucumbers; 2 gallons water + 1.25 cups canning/pickling salt (for the overnight brine soak — discarded before packing); 1.5 quarts white vinegar (5% acidity); 0.25 cup canning/pickling salt (for the hot brine); 0.25 cup sugar; 2 quarts water (for the hot brine); 2 tbsp whole mixed pickling spice; About 3 tbsp whole mustard seed (1 tsp per pint jar); About 14 heads fresh dill (1.5 heads per pint) — or 4.5 tsp dill seed (1.5 tsp per pint)

Yields 7 pints · BWB pints 10 min, quarts 15 min (sea level) · high-acid

About this recipe

The canonical NCHFP / USDA quick-pack dill pickle. 'Fresh-pack' means cucumbers are not brine-cured for days first — they are packed raw into jars with a hot acidified brine and processed immediately. The 5% vinegar floor is non-negotiable: it brings the finished pH below 4.6 so Clostridium botulinum cannot grow. Yields about 7 pints from 8 lb of 3–5 inch pickling cucumbers.

Brine architecture: 1.5 quarts vinegar (5%) + 2 quarts water + 0.25 cup canning salt + 0.25 cup sugar (acidified hot pack brine for ~7 pints). Vinegar floor: 5.00% acidity.

Ingredients

8 lb of 3- to 5-inch pickling cucumbers
2 gallons water + 1.25 cups canning/pickling salt (for the overnight brine soak — discarded before packing)
1.5 quarts white vinegar (5% acidity)
0.25 cup canning/pickling salt (for the hot brine)
0.25 cup sugar
2 quarts water (for the hot brine)
2 tbsp whole mixed pickling spice
About 3 tbsp whole mustard seed (1 tsp per pint jar)
About 14 heads fresh dill (1.5 heads per pint) — or 4.5 tsp dill seed (1.5 tsp per pint)

Procedure

Wash cucumbers, scrub gently, trim 1/16 inch off blossom end (the blossom contains pectin-softening enzymes).
Cover cucumbers with the 2-gallon brine of water + 1.25 cups salt; let stand 12 hours; drain and discard.
Combine the 1.5 qt vinegar + 0.25 cup salt + 0.25 cup sugar + 2 qt water + pickling spice in a kettle; bring to boil.
Pack drained cucumbers loosely into hot pint jars. Add 1 tsp mustard seed + 1.5 heads dill (or 1.5 tsp dill seed) to each pint.
Ladle hot brine over cucumbers, leaving 0.5 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles, adjust headspace, wipe rim, apply lid + ring fingertip-tight.
Process pints 10 minutes in a boiling water bath canner (0–1,000 ft); add altitude minutes per the table in the technique section.

Altitude adjustment

Add 5 min at 1,001–3,000 ft, 10 min at 3,001–6,000 ft, 15 min at 6,001–8,000 ft, 20 min at 8,001–10,000 ft (USDA Guide 1, Table 3, recipes ≤20 min).

Safety

Use only canning/pickling salt — table salt's anti-caking agents cloud the brine. Use only 5% vinegar — lower acidity (e.g. some flavored vinegars) does not guarantee pH below 4.6. Trim the blossom end — the soft, mushy texture in failed pickle batches is almost always from skipping this step. Do NOT reduce vinegar quantity to taste; reduce sugar instead.

Other pickle recipes

Quick Fresh-Pack Dill Pickles (current)
Pickled Dilled Beans (Dilly Beans)
Pickled Beets

Source — verify before canning

NCHFP (UGA) — Quick Fresh-Pack Dill Pickles. USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning, Guide 6.. This page reproduces the published recipe for reference. Always verify against the current NCHFP / USDA recipe before canning — food-safety guidance can be revised. Information provided for educational purposes only. Last verified 2026-04-30.