Pickle Juice Uses: 13 Reasons to Save the Brine
Quick Reference: Pickle Juice Uses
- Drink it: a natural sports drink, hangover helper, leg-cramp easer, hiccup stopper, and heartburn remedy.
- Cook with it: potato salad, pickled eggs, steamed vegetables, corned beef and cabbage, marinades, and salad dressing.
- Mix it: a splash in tomato juice or a Bloody Mary, or frozen into ice cubes.
- In the garden: water acid-loving flowers like hydrangea and rhododendron with no toxic chemicals.
- Reuse it: drop in fresh green beans or cucumbers and pickle a second batch.
That cloudy brine left at the bottom of the jar is the most useful thing most of us pour down the drain. Before you tip it out this summer, know that the same salty dill juice that flavored your pickles can replace electrolytes after a hot afternoon, season a pot of potatoes, ease a Charley horse, and even feed the flower bed. Here are 13 reasons to hang on to it, drawn from the kitchen, the medicine cabinet, and the garden.
Why Pickle Juice Earns Its Keep
The short answer is salt, water, and vinegar. Pickle brine is mostly water carrying sodium and other electrolytes, with the tang of vinegar and dill on top. That combination is why a swig rehydrates you, why it perks up a bland dish, and why its acidity suits acid-loving plants. Dehydration is the thread running through several of the health uses below, and the National Library of Medicine’s MedlinePlus guide to dehydration explains why replacing fluids and salts matters after heavy sweating. Now, the 13 uses.
1. Natural Sports Drink
Swig right from the jar, or freeze pickle juice into popsicle molds. After a game or an afternoon playing outdoors, it is a quick way to replace the electrolytes you sweat out.
2. Potato Salad Bonus
A splash of pickle juice in potato salad adds just the right amount of flavorful seasoning and moisture. Stir it into the warm potatoes so they drink it up before the dressing goes on. If you grow your own potatoes, it is a fine way to dress the first new spuds of the season.
3. Beverage Booster
Add some to a glass of tomato juice or a Bloody Mary cocktail. You can also freeze it in ice cube molds so the drinks pick up the flavor as the cubes melt instead of watering down.
4. Pickled Eggs
Use it to pickle and flavor hard-boiled eggs. Peel the eggs, drop them into the leftover brine, and let them sit in the refrigerator for a few days before you eat them.
5. Hangover Cure
Dehydration is the major cause of hangovers. Drink pickle juice to hydrate and to restore the electrolytes a long night drains away.
6. Relieve Leg Cramps
Ease post-workout muscle cramps and restless leg syndrome. Take a swig of pickle juice to relieve the pain of a Charley horse. Many folks keep a small jar in the freezer door for exactly this reason.
7. Steam Vegetables
Use pickle juice to steam or boil vegetables and add the perfect touch of dill and salt seasoning. Green beans, carrots, and new potatoes all take to it well.
8. Flower Power!
Use pickle juice in your flower beds to perk up your acid-loving flowers. Flowers such as hydrangea and rhododendron need acidic soil to thrive, and the best part is no toxic chemicals. Clemson University’s Home and Garden Information Center notes that acidic soil pushes bigleaf hydrangea blooms toward blue, so a little brine can nudge the color as well as the health of the plant. Pour it at the base, well diluted, and not all at once.
9. Boost Culinary Flavor
Add a splash when cooking corned beef and cabbage to add flavor. The salt and vinegar cut the richness of the meat the same way a side of pickles does at the table.
10. Marinade and Salad Dressing Perk
Use pickle juice instead of vinegar when making salad dressing or a marinade. It helps tenderize meat and is packed with flavor. If you like to cook with kitchen acids, our look at the powers of vinegar covers more of the same trick.
11. Cure for Hiccups
Take a swig, and the hiccups are often gone. The sour shock seems to reset the spasm. Find more hiccup remedies here.
12. Heartburn Remedy
Sipping pickle juice is a tasty remedy to relieve heartburn for some people. A tablespoon is plenty, and it is worth a try before you reach for anything stronger.
13. Use It Again!
After the pickles are gone, toss in some green beans or more cucumbers and pickle them. Keep the refilled jar in the refrigerator and you have a second batch in a few days for no extra cost.
