Quick Pickled Veggies

By Snejana Andreeva

on Nov 29, 2025, Updated Feb 03, 2026

5 from 4 reviews
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If you want to make the most addictive, delicious vegetables, you must try my Quick Pickled Veggies. The key to eating veggies effortlessly (without it feeling like a chore) is to make them irresistible. I’ve done just that by pickling them in a sweet, acidic, pickling brine with hints of garlic and dill. The result is crunchy, fresh, and tangy. Best of all, these are incredibly adaptable, based on what veggies you like or have in your fridge.

A large glass jar filled with quick pickled veggies—cauliflower, carrots, and peppers—sits on a white countertop in a bright kitchen setting.

Key Takeaways

  • Quick Pickled Veggies use a sweet, tangy pickling brine to make veggies irresistible.
  • You can customize the recipe with any fibrous vegetables, herbs, or vinegars to suit your taste.
  • These pickled veggies serve as a healthy side, helping you reach your daily vegetable intake.
  • They pair well with tacos, steak, sandwiches, and spicy dishes for balance.
  • Quick Pickled Veggies last up to 3 weeks in the fridge when fully submerged in brine.

Table of Contents

Why You’ll Love Quick Pickled Veggies

In my humble opinion, every meal should be served with a side of pickled veggies 🥕🥬. They are a delicious way of getting in your “5-a-day” and they are great way to preserve whatever fresh veg might be starting to wilt in the fridge. This recipe follows a simple ratio of ingredients, so it’s easy to scale up or down depending on how much you want to make. (Check out the notes in the recipe card for the exact ratio.) This quick pickled veggies recipe is incredibly adaptable: you can make it with any fibrous vegetables, fresh herbs, and different vinegars.

Ingredients

🥬 Cabbage: Standard green cabbage is my go-to here, but Savoy or Napa cabbage work too. Purple cabbage is delicious but will turn the Quick Pickled Veggies purple.

🥕 Carrots: Peel your carrots and cut them into matchstick pieces.

🧄 Garlic: A few cloves of fresh garlic add flavor and antimicrobial health benefits to quick pickles. You can eat the cloves too 🧛.

🌿 Dill: Fresh dill fronds impart a classic pickle flavor. You can also use dried dill or other fresh herbs, such as parsley or cilantro.

💦 Water: Hot boiling water helps speed up the pickling process, breaking down the vegetables to soften them.

🍶 Rice Vinegar: Any vinegar will work, but rice vinegar has the smoothest flavor for pickling. It’s less sharp than other vinegars and slightly sweet.

🧂Salt: Salt works triple duty here to draw moisture from the vegetables, enhance flavor, and preserve the veggies.

🍯 Honey: The intense acidity of vinegar is balanced with a touch of sweetness. Instead of honey, vegans can use agave nectar or granulated sugar.

Nonna’s Tip 🌈

Vegetables with dark pigments, such as beets, red onions, and radishes, will dye the whole jar of quick pickled veggies pink or purple. Use at your own discretion.

Variations and Substitutions for Quick Pickled Veggies

  1. Tough, fibrous veggies work best here, such as cauliflower, fennel, onions, beets, and radish.
  2. Add a few pieces of red onion to dye all the veggies pink 🧞‍♀️.
  3. You can use any fresh herb you like. Instead of dill, parsley, cilantro, and oregano also work well 🌿.
  4. Rather than using garlic cloves, you can also try fresh ginger or turmeric root.

Best Served With

Similar Recipes to Quick Pickled Veggies

Common Questions

How long do quick pickled veggies keep in the fridge?

If the vegetables are fully submerged in brine, these will last for up to 3 weeks in the fridge.

can i make these into sweet pickles?

Certainly you can. Simply increase the quantity of honey (or agave or granulated sugar, if you’re vegan).

Are quick pickled veggies good for you?

Yes, these are an excellent way to help you reach your “5-a-day” vegetable intake. Plus, eating fermented or pickled foods can be a good source of probiotics.

How should i serve quick pickled veggies?

I like to eat these straight from the jar, as a crunchy, low-calorie snack. But you can chop them up and put them on sandwiches or tacos, or serve them alongside meat or chicken.

Can i use different vegetables?

