These really are a gorgeous color! Tumeric is sadly so often overlooked in my kitchen for some reason, but this is really great inspiration to dig it out & give some pickled zucchini a try.
I bet these are incredible on sandwiches, maybe with a little spread goat cheese and roasted red pepper. Yum.
Wow. These look incredible. I’ve wanted to try making pickles for a while, but no recipe has grabbed me enough to get me to actually do it. This one is just the thing!
There’s a similar recipe in the book the Joy of Pickles, which is a fun book to flip through if you haven’t checked it out before! Thanks for the timely seasonal recipes.
I’ve never been a sweet pickle fan either. But I love the idea of pickling zucchini! Once mine are in full force I plan to try this recipe out, thanks!
I love when you use recipes from books I already own. It’s a kind tap on the shoulder that tells me to give it another once over.
As for pickles, I love bread and butter pickles, but the kind that are usually labelled “sweet with heat”. I like that zing of spice after that initial sweet taste. So I’m gonna bust out my Zuni book and mandolin and see where it takes me!
There is a wonderful restaurant called Rabbit (yes, they always have a rabbit dish on the menu) in our nearby city which serves the most amazing hamburger. (It’s off menu… you have to ask for it.) The beef is superior, cooked only to barely medium, the bun is freshly made and perfect, and it is served with the best salty pommes frites. The thing that makes the burger otherworldly, though, is the pert fresh house-made pickles it is served with. Thanks for the push to give these a try, as I’d like to not have to drive 45 minutes for such a lovely burger!
…Okay, I have to agree with Bryan on this one. Pickling zucchini, okra, watermelon rinds, etc., does not make one a pickle. I feel the pickle crown belongs to the cucumber only…jmho. ;o)
…These do sound delish’ tho’ and thank you for the recipe!
I’m on the fence about sweet pickles, but I definitely want to give this a shot. I’ll be sticking close to your blog for ideas on how to use my Midwest CSA :)
I agree with Brian about the naming of the ‘pickles’ :). they look extra tasty though, and i’m generally not too big a fan of sweet pickles. maybe zucchini is different?
I made these 3 years ago and promptly lost the recipe. I’ve been looking for it for nearly 2 years and haven’t been able to find it amongst my boxes of misc recipes and paper scraps. It’s so delicious!
These can only be equaled by Zucchini Relish which is surprisingly delicious! I will add thses to my pickle making extravaganza. JNow I am off to find fresh peaches…..YUM!
I was totally about to post a zucchini pickle recipe! Photos and all. You beat me to it! Mine are spicy, but I’m going to have to wait. I linked your blog on my site! People love it!
this looks great! i have been doing a ton of pickling this summer with all the excess farm produce. just a question, could you make these and process them so they would be shelf stable?
jam! i know you without the description. ; ) the main issue is a texture one- these pickles are never heated and so it keeps the thin strips of zucchini crispy. if you were to water process these, you’d lose that. but supposedly these keep for months in the fridge, so maybe not necessary anyway? good to hear from you! xoxoo
Hey Tim, if you managed to win Bryan’s approval, then these must be DAMN good (no offense people!). I LOVE zucchini (the capitalization says it all), but the pickling is an interesting twist. The last pickle I made were carrot pickles soaked in a ginger steeped white vinegar (Clotilde’s version). I wonder if zucchini could be used in this case.
Is there any vegetable out there that hasn’t been pickled?
These are great. This recipe is a real keeper. We made them yesterday after I found your blog on a Google search for Zucchini Pickles. This seemed to be the easiest recipe I found, and I didn’t have to go to the store for some spice or seed I will never use again.
Generally not a fan of sweet pickles either but I love Happy Girl Kitchen’s zucchini bread and butter pickles so I will definitely be trying this recipe!
@ Katrik…..would love the recipe for the ginger carrots :) I am making the zucchini pickles today! Love trying new recipes especially when the comments are so positive.
Joanna- No, I wouldn’t process these. They will lose their crispiness. But I haven’t tried.
Jen- The ice water keeps the zucchini crisp, it should not be skipped.
I am not a fan of sweet pickles either but if you gave this recipe a try I will take your cue and open my mouth to a new experience. And your photo/text looks so good that I want to eat my screen.
