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Fruit pickling is one of those old-fashioned pantry tricks that doesn’t get nearly enough attention. You still get that bright, vinegary tang of a classic pickle, but the fruit brings sweetness and fragrance, especially when you add warm spices like cinnamon, clove, allspice, or ginger.
If you’ve only ever pickled cucumbers, pickling fruit opens up a whole new world of possibilities. A spoonful of pickled fruit can wake up roast pork, make a cheese board feel finished, and turn an ordinary salad into something you actually look forward to eating (and happily serve to company).
Fruit pickling recipes are so much different than cucumber pickling recipes, and you wont find anything like classic dill pickles here.
Most fruit pickles are made with a vinegar-and-sugar brine (sometimes with a quick simmer in a spiced syrup), and many are perfect for water bath canning.
Fruit Pickling Recipes by Fruit Type
Fruit pickles come in a surprising range, and the “best” recipe really depends on what kind of fruit you’re working with.
Some fruits stay firm and slice neatly (like apples and pears), while others are delicate and need a gentler approach (like berries).
Stone fruit soaks up warm spices beautifully, melon rinds turn crisp and candy-like in a sweet brine, and tropical fruits can handle bold flavors like chile and ginger without getting lost.
To make this easier to browse, I’ve grouped the recipes below by fruit family. That way, if you’ve got a bowl of peaches on the counter, a bag of cranberries in the freezer, or a pile of watermelon rinds after a summer picnic, you can jump straight to the section that fits. It’s also a helpful way to compare styles, as some of these are traditional sweet-spiced pantry pickles, while others lean brighter, hotter, or more modern depending on the fruit.
Berries
Berry pickles are bright, punchy, and a little surprising in the best way. The vinegar keeps them lively, but the fruit still tastes like fruit, especially if you lean into warm spices like cinnamon, allspice, and clove, or go a fresher route with lemon peel and a hint of ginger. They’re also some of the prettiest jars you can put on the shelf, which makes them perfect for gifting or for adding a pop of color to winter meals.
Because berries are delicate, texture is the main challenge. I get the best results when I use firm, just-ripe fruit and keep the cooking gentle so the berries don’t collapse. Blueberries and cranberries hold up beautifully, while strawberries do well if they’re whole and not overly ripe.
- Pickled Blueberries
- Spicy Blueberry Relish
- Pickled Strawberries
- Strawberry Raspberry Relish
- Pickled Cranberries
- Pickled Currants
- Pickled Gooseberries
Stone Fruit
Stone fruit pickles are classic pantry jars for a reason. Peaches, plums, and cherries soak up spiced syrup like they were made for it, and they end up tasting like something halfway between a pickle and a dessert topping. These are the jars I reach for when I’m serving pork, duck, or ham, because the sweet-tart bite cuts richness better than almost anything else.
The secret with stone fruit is starting with fruit that’s ripe enough for flavor but still firm enough to stay intact.
Cherries are easy and hold their shape well, and plums are wonderfully flexible, depending on whether you want them more sweet-spiced or more tangy. If you’ve got fruit that’s a bit bland, pickling is honestly one of the best ways to “save” it.
- Pickled Cherries
- Pickled Peaches
- Peach, Tomato and Pepper Relish (Oscar Relish)
- Pickled Plums
- Pickled Apricots
- Pickled Nectarines
Pome Fruit
Apples and pears make sturdy, old-fashioned fruit pickles that feel right at home next to roasted meats and holiday dinners. They keep their shape well, they’re forgiving to work with, and they pair naturally with traditional pickling spices. If you’re new to fruit pickles, pome fruits are a really satisfying place to start because they’re less fussy than delicate berries and they rarely turn to mush.
I tend to treat these like an elegant condiment rather than a snack-right-from-the-jar pickle. Crabapples are especially classic (and gorgeous when you can them whole), while apple rings and pear halves are more practical for everyday serving.
- Spiced Apple Rings
- Sweet Apple Relish
- Harvest Time Apple Relish
- Pickled Crabapples
- Pickled Pears
- Pear Relish
- Pickled Quince
Melons
With melons, the real star is often the rind, which turns into something crisp, sweet-tangy, and almost candy-like when it’s pickled in a spiced syrup. Watermelon rind pickles are the best-known, but other firm melons can work too when you catch them at the right stage.
Cantaloupe rind isn’t the best, but the fruit itself makes an amazing fruit pickle, especially if it’s slightly underripe and firm.
Citrus Fruit
Citrus pickles are bright, bold, and the fastest way to add a punch of flavor to otherwise simple meals. Lemons, limes, and oranges hold their shape beautifully, and their natural bitterness and fragrance mellow into something really special once they’ve had time to sit in a sweet-tart brine or a salt cure.
These are the jars I reach for when a dish needs contrast. Something that cuts richness, wakes up roasted meat, or adds a pop of acidity to a cheese board.
Citrus pickles are more of a condiment than a snack pickle, and a little goes a long way. Think thin slices tucked into sandwiches, chopped into relishes, or stirred into dressings and marinades.
Tropical Fruit
Tropical fruit pickles are bold, punchy, and incredibly useful when you want something sweet-tart with a little heat. Pineapple, mango, and even papaya can handle assertive flavors, so this is where I like adding chile, ginger, and sometimes a touch of lime (when a recipe is designed for it). These jars are fantastic with tacos, rice bowls, grilled meats, and anything that’s rich or spicy.
Texture matters here too, but in a different way: you want fruit that’s flavorful yet still firm. Pineapple holds up nicely, and mango is best when it’s just shy of fully ripe so it doesn’t shred or turn soft in the jar.
These pickles also make great “finishing” condiments. You can chop them into a quick salsa, spoon them over pulled pork, or add a splash of brine to brighten up a sauce.
They’re the kind of jar that makes a basic meal feel like you planned ahead.
- Spicy Pickled Pineapple
- Sweet Spiced Pickled Pineapple
- Pineapple Jalapeño Relish
- Papaya Atchara (Filipino Pickles w/ Papaya, Carrot, Bell Pepper)
- Filippino Green Pickled Mango
“Unique” Fruits
Figs, persimmons, and other unusual fruits take on pickling spices beautifully, and they’re often the jars that get remembered and requested. They also tend to be more seasonal and fleeting, so when they show up, pickling is a great way to capture that short window.
Figs should be tender but not falling apart, and persimmons need to be the right type at the right stage (firm ones like Fuyu work; soft, pudding-ripe fruit won’t). These are also the pickles I’m most likely to serve with a cheese board, because they’re sweet-tangy and aromatic in a way that pairs perfectly with blue cheese, aged cheddar, or creamy goat cheese.
Pickling Recipes
If you’re on a pickling kick, fruit pickles are just the beginning. I’ve got a bunch of other “all-in-one-place” roundups that make it easy to match what’s in season (or what you’ve got a lot of) to safe, tested ways to preserve it.
If you’re putting up end of season produce with green tomato canning recipes, these traditional Chow Chow and Piccalilli recipes will keep your pantry stocked with chopped pickles. Relish Recipes are another great way to put a bumper crop of produce in a pickle jar.
What are your favorite creative pickling recipes? Leave me a note in the comments!
