Homemade salsa meets garlicky dill pickles with this unique pickle de gallo recipe. You’ll want to eat this flavorful dip with a spoon. And you can if you want because it’s chock full of healthy veggies and yummy seasonings.
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Pickle de gallo is a dill pickle take on the classic dry salsa, pico de gallo. Tradtional pico de gallo is a mixture of diced tomatoes and onions, seasoned with lime and cilantro. But this pickle salsa recipe replaces the tomatoes with crisp and juicy dill pickles! We also toss in some jalapenos for a bit of heat, fresh bell peppers for flavor, and pickle juice for that puckery flavor your taste buds will crave.
This dip is perfect for your next potluck or party. Serve it alongside hot dogs as an unexpected topping or with chips for dipping. If you love dill pickles, you’re going to go crazy for pickle de gallo!
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🌟Why This Recipe Works
- ickle de gallo blends texture and flavor perfectly. It’s crunchy, juicy, salty, garlicky, and perfectly tangy, the ultimate marriage of flavors.
- This recipe is a riff on Grillo's pickle de gallo but it costs a fraction of the price to make it at home.
- You can make this recipe a day ahead of a party to let the flavors meld.
- It’s gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegan-friendly, so just about anyone can eat it.
📋Pickle Salsa Ingredients
Crunchy Dill Pickles - Technically, you can substitute other varieties of pickles, but the dill flavor is what makes this recipe work so well. I prefer to buy whole pickles because they are crunchier but you can also use sliced or spear pickles.
Sweet Onions - Choose a Vidalia or red onion for the most complementary flavor. But white onion and yellow onion work as well.
Red Bell Pepper - Choose a medium to large red pepper. Remove the seeds and dice the pepper quite small.
Jalapeño - One jalapeno provides plenty of flavor. You can omit it if you don’t enjoy the taste. Leave the seeds in as well if you like extra heat. Want it extra hot? try a serrano or habanero pepper.
Garlic - 2 fresh cloves of garlic minced will taste great in this recipe. You can also use pre-minced jarred garlic if you prefer.
Lime Juice - The acidic, tangy flavor is important in this recipe. Buy a fresh lime and squeeze out the juice. Don’t use the bottled kind.
Celery Seed - This is available in your grocery store’s spice aisle. You can substitute with celery salt, dill seed, fennel seed, or caraway, with slightly different tastes. Alternatively, you can also omit the celery seed, but it does contribute to the overall flavor of the dish, so I recommend using it.
Pickle Brine - Pour this right out of your pickle jar.
I don't typically add fresh herbs to this pickle salsa recipe. But it you wanted a fresh note try minced fresh dill or fresh parsley.
See the recipe card for exact quantities.
🍲How to Make Pickle De Gallo
Prep your ingredients by dicing them finely and adding them to a large mixing bowl.
Add your fresh squeezed lime juice and pickle juice to taste. You can add more hot pepper but this recipe should not require salt.
Chill the pico dip for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to meld together.
🥣 How to Serve Pickle Salsa
This is the perfect snack for a hot summer day. Just serve with your favorite tortilla chips. But you can also use it on just about anything you like dill pickles on.
- Scoop it over hot dogs like relish
- Spread it on hamburgers
- Scoop it on chicken sandwiches
- Serve it with white fish
👩🏻🍳Expert Tip
This recipe will work best if your pickles, onion, and peppers are cut into very small pieces. The veggies should be diced quite small, in about ¼ inch cubes.
🌡️Storing Leftovers
This recipe will get better with time, so feel free to make it a day or two ahead of a party. That also means that leftovers will get yummier as they sit in the fridge.
To store pickle de gallo, place the salsa in a container with a lid or cover it tightly with foil. Store it in the fridge for up to a week. Before serving again, give it a good stir.
Unfortunately, pickle de gallo won’t freeze well. When the pickles and veggies thaw, they’ll be mushy. So it’s best to eat this up while it’s fresh.
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💬Frequently Asked Questions
You can either cut down the other ingredients or add chopped tomatoes or diced cucumber to make up the difference.
📖 Recipe
Pickle de Gallo (Pickle Salsa)
Equipment
- Mixing Bowl
- Cutting Board
- Chef's Knife
Ingredients
- 2 cups crunchy dill pickles diced
- ¾ cup sweet onion diced
- ½ cup red bell pepper diced
- 1 jalapeño minced (seeds removed if you dislike heat)
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
- ¼ teaspoon celery seed
- 1-2 Tablespoons pickle brine
Instructions
- Mix all the ingredients, except for the pickle brine, together in a mixing bowl.2 cups crunchy dill pickles, ¾ cup sweet onion, ½ cup red bell pepper, 1 jalapeño, 2 cloves garlic, 1 teaspoon lime juice, ¼ teaspoon celery seed
- Gradually add the pickle brine to the mixture, one tablespoon at a time. Stir the mixture after each addition of brine until you achieve your desired level of tanginess.1-2 Tablespoons pickle brine
- Cover the mixing bowl and place it in the refrigerator and chill for at least 30 minutes.
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