Hi lownbrown! I love rhetorical questions, too! Is crisp the wrong word? A bite remains. It doesn’t turn to mush. Is that what you were debating? In any case, they are delicious.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE these pickles. I’ve been making them annually ever since Luisa wrote about them a few years ago, and I recommend them to *everyone* I encounter who has an excess of zucchini in their lives. They are SO ADDICTIVE!
So tweak at your discretion, but whatever you think your preferences and prejudices are when it comes to pickles, do give these a go! They’re super easy and supremely delicious!
I had the same question as a few others re: preserving. Might try it anyway as an experiment. Meanwhile I made a variation on this with ribbons of pale green Pattypan squash (seeds removed) and a few carrot threads for, agave instead of sugar, turmeric, coriander & mustard seed. It was a big hit! Thanks for the inspiration.
In response to Joanna and Alice: these are lovely post-processing. I made the same recipe for the last two years , and processed in a water bath for 20 minutes or so. They have a fantastic texture and hold up nicely – perhaps not a huge crunch but definitely worth it nonetheless. (I would compare crunch but haven’t had them unprocessed.) My favourite pickles ever – I can a lot and these are the only ones people ask about year after year!
Angela! Thanks so much for that very useful information. How thickly did you slice your zucchini? They sure are delicious, and it is good to know you like them after processing!
I sliced mine by hand as thin as I could muster (I don’t have a mandolin). I would guess about 1/8 an inch, though it was hardly uniform. The onions were a little thicker since they’re harder to cut. Really really worth the effort. May I recommend on a veggie burger, and on a thin cracker with goat cheese? Best. Pickles. Ever.
Yum! I was hooked by the color and the description so I made a batch last week. Everyone who has tried them loves them, and I plan to make more soon to have on hand for homemade hamburgers. Thanks.
Oh! Love the presentation of thin vertical slices. I try to be conscious of the aesthetic presentation of my canned goods and made some diagonal rounds of sweet and sour zucchini pickles but for some reason I was never tempted to eat them. I’ll have to try again using this method!
Made these the other day and keep sneaking to the fridge to grab a forkfull out of the jar. The best pickled thing I have eaten (aside from possibly pickled beets – anyone have a recipe for that?). I have so far served them with goat cheese and sun-dried tomatoes on a dark wheat bread. But have been thinking about using them in potato salad as well.
We made these last summer and loved them, then I forgot where I found the recipe… Thank goodness for the brilliant photo you took! When it popped up in the google image search (my best tool for finding the forgotten source of a fantastic recipe) I remembered it immediately.
These are truly a treat, cool and briny from the fridge. They pair so well with grilled fare, can be chopped into a salad with celery, mayo, apple, and leftover chicken for a twist on “chicken salad.”
To your note – these do last a while – though this is hard to test as they typically don’t stay around for long.
As far as prep is concerned, we were fortunate to receive a Breville Sous Chef food processor as a wedding present from a very kind family member. Its adjustable slicing disc makes quick work of the zucchini and onions.
Wow, this sounds really good! The only problem I have is that I don’t have a scale. About how many zucchini is in one pound? Our zucchini will be ready in a few weeks and I’d really love to try this. Thanks.
You’ve got to get a scale! Look for one at a yard sale, or borrow one from a neighbor. There is no way to describe how many zucchini are in a pound since every zucchini is a different size and shape and weight. Or, just wing it and see what happens. : )
I made these in 2014. However, I did process mine in hot water bath for 20 minutes, because who has room in their fridge for a few dozen jars of them! They were a hit with all who ate them. I also used both yellow and green zucchini in mine and in some bottles I put sliced into 1/4″ rounds, other bottles I put 1/2″ chunks while in others I put zucchini cut into quarters lengthwise, and alternated yellow and green in the bottles. They looked as good as they tasted! it is mid-August here and the zucchini are ready for harvest -any guesses as to what I’m doing today!
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Rachel says:
August 5th, 2011 at 6:10 am
Hmm….I’m not a fan of sweet pickles either…but I do have a lot of zucchini in the fridge!
Meister @ The Nervous Cook says:
August 5th, 2011 at 6:39 am
These really are a gorgeous color! Tumeric is sadly so often overlooked in my kitchen for some reason, but this is really great inspiration to dig it out & give some pickled zucchini a try.
