Another recipe from our book COLD CANNING (Voracious, 2025) Here’s a small batch, a single jar of one of the treats we keep in our fridge all summer long. You don’t need a pressure or a steam canner to put up one jar and then enjoy these with hot dogs, grilled chicken, or even white fish salad on a bagel.

Be exacting when you cut the cucumbers. You want even slices. To be a perfectionist, use a mandoline, even a hand-held one. But wear a cut-proof glove to protect your fingers.

1 pound (450 g) medium Kirby or pickling cucumbers, sliced into ½ inch (a little more than 1 cm) rounds (about 4 cups sliced)
1 tablespoon (12 g) kosher salt
1 small yellow or white onion, peeled and very thinly sliced
¾ cup (180 ml) distilled white vinegar
¾ cup (150 g) granulated white sugar
¼ cup (60 ml) apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons (39 g) dark brown sugar
3 tablespoons (30 g) brown mustard seeds
1 teaspoon yellow mustard seeds
¼ teaspoon celery seeds
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground dried turmeric

1. Toss the cucumber slices and salt in a large bowl until well coated. Cover and refrigerate for 1½ hours.

2. Pour the cucumbers into a large colander set in the sink and shake the colander to drain. Rinse the cucumbers with cool water and shake again to drain as well as you can.

3. Wipe out the bowl and pour the cucumber slices back into it. Add the onions and mix until well combined. Pack these vegetables into four, clean, heat-safe, ½ pint (236 ml) or one clean, heat-safe, 1 quart (1 l) jar or other container.

4. Bring the distilled vinegar, white sugar, cider vinegar, brown sugar, both types of mustard seeds, the celery seeds, ground cloves, and turmeric to a boil in a large saucepan set over high heat, stirring constantly until the sugar dissolves.

5. Pour the hot vinegar mixture over the vegetables in the jars, leaving about ½ inch (a little more than 1 cm) headspace in each. (It’s best to set them in the sink so any splashes are easily cleaned up.) Cool the jar(s) at room temperature for no more than 1 hour. Cover and seal, then refrigerate for at least 24 hours before enjoying.