In addition to carrots and cabbage, any fibrous vegetable will work here: cauliflower florets, sliced fennel bulb or onions, wedges of peeled beets, or halved radishes.

5 from 4 reviews

Quick Pickled Veggies

A large glass jar filled with quick pickled veggies—cauliflower, carrots, and peppers—sits on a white countertop in a bright kitchen setting.
This quick pickled veggies recipe is incredibly adaptable: you can make it with any fibrous vegetables, fresh herbs, and different vinegars. They are a delicious way of getting in your "5-a-day" and they are great way to preserve whatever fresh veg might be starting to wilt in the fridge.
Rate ⭐ Print 🖨
Makes: 4 servings
Prep Time: 5 minutes
refrigeration time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
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VideoEquipmentIngredientsInstructionsNotesNutrition

Video

Equipment

Ingredients

  • ⅛ small green cabbage, rough chop
  • 2 carrots, peeled and sliced into matchsticks
  • 6 cloves garlic, peeled
  • fresh dill
  • 2 cups boiling hot water
  • 2 cups vinegar, (rice, white wine, apple cider, or white)
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 tablespoons honey, or sugar to taste, optional

Instructions

  • Place the cabbage, carrots, garlic cloves, and dill in a clean jar with a tight-fitting lid.
    A hand placing sliced carrots into a glass jar filled with assorted chopped vegetables, including cauliflower and yellow peppers, on a wooden surface with a blurred warm, fiery background.
  • In a large bowl, carefully mix the boiling hot water, vinegar, salt, and honey. Stir until the salt dissolves. Carefully pour the hot solution on top of the veggies in the jar. The veggies should be submerged in brine.
    A stream of hot water is being poured from a glass pitcher into a clear bowl containing sliced lemons, with a warm, cozy fireplace and a mug in the blurred background.
  • Note: you will need anywhere from 2.5 to 4 cups of liquid TOTAL, depending on how tightly the vegetables are packed.
  • Let the jar cool, then close the lid, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Can be stored the fridge and enjoyed for up to 3 weeks.
    A glass jar filled with cauliflower, carrots, yellow peppers, and herbs is being covered with a clear liquid, likely for pickling, on a wooden surface with a warm, blurred background.

Nonna’s Notes

  • Make More or Less: Using a simple ratio, you can easily make a small or large batch of quick pickled veggies. 1 cup water to 1 cup vinegar to 1 tablespoon honey to 1 teaspoon salt. So, if you want to multiply the recipe by 5 to make 20 servings, simply use 5 cups water, 5 cups vinegar, 5 tablespoons honey, and 5 teaspoons salt. 
  • Prep as you Please: The smaller you cut the veggies, the quicker they will pickle. However, you can prepare them in any shape you prefer: carrot coins or matchsticks and cabbage spears or bite-size pieces.
  • Make it Sweet or Make it Salty: You can adjust the saltiness or sweetness of the recipe by increasing either salt or honey. 

My Notes

Add your personal notes here!

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts
Quick Pickled Veggies
Serving Size
 
1 serving
Amount per Serving
Calories
83
% Daily Value*
Fat
 
0.1
g
0
%
Saturated Fat
 
0.03
g
0
%
Polyunsaturated Fat
 
0.04
g
Monounsaturated Fat
 
0.01
g
Sodium
 
1201
mg
52
%
Potassium
 
194
mg
6
%
Carbohydrates
 
15
g
5
%
Fiber
 
2
g
8
%
Sugar
 
12
g
13
%
Protein
 
1
g
2
%
Vitamin A
 
5147
IU
103
%
Vitamin C
 
19
mg
23
%
Calcium
 
46
mg
5
%
Iron
 
0.5
mg
3
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

5 from 4 votes

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11 Comments

  2. 5 stars
    Made this a couple days ago and it’s delicious! I nixed the sweet and added whole peppercorn medley, fresh dill, and garlic cloves. Came out perfect and crunchy! Next time, I’m going to add pimento peppers too.

    A large glass jar filled with quick pickled veggies—cucumbers, carrots, cauliflower, and yellow peppers—sits on a kitchen countertop. The jar has a hinged lid and is filled with brine and herbs.

    Reply

    1. Hi Cindi, I have not tried processing the jars with water bathing, so I don’t want to lead you astray.

      Reply