Sunday, April 20, 2025
HomeKitchen Tips24 Terrific Methods to Use Up Your Leftover Pickle Juice

24 Terrific Methods to Use Up Your Leftover Pickle Juice

24 Terrific Methods to Use Up Your Leftover Pickle Juice

You acknowledge what’s really sad?

Grabbing the jar of pickles from the fridge and realizing there’s nothing left nonetheless brine and spices.

Or am I the one one who absentmindedly locations empty pickle jars as quickly as further all by way of the fridge?

In any case, consuming that remaining pickle, as sad because of it is extra prone to be, leaves you with a jar full of potentialities. Once you happen to occur to make your personal pickles, it’s exhausting to justify dumping your exhausting work down the drain.

So, don’t.

Save that jar full of delicious brine, and use it in order so as in order so as to add sort and punch to any number of tasty treats.

As of late, I’m intelligent to the smart strategies it’s advisable reap the benefits of pickle juice.

Now these jars of nothing nonetheless pickle brine all by way of the fridge are there on operate, not because of I’m absentminded.

(Uh-huh, sure, Tracey.)

Listed beneath are 24 ingenious (and delicious) strategies to benefit from leftover pickle brine.

Don’t overlook; that is associated to pickled veggie brine primarily, not merely cucumbers. One amongst my favorite leftover pickle brines comes from spicy dilly beans. I exploit it notably for #10 on the principles.

If it’s been sitting all by way of the fridge for a while, you’ll want to make sure the brine continues to be good. Take a look at to see if there’s mildew floating on the underside or the sides of the jar. If there’s no mildew, you’re good to go.

1. Drink It

A small dish of pickles and a glass of pickle juice with a straw.A small dish of pickles and a glass of pickle juice with a straw.
I do know, it’s not all folks’s downside, nonetheless it’s nonetheless a tasty suggestion.

Critically. Pickle juice is nice to sip all by itself. Stress it to remove any of the spices, and luxuriate in it over ice. It’s the right thirst-quenching summer season season season sipper.

2. Relieve Muscle Cramps

Someone grasping the calf of their leg as they sit on the floor.Someone grasping the calf of their leg as they sit on the floor.
Remove muscle cramps with pickle juice.

As shortly as I used to be youthful, anytime you can get a muscle cramp – a Charlie horse, a foot cramp, you title it, grandma would hand you the pickle jar and allow you to know to take a powerful glug.

And the odd downside was, it labored.

To these days, I nonetheless take a shot of pickle juice if I uncover myself with a extraordinarily stubborn muscle cramp.

Evaluation reveals this has further to do with the potent tang of pickle juice barely than the exact parts. Nonetheless it does work.

3. Make Extra Pickles

Close up of the top of an open jar of homemade pickles.Close up of the top of an open jar of homemade pickles.
One good flip deserves one utterly totally different.

If there is not going to be any further pickles, clearly, it’s because you hottest them. Make some further by tossing some sliced veggies into the leftover brine. Softer greens work most fascinating, like thinly sliced cucumbers or canned greens (suppose inexperienced beans or artichoke hearts). You almost certainly may even toss in a few hard-boiled eggs. Get crazy and check out pickling a veggie you’ve in no way pickled previous to.

Clearly, it obtained’t be as sturdy because of the distinctive batch, nonetheless give it per week or two, and likewise you’ll have tasty pickles to snack on as shortly as further.

4. Pickle Juice Marinade

The vinegar in pickle brine helps to tenderize meats, and it’s already stuffed with sort from the pickling spices. Use that leftover brine to marinate hen, pork and beef in your tastiest and tenderest dishes.

A plate of homemade fried chicken.A plate of homemade fried chicken.
Pickle juice marinated hen provides you tender buddy hen.

For principally primarily basically probably the most unimaginable fried hen you’ve ever tasted, marinate your poultry in pickle juice for 24 hours previous to you batter and fry it.

5. Salad Dressings

A mason jar with homemade salad dressing in it, a salad behind it.A mason jar with homemade salad dressing in it, a salad behind it.
Perk up your salad dressings with pickle brine.

Making salad dressings from scratch steadily ends in a single situation tastier than any bottled dressing on the retailer. To not diploma out it’s cheaper. Kick elements up all by way of the kind division by using pickle juice instead of vinegar—no further boring salads for you.

