Pickling History

Back before refrigeration, when early settlers needed to preserve their food supply, they would extend the harvest of cucumbers and other vegetables by pickling them. Submerged in a vinegar and spice bath and set aside in a pickling crock to ferment, they yielded dill, bread and butter, and countless other old-school variations.

Marinated cucumbers are the new pickle

Today, few of us have the time to devote to such heritage pickles. But faced with a booming crop of garden cucumbers, we just might be able to make this Old Mill family recipe, Easy Marinated Cucumber Salad.

Marinated cucumber salads are the new pickle, a refresh of the stodgy classic, and they pick up summer suppers of roast chicken and potato salad. They slide easily on top of back-to-school sandwiches, adorn the charcuterie board, and they even taste great right from the bowl.

An easy cucumber salad

It’s important when making these quick marinated pickles — or salads — that you use the smallest, freshest cucumbers you can find because they’re naturally sweet and free of big seeds.

Feel free to change up this recipe, adding black pepper and fresh dill. Use our Cucumber White Balsamic Vinegar for the perfect flavor combination, and of course, sweeten to taste.

Spoon the salad onto plates with a slotted spoon, leaving the precious marinade in the bowl. That way you can slice up more cucumbers, onions, and tomatoes, add them to the bowl, tuck the salad in the fridge, and enjoy a repeat performance!