Classic Pickled Carrots

Pickled Carrots are one of those pantry jars that instantly make a meal feel more fun, bright, and put-together. They’re crisp-tender, sweet-tangy, and lightly spiced, with just enough bite to wake up everything from sandwiches to snack plates.

This is the classic tested recipe from the National Center for Home Food Preservation, which means you get reliable proportions for vinegar and water, plus a processing method designed for safe shelf-stable storage. It’s a simple, old-school pickle that’s surprisingly versatile once you have a few jars on hand.

I started making pickled carrots because I wanted something crunchy and punchy that wasn’t cucumbers. Carrots keep their texture beautifully, and the color alone makes me happy when I open the pantry.

These are also my go-to “emergency side dish.” If dinner feels a little flat, I put a small bowl of pickled carrots on the table and suddenly everything tastes more complete.

Ingredients for Pickled Carrots

This recipe keeps things refreshingly simple, with a classic sweet-tangy brine and just enough spice to make the carrots taste like an old-fashioned pantry pickle.

• Carrots: the main vegetable, cut into sticks so they stay pleasantly crisp-tender after simmering and canning. You can also cut them into thick rounds, depending on your preference.
• White distilled vinegar (5%): provides the acidity that makes these pickles safe for water bath canning and gives them that clean, bright tang. Apple cider vinegar at 5% acidity also works, and will give you a warmer flavor.
• Water: balances the vinegar so the brine isn’t too sharp.
• Sugar: rounds out the acidity and creates the signature sweet-and-sour pickle flavor.
• Canning salt: seasons the brine without clouding it. Don’t use iodized or table salt, as it has anti-caking additives that cloud the brine and can give off flavors over time.
• Mustard seed: classic pickled flavor and gentle heat.
• Celery seed: adds that familiar “deli pickle” background note.

For safety, keep the vinegar at 5% acidity and don’t reduce the vinegar or increase the water. You can swap white sugar for another sweetener, or increase/reduce it to suit your tastes. It’s for flavor, not preservation. That said, I generally stick with sugar here because it keeps the taste clean and classic.

You can add extra spices for flavor (like a pinch of red pepper flakes or a clove of garlic per jar) as long as you don’t change the vinegar-water ratio, but if you want to keep it true to the tested recipe, the mustard and celery seed are plenty.

How to Make Pickled Carrots

You’ll make a quick brine, simmer the carrots until they’re half-cooked, then pack hot jars and process in a boiling water canner.

Prepping the carrots

Wash the carrots, peel them, then wash again after peeling. You can split them into carrot sticks, as I’ve done here, or slice into rounds about 1/2-inch thick so they hold their texture well and pack neatly into pint jars.

Rounds are much easier to pack, but sticks look nice in the jar. It’s up to you.

Making the brine

In a large pot, combine the vinegar, water, sugar, and canning salt. Bring it to a boil and let it boil gently for a few minutes so everything fully dissolves and the brine is evenly mixed.

Par-cooking the carrots

Add the sliced carrots to the brine and bring it back to a boil. Then reduce the heat and simmer until the carrots are half-cooked, about 8 to 10 minutes, which keeps them pleasantly crisp after canning instead of soft.

This pre-cook helps the vinegar infuse into the carrots, and ensures they pickle properly even with a short canning time. Don’t skip it!

Filling the jars

Add 2 tsp mustard seed and 1 tsp celery seed to the bottom of each pint jar, then pack in the hot carrots leaving 1 inch headspace above the carrots. Pour the hot brine over the carrots, leaving 1/2 inch headspace between the brine and the top of the rim of the jar.

The brine should be 1/2 inch above the top of all the carrots in the jar to make sure they stay submerged and pickle properly.

Remove air bubbles, adjust the headspace if needed, wipe rims, then apply lids and rings.

Canning Pickled Carrots

Prepare a boiling water canner and heat clean pint jars until ready to fill. Once the jars are packed with hot carrots and topped with hot brine, place the lids on and process the jars in a boiling water canner for 15 minutes, adjusting for altitude (see below).

When processing is complete, turn off the heat, remove the canner lid, and let the jars sit for another 5 minutes in the canning water to allow them to cool slightly before removing them. (This helps prevent siphoning or liquid loss when the jars are removed from the canner.)

Remove jars and let them cool undisturbed for 12 to 24 hours, then check seals.

For best flavor, let the jars sit for a few days before opening. The carrots taste good right away, but the spices and brine settle into the carrots more fully after a short rest.

Serving Ideas

These are fantastic tucked into sandwiches, especially anything rich like pulled pork, roast beef, or a grilled cheese that needs something bright on the side. I also love them chopped and tossed into potato salad, egg salad, or tuna salad for crunch and tang.

For snack boards, pickled carrots pull a lot of weight: add them next to cheese, crackers, cured meats, and olives. In the picture above, I’ve served them on my holiday charcuterie board with pickled hot peppers, spicy pickled green tomatoes, green tomato marmalade, Italian Green Tomato Preserves and cranberry orange marmalade.

They’re also great alongside tacos or burrito bowls, where that sweet-sour bite balances spicy or smoky flavors.

Pickled Carrot FAQs

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