Pickled Green Beans

By Molly Watson

Updated 10/20/18

Jar of Green Bean Pickles
Jeffrey Coolidge/Getty Images
  • Total: 20 mins
  • Prep: 15 mins
  • Cook: 5 mins
  • Chilling Time: 48 hrs
  • Yield: 1 pint jar (4 servings)

Flavorful and snappy, these green bean pickles are great in salads, perfect alongside meaty fare like braised pork, and particularly good in place of (or in addition to) a stalk of celery in a Bloody Mary. You can also use them to jazz up a classic relish tray to set out before or during heavy meals for something crunchy and bright. Perfect as a snack, you may also notice that even when just sitting in the fridge they tend to disappear.

Making pickles may be difficult and take a lot of time, but that is not the case with these pickled green beans. Because they are "refrigerator pickles," there is no canning process and no sterilizing and sealing of jars. Instead, the pickles are allowed to develop their flavor while chilled. Since they are not heat-processed, they must be stored in the refrigerator (not the cupboard) to keep them from spoiling.

You'll notice that this recipe is for one 1-pint jar worth of pickles, which is a generous handful or two of beans. The recipe easily doubles, triples, or even quadruples if your harvest is large and your fridge space is ample.

Ingredients

  • 5 ounces green or wax beans
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds
  • 1 small dried chile
  • 1/8 teaspoon black peppercorns
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 cup cider vinegar
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt

Steps to Make It

  1. Before you trim the green beans, arrange them vertically in a 1-pint jar to see how many will fit. Pack them in as tightly as you can—once you add the hot liquid, they will shrink just a bit, so feel free to really cram them in at this stage.

  2. Remove the beans from the jar and trim them to fit, leaving at least 1/2 inch of headspace. Pack the trimmed beans back into the jar.

  3. Peel the garlic and cut it into quarters. Stuff the garlic pieces into the jar with the green beans.

  4. Add the coriander seeds, the dried chile, the peppercorns, and the bay leaf into the jar around the beans. 

  5. Put the vinegar, wine, sugar, and salt in a small saucepan. Bring it to a boil over high heat and boil for 2 minutes (you want the sugar and salt fully and completely dissolved).

  6. Pour the hot mixture over the beans. The liquid should fully and completely cover all of the beans. Screw on the lid and let the jar sit until it's cooled to room temperature.

  7. Once the jar is cool, refrigerate the bean pickles for at least 2 days or up to 6 months before eating. Once opened, keep the jar in the fridge.

Other Picked Vegetable Recipes

If you don't care for green beans or want to make a variety of pickled vegetables, there are several recipes to choose from. Try asparagus pickles, okra pickles, or zucchini pickles.