The Joy of Pickling

The most comprehensive guide to pickling in print. Linda Ziedrich is a certified Master Food Preserver and Master Gardener who has been putting up food from her Oregon garden for decades. The third edition of this book contains 300 recipes covering every pickling tradition imaginable, from classic American dill pickles to Korean kimchi, Japanese tsukemono, Indian achar, and Middle Eastern torshi.

Why This One

If the Ball book is the canning bible and the ATK book is the science-first primer, The Joy of Pickling is the deep dive into one specific branch of preserving. Ziedrich covers both vinegar-based pickling and lacto-fermented pickles, explaining the differences clearly and giving you recipes for both methods. That range makes this book uniquely valuable for anyone who discovers that pickling is the part of preserving they love most.

The international scope is what sets this book apart from every other pickling guide. Most American pickling books give you dill pickles, bread-and-butter pickles, and maybe a relish or two. Ziedrich takes you around the world. You will find recipes for Indian lime pickle, Korean cucumber kimchi, Japanese pickled ginger, and Italian giardiniera alongside the American classics. Each recipe includes cultural context that makes the book a pleasure to read, not just cook from.

The third edition added 50 new recipes with a focus on fermentation techniques, making it a natural companion to the canning-focused Ball book. Together, these two books cover nearly every form of home food preservation.

What to Expect

A substantial 480-page reference organized by ingredient and technique. The opening chapters cover equipment, the science of pickling, and basic methods. From there, recipes are grouped by type: quick pickles, fermented pickles, fruit pickles, relishes, chutneys, salsas, and more. The writing is warm and knowledgeable, reflecting decades of hands-on experience. This is a book for someone who wants to go deep into pickling as a specialty rather than just dabble.