I bet these are incredible on sandwiches, maybe with a little spread goat cheese and roasted red pepper. Yum.
Harriet says:
August 5th, 2011 at 7:09 am
Wow. These look incredible. I’ve wanted to try making pickles for a while, but no recipe has grabbed me enough to get me to actually do it. This one is just the thing!
catarina says:
August 5th, 2011 at 8:03 am
nom, so good good good
randa says:
August 5th, 2011 at 9:16 am
There’s a similar recipe in the book the Joy of Pickles, which is a fun book to flip through if you haven’t checked it out before! Thanks for the timely seasonal recipes.
Jacqui says:
August 5th, 2011 at 10:19 am
I’ve never been a sweet pickle fan either. But I love the idea of pickling zucchini! Once mine are in full force I plan to try this recipe out, thanks!
JoAnn says:
August 5th, 2011 at 11:41 am
I love when you use recipes from books I already own. It’s a kind tap on the shoulder that tells me to give it another once over.
As for pickles, I love bread and butter pickles, but the kind that are usually labelled “sweet with heat”. I like that zing of spice after that initial sweet taste. So I’m gonna bust out my Zuni book and mandolin and see where it takes me!
Pam @ Sticks Forks Fingers says:
August 5th, 2011 at 11:56 am
There is a wonderful restaurant called Rabbit (yes, they always have a rabbit dish on the menu) in our nearby city which serves the most amazing hamburger. (It’s off menu… you have to ask for it.) The beef is superior, cooked only to barely medium, the bun is freshly made and perfect, and it is served with the best salty pommes frites. The thing that makes the burger otherworldly, though, is the pert fresh house-made pickles it is served with. Thanks for the push to give these a try, as I’d like to not have to drive 45 minutes for such a lovely burger!
Pam says:
August 5th, 2011 at 12:27 pm
Yes, yes, I agree they look good. But, I’d like to hear a comment from someone who has actually TRIED this recipe.
tj says:
August 5th, 2011 at 1:04 pm
…Okay, I have to agree with Bryan on this one. Pickling zucchini, okra, watermelon rinds, etc., does not make one a pickle. I feel the pickle crown belongs to the cucumber only…jmho. ;o)
…These do sound delish’ tho’ and thank you for the recipe!
…Blessings :o)
NicoleD says:
August 5th, 2011 at 1:29 pm
I’m on the fence about sweet pickles, but I definitely want to give this a shot. I’ll be sticking close to your blog for ideas on how to use my Midwest CSA :)
heather @ chiknpastry says:
August 5th, 2011 at 2:01 pm
I agree with Brian about the naming of the ‘pickles’ :). they look extra tasty though, and i’m generally not too big a fan of sweet pickles. maybe zucchini is different?
Kasha says:
August 5th, 2011 at 2:06 pm
THANKYOU THANKYOU THANKYOU!!!
I made these 3 years ago and promptly lost the recipe. I’ve been looking for it for nearly 2 years and haven’t been able to find it amongst my boxes of misc recipes and paper scraps. It’s so delicious!
I can’t wait to make pickles this weekend.
Tim says:
August 5th, 2011 at 2:47 pm
Kasha- nice! Glad I could help!
jan canyon says:
August 6th, 2011 at 7:57 am
These can only be equaled by Zucchini Relish which is surprisingly delicious! I will add thses to my pickle making extravaganza. JNow I am off to find fresh peaches…..YUM!
alittlepicnic.wordpress.com says:
August 6th, 2011 at 5:38 pm
Hello!
I was totally about to post a zucchini pickle recipe! Photos and all. You beat me to it! Mine are spicy, but I’m going to have to wait. I linked your blog on my site! People love it!
—-Sarah
jam (tini's friend) says:
August 6th, 2011 at 5:52 pm
hi tim,
this looks great! i have been doing a ton of pickling this summer with all the excess farm produce. just a question, could you make these and process them so they would be shelf stable?