6. Change Vinegar with Pickle Juice

Speaking of adjusting vinegar with pickle juice for salad dressing, this works universally in cooking. Once you happen to occur to’ve acquired a recipe that requires vinegar and likewise you’re all out, swap it with pickle juice instead. Or do it is essential to merely want to give a recipe a bit further zip, go for the pickle juice instead of vinegar.

7. Boiled Potatoes That Aren’t Boring

A pot of boiling potatoes on a convection plate.A pot of boiling potatoes on a convection plate.
No further blah potatoes.

Nothing says bland like boiled meals—notably potatoes.

Till, in any case, you boil them in pickle brine. Add a healthful glug of pickle brine to your potato water and boil as customary. Your potatoes will pop – as in applicable into your mouth, chunk after chunk. Don’t anticipate to have any leftovers.

8. The Largest Potato Salad

A small ceramic dish full of potato salad.A small ceramic dish full of potato salad.
That’s one utterly totally different a type of elements grandma is conscious about about.

And while you’re boiling your potatoes in pickle brine, use them to make potato salad. Add one utterly totally different splash of that zingy pickle juice to the mayo, and likewise you’ve acquired potato salad that’s one issue apart from unusual.

Yeah, don’t anticipate leftovers with this each.

9. Make a Killer Bloody Mary

Three bloody mary drinks with fancy garnishes.Three bloody mary drinks with fancy garnishes.
These Bloody Mary drinks are one issue apart from unusual.

Ahem, sometimes commonly known as the “hair of the canine” after a night of overindulgence, this brunch staple is definitely improved with pickle juice added to the mixture. Skip the alcohol, and it will make your Virgin Mary that hardly further flavorful too. In any case, pickle juice makes Mary greater.

10. Dirty Martini

A dirty martini with blue cheese stuffed olives as a garnish.A dirty martini with blue cheese stuffed olives as a garnish.
Transcend the olive.

Martini lovers have all appreciated a powerful dirty martini made with olive brine. Nonetheless, oh my buddies, that’s solely the beginning. I exploit my spicy dilly bean brine notably for dirty martinis. If you would like a unclean martini to remember, try pickle brine from one situation apart from olives.

And presumably even save a pickled dilly bean in your garnish.

11. Pickleback

Once you happen to occur to’ve in no way had a pickleback, it will likely be essential try it not lower than as shortly as. It’s a shot of bourbon adopted by a shot of pickle juice.

I do know; I made that face too the first time I had heard of it.

Nonetheless as far as footage go, this one is pretty good. It presents an additional refined sort profile apart from one situation good fruity you most likely did in your 20s. Very umami and savory.

12. Seafood? Skip the Lemon

  A hand is squeezing a lemon over grilled fish.  A hand is squeezing a lemon over grilled fish.
Ditch the lemon and swap it up a bit.

Once you happen to occur to typically squeeze lemon in your seafood, try a little bit of little little bit of pickle brine instead. Once you happen to occur to’re in search of that improbable drizzle that you simply simply merely get from squeezing a lemon, pour some pickle brine in a ramekin, then dip your clear fingers in it and flick the pickle brine over your seafood.

Easy and delicious.

13. Steamed Fish and Veggies

A pot of broccoli being steamed.A pot of broccoli being steamed.
Use pickle juice instead of water to sort steamed veggies.

Speaking of seafood, use that pickle juice to steam fish and veggies for a brighter sort. Dill goes good with most fish anyway. So what’s to not love?

14. Deviled Eggs

Close up of deviled eggs.Close up of deviled eggs.
I can’t resist deviled eggs, they’re my favorite at pot lucks and holidays.

Knock your deviled eggs out of the park by together with a healthful dose of pickle juice to your recipe. That zing mixes accurately with the selection parts and makes for a deviled egg filling that pops.

15. Do-it-yourself Chutney

A small jar full of homemade chutney.A small jar full of homemade chutney.
Make chutney that is out of this world with pickle juice.

Once you happen to occur to’ve made chutney, you understand one among many essential parts is vinegar. Try together with pickle brine to your personal handmade chutney to current it depth and broaden the flavour profile. Chances are it’s possible you’ll add a splash together with the vinegar or get crazy and swap it out for the vinegar totally. Stress any spices from it first.

16. Marinate Mushy Cheeses

Jars of pickled mozzarella cheeseJars of pickled mozzarella cheese
Once you happen to occur to suppose hand-crafted mozzarella is nice, wait until you pickle it.

