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Store-bought pickles are ready-to-go grabs to add to your cart when you’re on your way to a BBQ potluck, or need a convenient way to add the familiar dill-flavored snappiness to pulled pork sandwiches, tuna salad, or pickle potato salad. That said, the flavor of homemade pickles can’t be matched by shelf-stable pickles.
You exchange some things for that convenience: suspect chemicals or preservatives and often added sugars.
When you try to follow a low-glycemic, glucose-stabilizing lifestyle, pause to read ingredient labels more closely. I scrutinized the ingredients labels of five different brands of ready-made pickles and every brand contained chemical additives (mostly to preserve the pickles and keep them crunchy) and some with added sugar.
I prefer to make my own pickles. Granted, you can’t bring them home from the store, pop them open, and eat right out of the jar, but you get to pick your own ingredients and flavor your pickles any way you’d like.
The process is easier than you might think—and completely customizable.
Homemade Pickles Instructions
1.Prepare Your Jar
Pack a clean mason jar with sliced cucumbers, onions, and any herbs you like. Leave a ½-inch of space at the top of the jar for the pickling liquid.
2. Prepare the Brine
Heat a small pot on the stove over medium heat. Add vinegar, water, garlic, and spices. Simmer for 2 minutes, then remove from the heat.
3. Let the Brine Cool
Cool the brine to warm and then pour it on top of the cucumbers in the mason jar until everything is covered.
4. Save and Refrigerate
Close the lid tightly and refrigerate for 24 hours before eating.
Homemade Pickles Nutrition
- Calories: 72.3kcal
- Total Fat: 0.3g
- Saturated Fat: 0g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Cholesterol: 0mg
- Sodium: 3551.3mg
- Total Carbohydrate: 14.6g
- Dietary Fiber: 1.3g
- Sugars: 5.2g
- Protein: 1.6g
- Vitamin A: 2% Daily Value
- Vitamin C: 12% Daily Value
- Calcium: 5% Daily Value
- Iron: 6% Daily Value
Are Homemade Pickles Healthy?
Homemade pickles can be a great addition to your healthy diet if prepared correctly, unlike those store-bought ones. First and foremost, one of the most attractive features of homemade pickling is the complete freedom you have in controlling what happens to your food ingredients, so you can avoid add-ins, preservatives, and sugars that many commercial brands use.
The basis of homemade pickles, cucumbers, are low-calorie, hydrating, and provide vitamins and minerals. Using fresh herbs, apple cider vinegar, and minimizing allulose or other low-glycemic sweeteners, homemade pickles can indeed be low-carb and friendly to anyone who tries to stabilize the blood sugar.
Here’s why homemade pickles are a healthy choice:
- No added, unnatural preservatives: You do not have to add those added chemicals such as calcium chloride that store-bought pickles contain.
- Individualization to your needs: You can manipulate the amounts of salt and sugar, which makes your pickles low-glycemic and suitable for a diet that will help balance glucose and stabilize it.
- Nutrient-dense herbs and spices: Garlic, dill, thyme, or rosemary, which are used in the recipe, can provide the dishes with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, enhancing the health effect.
While homemade pickles may lose their crunch over a little more time due to the lack of chemical preservatives, they make up for it in flavor, freshness, and health-consciousness. In addition, they are really simple to prepare and can be tailored according to any taste one is aiming to target-be it more heat, extra herbs, or play with different vegetables.
All in all, homemade pickles are a far healthier and more natural choice than store-bought ones. Therefore, they are an excellent means to enjoy the traditional condiment and not sacrifice one's health goals for it.
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About the author
Please note: The Signos team is committed to sharing insightful and actionable health articles that are backed by scientific research, supported by expert reviews, and vetted by experienced health editors. The Signos blog is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. If you have or suspect you have a medical problem, promptly contact your professional healthcare provider. Read more about our editorial process and content philosophy here.