Tim says:
August 6th, 2011 at 6:48 pm
jam! i know you without the description. ; ) the main issue is a texture one- these pickles are never heated and so it keeps the thin strips of zucchini crispy. if you were to water process these, you’d lose that. but supposedly these keep for months in the fridge, so maybe not necessary anyway? good to hear from you! xoxoo
Kartik @ Bakeology 101 says:
August 7th, 2011 at 9:43 am
Hey Tim, if you managed to win Bryan’s approval, then these must be DAMN good (no offense people!). I LOVE zucchini (the capitalization says it all), but the pickling is an interesting twist. The last pickle I made were carrot pickles soaked in a ginger steeped white vinegar (Clotilde’s version). I wonder if zucchini could be used in this case.
Is there any vegetable out there that hasn’t been pickled?
Jimmer says:
August 7th, 2011 at 5:27 pm
These are great. This recipe is a real keeper. We made them yesterday after I found your blog on a Google search for Zucchini Pickles. This seemed to be the easiest recipe I found, and I didn’t have to go to the store for some spice or seed I will never use again.
Thank you for the recipe.
Bitter Badger says:
August 7th, 2011 at 9:41 pm
Generally not a fan of sweet pickles either but I love Happy Girl Kitchen’s zucchini bread and butter pickles so I will definitely be trying this recipe!
Joanna says:
August 7th, 2011 at 9:44 pm
If you process these can you keep them on the shelf? (pre-opening of course)
Jen A says:
August 7th, 2011 at 9:59 pm
Wondering about the salt water ice bath. What is the purpose? And can it be skipped?
SMM says:
August 7th, 2011 at 10:16 pm
These are great on tuna sandwiches instead of pickles.
Jane says:
August 8th, 2011 at 5:16 am
@ Katrik…..would love the recipe for the ginger carrots :) I am making the zucchini pickles today! Love trying new recipes especially when the comments are so positive.
Tim says:
August 8th, 2011 at 5:54 am
Joanna- No, I wouldn’t process these. They will lose their crispiness. But I haven’t tried.
Jen- The ice water keeps the zucchini crisp, it should not be skipped.
SG says:
August 8th, 2011 at 10:32 am
I am not a fan of sweet pickles either but if you gave this recipe a try I will take your cue and open my mouth to a new experience. And your photo/text looks so good that I want to eat my screen.
Sarah says:
August 8th, 2011 at 1:55 pm
AHHH! These sound awesome. I trust anything that comes from Zuni. Awesome post.
lownbrow says:
August 9th, 2011 at 9:45 am
How is a zucchini cut to 1/16″ gonna stay crisp in a pickly preparation?
Tim says:
August 9th, 2011 at 10:18 am
Hi lownbrown! I love rhetorical questions, too! Is crisp the wrong word? A bite remains. It doesn’t turn to mush. Is that what you were debating? In any case, they are delicious.
Ms. Noziskova says:
August 11th, 2011 at 11:30 pm
Tim,
I LOVE LOVE LOVE these pickles. I’ve been making them annually ever since Luisa wrote about them a few years ago, and I recommend them to *everyone* I encounter who has an excess of zucchini in their lives. They are SO ADDICTIVE!
Alas, you are more open-minded than I am in your willingness to embrace the sugar content. ‘Bread and butter’ pickles sort of make me shudder, so the first time I used 1/3 cup sugar (http://ferriswheelbohemia.blogspot.com/2008/08/in-pickle.html) and still found them too sweet. Then I went the other extreme and only used 1 T (http://ferriswheelbohemia.blogspot.com/2009/06/pickled-piper.html). Think I have at last settled on 2 T and a pinch as my “sweet spot.”
So tweak at your discretion, but whatever you think your preferences and prejudices are when it comes to pickles, do give these a go! They’re super easy and supremely delicious!
-Whitney
Alice says:
August 13th, 2011 at 12:47 pm
I had the same question as a few others re: preserving. Might try it anyway as an experiment. Meanwhile I made a variation on this with ribbons of pale green Pattypan squash (seeds removed) and a few carrot threads for, agave instead of sugar, turmeric, coriander & mustard seed. It was a big hit! Thanks for the inspiration.
Angela says:
August 15th, 2011 at 10:25 am
In response to Joanna and Alice: these are lovely post-processing. I made the same recipe for the last two years , and processed in a water bath for 20 minutes or so. They have a fantastic texture and hold up nicely – perhaps not a huge crunch but definitely worth it nonetheless. (I would compare crunch but haven’t had them unprocessed.) My favourite pickles ever – I can a lot and these are the only ones people ask about year after year!