Try making your personal mozzarella; you may do it in beneath thirty minutes. Make small mozzarella balls, or slice a so much bigger ball into bite-sized gadgets; then pop them in leftover pickle juice, and likewise you’re only a few days away from a zesty deal with. Goat cheese and feta are good too.

17. Deglaze a Pan

Wine is usually used to deglaze a pan and make a quick sauce to accompany a dish. Counting on the flavors of our dish, you probably can try using pickle brine to deglaze your pan. You’ll end up with a brighter, tangier sauce lastly. Drizzle it over veggies, hen or pork.

18. Pickle Juice Popsicles

Pickle popsicles decoratively laid out on a piece of slate with herbs around. Pickle popsicles decoratively laid out on a piece of slate with herbs around.
Pickle juice popsicles? You wager.

Merely try it.

Nonetheless wait until it’s the kind of heat that makes shifting to Alaska sound good.

I instructed you so.

19. A Savory Mocktail

Membership soda and bitters.

That’s the outdated standby do it is essential to didn’t want to drink nonetheless wished one situation apart from a sugary soda. As of late mocktails are merely as frequent as their alcoholic counterparts. Whereas a great deal of them are nonetheless very sugar-forward, you presumably can have the selection for one situation a bit further savory. Mix pickle brine with membership soda for an additional refined non-alcoholic mocktail.

And you will nonetheless add the bitters.

20. Make a Shrub (Consuming Vinegar)

Two bottles of shrubs with a glass filled with ice and a pink drink.Two bottles of shrubs with a glass filled with ice and a pink drink.
You’d be shocked at what the frequent pickling spice mix and do to a ho-hum shrub.

Oh, my buddy, do it is essential to’ve nonetheless not made a shrub, it will likely be essential. Right correct proper right here, I’ll even current you the best way through which by way of which. (It’s easy, I promise.) Now that you simply simply merely’ve made one, make one utterly totally different collectively alongside collectively together with your leftover pickle brine. You’ll be amazed on the extreme flavors you get from the entire spices all by way of the brine.

21. Meatloaf

Slices of meatloaf on a white dinner plate.Slices of meatloaf on a white dinner plate.
Make meatloaf that’s “greater than my mom’s” by together with a little bit of little little bit of pickle brine.

Meatloaf – it’s a type of entrees the place you probably can fiddle with the climate and flavors. Add pickle brine to create a meatloaf you obtained’t overlook. Tender, moist, and fascinating.

22. Pickled Soup

A bowl of chicken noodle soup on a napkin with a spoon next to it.A bowl of chicken noodle soup on a napkin with a spoon next to it.
Try together with pickle juice to your soup, and it is doable you can in no way make soup with out it as shortly as further.

Once you happen to put pickle brine in your broth-based soups, you’ll be amazed at what happens. The broth mellows out the tang and punch of the pucker. And instead, you get a warmth richness and a brighter sort. It should take the boring applicable out of boring ol’ hen noodle.

23. Ice It

Pour that leftover pickle brine into ice cube trays, after which save them in resealable baggage in your freezer. You’ll get your jars as quickly as further, capable of reuse, and likewise you’ll have a freezer full of chilly flavor-infused cubes capable of go for any of the models on this ideas.

24. Clear with Pickle Juice

Hands shown holding a spray bottle and cleaning a gas range.Hands shown holding a spray bottle and cleaning a gas range.
The vinegar in pickle juice might very nicely be utilized to cut by means of greasy fluctuate tops.

And ultimately, do it is essential to don’t want to eat it or drink it, you probably can steadily use leftover pickle brine to scrub greasy stovetops and copper-bottomed cookware. (Right correct proper right here’s one utterly totally different easy approach to clear copper.)

Merely stress it first, and likewise you’ve acquired a vinegar decision that’s capable of make your kitchen sparkle and shine.

Once you start using pickle juice right correct proper right here and there, you’ll shortly uncover it’s a condiment all by itself. And questioning what to do with ‘leftover’ pickle juice will flip right into a element of the earlier.


Get the well-known Rural Sprout e-newsletter delivered to your inbox.

Along with Sunday musings from our editor, Tracey, along with “What’s Up Wednesday” our roundup of what’s in season and new article updates and alerts.


RELATED ARTICLES

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

- Advertisment -
Google search engine

Most Popular

Recent Comments