How to Make Pickled Vegetables

The Main Ingredients

A full list of ingredients with their measurements can be found in the recipe card below, but I wanted to go over a few notes before diving into the recipe steps.

For the vegetables:

• Daikon — This variety of radish is long and white, with a mild flavor and ultra crunchy texture. It doesn’t taste like the peppery red radishes that are most common in the US.
• Carrot — I shaved the carrot with my julienne peeler, but you can cut yours into small matchsticks if preferred. Avoid using big chunks of carrot, which will need to sit in the quick pickle brine for a longer amount of time to soften.
• Jalapeño — Remove the seeds if you don’t want spicy pickles, or omit the pepper entirely.
• Red onion — Takes on a sweet and tangy flavor profile after sitting in the pickling brine.
• English cucumber — This variety has a thinner skin and more delicate texture than regular cucumbers.

Katie’s Tip: In my many years of quick pickling vegetables, I’ve discovered that the best ones to use are firm and snappy. Avoid soft vegetables like zucchini and stick with things like carrots, cucumber, peppers, radishes, onion, and so on. 

For the pickling brine:

• Rice wine vinegar — Sometimes labeled as “rice vinegar.” Note that this is NOT the same as mirin or actual rice wine (which is alcoholic).
• Kosher salt — Don’t sub with table salt, which has smaller sized grains and will make your vegetables taste super salty.
• Sugar — Acts as a preservative and also balances out the tanginess from the rice wine vinegar.

Recipe Variations

You can easily adjust this recipe to use up whatever combination of vegetables, vinegar, and sweetener you have on hand. Here are some ideas to get you started:

• Omit or replace the jalapeño — If you’d prefer this recipe to be completely mild, simply omit the jalapeño. Or replace it with thinly sliced red bell peppers, banana peppers, or serrano peppers.
• Omit or replace the daikon — Daikon can sometimes be hard to find at my local grocery store, so that’s what I replace it with regular (red) radishes.
• Use some or all of the veggies — You’re welcome to make quick pickled onions, cucumbers, carrots, OR daikon, or mix and match your vegetables however you feel like.
• Substitute the rice wine vinegar — Stick with a mild-flavored vinegar that’s not too astringent, like apple cider vinegar (my top choice!), white wine vinegar, or white vinegar. Avoid balsamic vinegar and red wine vinegar.
• Substitute the sugar — You can replace it with honey or possibly agave. Do not use any artificial sweeteners since real sugar acts as a preservative here.
• To make the brine saltier — Add1/8 teaspoon kosher salt at a time until your desired flavor is reached.
• To make the brine sweeter — Add1/8 teaspoon granulated sugar at a time until your desired flavor is reached.

Katie’s Tip: Sturdier vegetables like cauliflower, beets, or green beans would require blanching beforehand.

Storage Instructions

Quick pickled veggies typically last up to 3 weeks when kept refrigerated.

I think they taste best when eaten within the first week because they continue to get stronger in flavor the longer they are stored in the pickling brine.