Angela says:
August 15th, 2011 at 10:34 am
One last thought: I sliced my zukes width-wise instead of length wise. Perhaps this helped preserve the texture?
Tim says:
August 15th, 2011 at 4:21 pm
Angela! Thanks so much for that very useful information. How thickly did you slice your zucchini? They sure are delicious, and it is good to know you like them after processing!
Angela says:
August 17th, 2011 at 2:49 pm
I sliced mine by hand as thin as I could muster (I don’t have a mandolin). I would guess about 1/8 an inch, though it was hardly uniform. The onions were a little thicker since they’re harder to cut. Really really worth the effort. May I recommend on a veggie burger, and on a thin cracker with goat cheese? Best. Pickles. Ever.
cynthia says:
August 19th, 2011 at 4:52 pm
Yum! I was hooked by the color and the description so I made a batch last week. Everyone who has tried them loves them, and I plan to make more soon to have on hand for homemade hamburgers. Thanks.
Tim says:
August 20th, 2011 at 9:57 am
Yay, Cynthia! So glad you liked them. Me too, and burgers are also on our horizon. Seems like such a perfect pair.
baltimorediy says:
August 22nd, 2011 at 2:46 pm
Oh! Love the presentation of thin vertical slices. I try to be conscious of the aesthetic presentation of my canned goods and made some diagonal rounds of sweet and sour zucchini pickles but for some reason I was never tempted to eat them. I’ll have to try again using this method!
Meg says:
September 1st, 2011 at 3:19 am
Those look delicious! And the photos are fantastic too. Pickles rock.
Kimberly at Foodies Unite says:
September 4th, 2011 at 8:53 am
Gads – these are GORGEOUS!
Alexis Zimba-Kirby says:
January 25th, 2012 at 12:53 pm
Made these the other day and keep sneaking to the fridge to grab a forkfull out of the jar. The best pickled thing I have eaten (aside from possibly pickled beets – anyone have a recipe for that?). I have so far served them with goat cheese and sun-dried tomatoes on a dark wheat bread. But have been thinking about using them in potato salad as well.
Emily says:
May 24th, 2013 at 6:33 pm
We made these last summer and loved them, then I forgot where I found the recipe… Thank goodness for the brilliant photo you took! When it popped up in the google image search (my best tool for finding the forgotten source of a fantastic recipe) I remembered it immediately.
These are truly a treat, cool and briny from the fridge. They pair so well with grilled fare, can be chopped into a salad with celery, mayo, apple, and leftover chicken for a twist on “chicken salad.”
To your note – these do last a while – though this is hard to test as they typically don’t stay around for long.
As far as prep is concerned, we were fortunate to receive a Breville Sous Chef food processor as a wedding present from a very kind family member. Its adjustable slicing disc makes quick work of the zucchini and onions.
Vickie says:
June 5th, 2014 at 12:23 pm
Wow, this sounds really good! The only problem I have is that I don’t have a scale. About how many zucchini is in one pound? Our zucchini will be ready in a few weeks and I’d really love to try this. Thanks.
Tim says:
June 5th, 2014 at 12:50 pm
Vickie,
You’ve got to get a scale! Look for one at a yard sale, or borrow one from a neighbor. There is no way to describe how many zucchini are in a pound since every zucchini is a different size and shape and weight. Or, just wing it and see what happens. : )
Dori says:
September 22nd, 2014 at 7:51 pm
Great recipe! added the seeds of 10 cardamom pods, very slightly crushed.
Sue says:
August 18th, 2015 at 5:27 am
I made these in 2014. However, I did process mine in hot water bath for 20 minutes, because who has room in their fridge for a few dozen jars of them! They were a hit with all who ate them. I also used both yellow and green zucchini in mine and in some bottles I put sliced into 1/4″ rounds, other bottles I put 1/2″ chunks while in others I put zucchini cut into quarters lengthwise, and alternated yellow and green in the bottles. They looked as good as they tasted! it is mid-August here and the zucchini are ready for harvest -any guesses as to what I’m doing today!