These Pickled Eggs are a perfect lip-smacking snack or condiment for salads, made from hard boiled eggs soaking in a sweet and tangy vinegar marinade. This old fashioned recipe is so easy and so good!
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Usually around Easter time when everyone is decorating their eggs, I’m over here pickling mine. HA. I actually make pickled eggs all year round – my family loves them. Along with my soy sauce eggs and beet pickled eggs, they are such a great on-the-go snack. Today pickled eggs are commonly found at bars, convenience stores, and the market, but they’re so easy to make yourself!
Helpful Tips
- The eggs should be covered in the brine. The size of your eggs and also the height/depth of your container can affect this. This recipe fits nicely in a 1-liter glass jar.
- Re-using the brine. As long as the brine doesn’t look murky or cloudy, it can be used again once without sacrificing the quality, however the flavors won’t be as strong/deep. After that, make up a new batch.
- Let the eggs marinate for a while. The eggs can be enjoyed after just a few hours of marinating, but for best flavor let them chill for at least a day so the bring can penetrate the eggs.
Pickled Eggs
Ingredients
- 10 large eggs
- (cold water and ice)
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup water
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon pickling spice
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cloves garlic , peeled and crushed
- 1 large bay leaf
- a few slivers of red onion
- a few small fresh dill sprigs
Instructions
- MAKE THE HARD BOILED EGGSGently place 10 large eggs in a single layer at the bottom of a medium pot – make sure they're not crowded. Fill with cold water to cover eggs by 1-2 inches. Heat the pot on high and bring the water to a rolling boil. Once it starts boiling, turn off the heat, remove the pan from the burner, cover, and let sit for 12 minutes.
- Using a slotted spoon, transfer the eggs to a large bowl filled with water and ice and let cool for 10 minutes. (This will cool them quickly and prevent further cooking, plus make them easier to peel.)
- Peel and proceed with making the brine.
- MAKE THE PICKLED EGGSIn a medium saucepan, mix together 1 cup apple cider vinegar, 1 cup water, 1/3 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon pickling spice, and 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil; then reduce heat to low until the sugar has dissolved. Mix in 2 cloves peeled and smashed garlic and 1 bay leaf; remove from heat and let cool slightly.
- Fill a clean tall 1-liter glass jar with your peeled eggs. Tuck in some sliced red onion and fresh dill sprigs.
- Pour the warm brine over the eggs to cover.
- Loosely fasten with the lid. Let cool to room temperature, tighten the seal, then store in the refrigerator. The eggs can be eaten after only a few hours of marinating, but for best results allow them to pickle for a couple days. Use as desired. They're great for snacking or cut up in salads!
Notes
Nutrition
Other Notes
What Do Picked Eggs Taste Like?
Pickled eggs have a mouth-watering sweet and sour taste. Sort of like salt and vinegar potato chips! If you like bread and butter pickles, pickled red onions, or sauerkraut, you will love them.
Do Pickled Eggs Need to Be Refrigerated?
Yes! This recipe for old fashioned pickled eggs is not canned, but instead requires refrigeration and should never be kept out at room temperature to prevent botulism.
How Long Do Pickled Eggs Last?
Your eggs can be eaten after only a few hours of marinating, but for best results, allow your eggs to pickle for 1 to 5 days, which allows that salty-vinegar brine to penetrate the eggs and produce a deeper flavor. Once they’re sealed in an airtight jar, your pickled eggs will last for a couple months in the fridge!
More Pickled Foods To Try
I hope you love this delicious and easy recipe – be sure to give it a review below! Also don’t forget to follow Belly Full on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and YouTube!
Can I water bath this recipe to make it shelf stable?
I haven’t tried that with this recipe, but if you know the proper method to can items, it should be fine.
So much flavor! will be making many more times!
Very easy, I added a little red pepper flakes
Great snack! First time making pickled eggs and it was super easy.
