• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
  • About
  • Cooking
  • Living
  • Advent
    • Advent 2024
    • Advent 2023
    • Advent 2022
    • Advent 2021
    • Advent 2020
    • Advent 2019
    • Advent 2018
    • Advent 2017
    • Advent 2011-2016
  • Essays
  • The Journal
  • Contact

Smelling Salts Journal

July 18, 2021

SSJ’s Best Bread and Butter Pickle Slices

Last year, in my quest to make spicy dill pickle spears out of all of the cucumbers in sight, I completely flaked on a family staple, Bread and Butter Pickle Slices. What was I thinking? Our sandwiches have been bereft for a good year. Well then, no time like the present. Here’s my go-to recipe for sweet bread and butter pickles. Enjoy!

Print Recipe

SSJ’s Best Bread and Butter Pickles.

Servings: 6 Pints

Equipment

  • 6 Pint, 12 Half-pint mason Jars, or a mixture thereof, sterilized and warm, with clean rims, and new lids
  • Canning Equipment: Large Canning Pot, Metal Rack, Tongs, Funnel, Ladle, Large stock pot for making the pickling liquid and warming the vegetables.

Ingredients

  • 8 heaping cups sliced pickling cucumbers
  • 1 very large white or sweet yellow onion sliced
  • 1/3 cup pickling salt
  • 4-6 cups of ice
  • 4 cloves garlic smashed
  • 4 cups sugar
  • 3¼ cups cider vinegar
  • 2 tbs mustard seed
  • 2 tbs turmeric
  • 2 tsp celery seed
  • 1-2 tsp peppercorns [optional]
  • 1+ tsp spices of your choice [optional] [I've used cinnamon, allspice, and cloves. The batch depicted above did not include these options.]

Instructions

  • In a large bowl, combine the cucumbers, onions, pickling salt, and garlic. [I often use a metal bowl so it retain the chill.]
  • Cover with several cups of ice cubes.
  • Refrigerate for 3 hours. [I often just set the bowl of pickles on the counter, as I never have room in the fridge!]
  • Make sure your mason jars are sterilized. Warm the jars and the lids. And start bringing your large canning pot of water to a boil.
  • Rinse the vegetables very slightly and drain.
  • In a large stock pot, combine the sugar, vinegar, and spices.
  • Bring this mixture to a boil, ensuring the sugar is dissolved.
  • Add the cucumber mixture to the liquid and return to boiling.
  • Reduce the heat and simmer low for 5 minutes.
  • Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cucumber and onions equally between your hot, sterilized mason jars.
  • Spoon the pickling liquid the jars, leaving a 1/2-inch headspace. Wipe the jar rims, apply the lids with some firm pressure, and secure the rings without making them lock-tight.
  • Process in a boiling water canning bath for 10 minutes.
  • Allow cans to cool completely.
  • Properly sealed cans will rest on the shelf for at least 2 years. Once opened, refrigerate and enjoy pickles within 6 weeks.

Filed Under: All Recipes, Condiments, Preserving, Special

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Footer

Welcome to Smelling Salts! I'm Roseanne, and this is where I record my best recipes, take notes on arts, culture, and style, and write essays about what keeps me going.
Read More →

My Favorites

Only Connect

  • Bluesky
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Threads
  • TikTok

Copyright © 2025 · Brunch Pro On Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in