A Word of Caution on the Salt
Pickle juice is high in sodium, so go easy if you are watching your salt for blood pressure or your doctor has told you to cut back. A swig now and then is fine for most healthy adults, but it is not meant to replace water across a long hot day. Do what is best for you and your family, and check with your doctor if you have any concerns.
Pickle Juice Uses: Frequently Asked Questions
Is it safe to drink pickle juice?
For most healthy adults, a small swig is safe and can help replace electrolytes after sweating. It is high in sodium, so go easy if you are watching your salt for blood pressure, and do not let it stand in for water on a long hot day. Check with your doctor if you have any concerns.
Does pickle juice really help with leg cramps?
Many people swear by a swig of pickle juice to ease post-workout muscle cramps, restless leg syndrome, and the pain of a Charley horse. The salt and vinegar are the likely reason. It is an old remedy worth trying when a cramp strikes.
Can I use pickle juice on my plants?
Yes, on acid-loving flowers like hydrangea and rhododendron, which need acidic soil to thrive. Dilute the brine, pour it at the base, and do not flood the plant all at once. Acidic soil can also push bigleaf hydrangea blooms toward blue, with no toxic chemicals involved.
What can I cook with leftover pickle juice?
Plenty. Splash it into potato salad, pickle hard-boiled eggs, steam or boil vegetables, add it to corned beef and cabbage, or use it in place of vinegar in a marinade or salad dressing, where it also helps tenderize meat.
Does pickle juice cure hiccups or a hangover?
A swig often stops hiccups, likely because the sour shock resets the spasm. For a hangover, the help is from hydration: dehydration is a major cause, and pickle juice restores fluids and electrolytes. Neither is a guaranteed cure, but both are easy to try.
Can I reuse pickle juice to make more pickles?
Yes. After the pickles are gone, drop fresh green beans or cucumbers into the leftover brine and refrigerate them for a few days. You get a second batch at no extra cost, though the brine will be milder each time you reuse it.
Join The Discussion!
Have you ever used pickle juice for any of these remedies? Were you surprised by the many pickle juice benefits? What is your favorite thing about pickles? Got another use for the juice? Let us know in the comments below.
Deborah Tukua
Deborah Tukua is a natural living, healthy lifestyle writer and author of 7 non-fiction books, including Pearls of Garden Wisdom: Time-Saving Tips and Techniques from a Country Home, Pearls of Country Wisdom: Hints from a Small Town on Keeping Garden and Home, and Naturally Sweet Blender Treats. Tukua has been a writer for the Farmers' Almanac since 2004.
- Deborah Tukua
- Deborah Tukua
- Deborah Tukua
- Deborah Tukua
Can I pour pickle juice on my cucumber and tomato plants outside in my garden
Does it matter what kind of pickle juice? I generally eat Claussen, which is not fermented.
Pickle juice also helps with headaches
One study showed that drinking pickle juice helped lower blood sugar levels in people with type II diabetes. Pickle juice can also help to regulate blood pressure levels. One study found that drinking pickle juice helped lower blood pressure in people with hypertension.
I’ve used pickle juice for years for all the things mentioned except migraines, I’ve never had those. One thing I use it for is roast. I pour pickle juice all over a roast and make sure it’s under it also. I let it set for 2 hrs. Then drain the juice off and put in roaster with all the veggies. Comes out tastier and more tender. I also put the juice in my chicken salad. Older remedies are still the best solutions to a lot of problems.
That is one tasty tip! Thank you for sharing!
I have used pickle juice for hiccups for almost 40 years. It really is amazing. It instantly gets rid of hiccups. I saw in another comment that it helps with migraines as well. I will be trying that.
I’m not a fan of pickle juice, but I may try it for migraines too! I hope you share your results with us.
I had no idea this would cure hiccups, migraines or could be used for indigestion and in flower beds. I’ve used it for leg cramps for years and it really works. I always take a few good swigs after a long day in the hot sun.
I use this when I am constipated, I have used this for years to keep me regular
I add a little sweet pickle juice to tuna salad. Adds some moisture and a nice sweet flavor.
What about the juice of Green Olives ??
When I don’t have pickle juice, I use olive juice to ward off leg cramps. Works for me.
A couple table spoons of pickle juice will rid your migraine head ache.
I will try the pickles juice…..Thank you so much…
Pickle juice will kill weeds and grass