Hi Amy. In homage to my mother and grandmother I used beet juice instead of water and reduced the sugar a bit. The use of the spices are spot on. I never uses garlic or bay leaf before. This recipe is the best!
Does the brine need to be cooled before pouring it over the eggs?
Let it cool for a bit. It should be very warm, but not hot.
Can you reuse the liquid once the eggs are gone and just add more eggs?
You can reuse the juice again once without sacrificing the quality, although the flavors won’t be as strong/deep. After that, make up a new batch.
I reuse pickling marinade once!
Going to make a batch of this tomorrow, with 5 eggs in 2 smaller jars. In one of the jars I am going to add a Hungarian Hot Wax Pepper. I like a bit of a “bite” to my eggs. Will do a taste test and keep you posted in a week :-)
These were great.
Amy, going to try your pickled egg recipe. Wondering if 2 cups of liquid is going to cover 10 eggs. I’m using 1.5 litre glass jar. Should the eggs be covered in the brine? Please advise. Thanks
Hi Sherry! Yes, the eggs should be covered in the brine. The size of your eggs and also the height/depth of your container can affect this.
Can you use the brine for other foods?
I had very big doubts about this recipe…I love to make pickles and I am a fan of pickled eggs. But pickling spices are not my favorite because I’m not a big fan of cloves….cloves sometimes are overpowering….I do love doing my cloved oranges at christmas. So to make this less painful with my ramblings…..This is the best pickled egg recipe I’ve tried to date and I’m 70. I’ve raised many chickens in my day….Thanks for sharing….love them
I’ve made this recipe a few times now. I’ve cut the sugar and pickling seasoning both in half. Other than that, it’s a beautiful, simple recipe.
This would certainly be a treat and a luxury what with the price of eggs these days!
Can’t believe how easy and delicious these were! My family can’t stop eating them – thanks for the recipe!
I started reusing pickle juice from pickled veggies to pickle eggs in the fridge while I was in the navy.
Lip smackin’ good! We loved this recipe. Great little afternoon snack or salad topper.
Thank you for this recipe
I usually just use the leftover pickled juice from the jar to make pickled eggs, but I was curious about this recipe. Have to say this brine was GREAT. Worth the little extra time.
I haven’t made it, but I’m sure it’s 5 stars… Question… Can I reuse the juice out of the jar on consecutive batches, or is it better to make a new batch from scratch every time?
You can reuse the juice again once without sacrificing the quality, although the flavors won’t be as strong/deep. After that, make up a new batch.
Love this recipe.
yummy we make this all the time with farm fresh eggs!!!!
I should have undercook my eggs a bit because I imagine that the hot brine further boils the eggs. Because I only had 7 eggs, I added carrots and jalapeños to fill up the jar. It added unanticipated color. This is an easy recipe but the real test will be in a week when I eat an egg. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
On my second batch of these delicious pickled eggs. My Grandmother would always make a jar for me every Easter and I loved them. Don’t have her recipe but this one is as good and just maybe a wee bit better. Have been experimenting over the years and this one is a keeper. Thanks for sharing!
Love, love, love these. So sweet and savory, everyone loves them. They are now a household staple. Thank-you
Can you reuse the same brine twice? Or do you have to make it from scratch again?
You can re-use the brine 1 to 2 more times as long as it doesn’t look murky or cloudy. After the second time, I find you’ve lost too much brine volume, flavor, and it’s developed an unhealthy cloudiness to it. (Also, this is only okay to do with refrigerator pickled eggs and not when canning because you can’t guarantee the acidity level once it has been heated up, hot water processed, absorbed by the eggs and refrigerated for an unknown amount of time.)
A little sweet and a little tangy – my family loves this recipe. Great snack for the lunchbox!
After pouring in the brine and sealing, do you put it in the fridge still hot?
Let them cool to room temp, then transfer to the fridge.
Our enthusiasm shines through, I am inspired and will make these tomorrow, God willing!
Can you just use minced garlic instead of crushed?
Sure.