Use equal parts vinegar and water (1:1) with standard 5% acidity vinegar. You can use more vinegar for a sharper pickle, but never more water than vinegar: below that, the brine may not be acidic enough to keep the pickles safe.

For quick pickles, about 20 g of salt per litre of brine (roughly 2%). For fermented pickles, salt is measured against the total weight of water and vegetables: 2–2.5% for most vegetables, 3.5% for cucumbers, and 2% of the cabbage weight for sauerkraut.

Quick pickles are covered in a vinegar brine and are ready in a few hours to a day. Fermented pickles sit in plain salt water at room temperature, where natural bacteria turn them sour over several days. Fermented pickles taste more complex; quick pickles are faster and more predictable.

Use salt without iodine or anti-caking agents: pickling salt, kosher salt or pure sea salt. Iodized table salt can darken the vegetables and cloud the brine. Weigh it if you can, because a spoonful of different salts weighs very different amounts.

No. These recipes are for the fridge. Pickles stored at room temperature must be made with a tested canning recipe and processed in a boiling water bath.

Quick pickles keep for about 2–6 weeks in the fridge, depending on the vegetable. Fermented pickles keep for 1–6 months once refrigerated. The calculator shows the time for the vegetable you pick.