Pickled Cherry Tomatoes A Quick and Versatile Recipe for Preserving Summer Flavor

Pickled Cherry Tomatoes in Sweet, Salty & Sour Brine

Every summer my kitchen counter disappears under bowls of cherry tomatoes. We grow more than we can eat, and we hand bags to neighbors, coworkers and anyone who stands still long enough. Then I found the answer to the summer glut. It was not a sauce and it was not a freezer bag. It was a jar of brine.

That brine is sweet, salty and sour all at once. It came from a jar of pickled cabbage I used to buy at an Eastern European supermarket near my house.

I loved that cabbage so much that I started reading the ingredient list on the label. The list was short. The proportions were a mystery. So I went home and started testing.

Batch after batch, I adjusted the salt, the sugar and the vinegar until the flavor landed exactly where I wanted it. That is the brine in this recipe. Then in 2024 I made it even better.

I added sweet white balsamic vinegar, the same vinegar I use in my pickled cherry pepper recipe, and the brine picked up a rounder, more complex flavor. Small change, big payoff.

If you cannot find sweet white balsamic vinegar, regular white balsamic vinegar works fine. Italian white vinegar of Modena works too. The Modena version tastes a little richer and, to my tongue, slightly less sweet. Either one gives you a jar you will want to keep within easy reach in the fridge.

Then my wife made the suggestion that turned this from a cabbage inspired experiment into a summer staple. Try it on heirloom cherry tomatoes, she said. I did. Now I make it every year without fail.

Heirloom cherry tomatoes are smaller and sweeter than most, and they hold their shape. Soaked in this brine, they stay flavorful and firm in the refrigerator for weeks. That is the part I love most. You do the work once, and you eat well for a month.

Here is what happens inside the jar. The vinegar brings the sour note. The salt pulls juice out of the tomatoes and into the brine. The sugar rounds off the sharp edges. What you get is bright, tangy and just sweet enough to keep you coming back for another spoonful.

One tip before you start. Pick tomatoes that feel heavy and firm in your hand. Soft tomatoes turn to mush in the jar.

These pickled cherry tomatoes are the project I recommend to anyone who says they have no time to cook. Twenty five minutes of rinsing, cutting and stirring. Then the fridge does the rest. Open a jar a week later and you have summer on a plate, even in the middle of January.

Ingredients for pickled cherry tomatoes

The shopping list for this recipe is short and cheap. Here is what goes into the jar.

• Cherry tomatoes
• Garlic
• Fresh dill
• Sage
• Cilantro
• Black peppercorns
• Salt
• Sugar
• White vinegar
• White balsamic vinegar, or white vinegar of Modena
• Water

Any cherry tomatoes will work here. I use heirloom cherry tomatoes from my own garden because they come in so many sizes, shapes, colors, textures and flavors. A jar packed with red, orange, yellow and purple tomatoes looks like a party.

Here is a tip I learned the hard way. Mix ripe but firm tomatoes with a few slightly under ripe ones. That mix gives you a more interesting bite, some tomatoes soft and juicy, some still crisp. Skip the over ripe or damaged fruit completely. Bruised tomatoes go soft in the brine and drag the whole jar down with them.

The brine does three jobs at once. Vinegar brings the sour tang. Salt draws water out of the tomatoes and seasons them from the inside. Sugar softens the sharp edges so the whole thing tastes balanced instead of harsh. Two kinds of vinegar, white and white balsamic, give you both the clean bite and the deeper note underneath it.

Nothing on this list is hard to find. The brine comes together from pantry staples, and the herbs are the only fresh items you really need to pick up.

Making pickled cherry tomatoes

The method is simple. Prep the tomatoes, pack a clean jar, cover everything with brine, then wait. Here is the whole process, step by step.

Prepare the tomatoes

Rinse the tomatoes under cool water and cut them in half. I strongly prefer halving cherry tomatoes instead of pickling them whole. Halves pickle more evenly and much faster than whole tomatoes. They look better in the jar, and they are easier to eat, which is another reason firm tomatoes win here.

If you do want whole pickled tomatoes, prick each one in a few places with a knife or a fork. Those little cuts give the brine a way in. Without them the flavor stays on the outside and the tomato stays bland. A sharp knife and a steady hand are all you need for this part.

Fill the jar

Use quart size Mason jars or larger pickling jars. They only need to be clean, not sterilized. Drop a dill umbrella on the bottom of the jar first. Then fill the jar with tomato halves, tucking herbs, garlic and black peppercorns in between the tomatoes as you go. Leave about 1 inch of headspace at the top.

That space matters, because the brine needs room to cover the tomatoes and the lid needs a clean seal.

Top the jar(s) with brine

Mix the brine ingredients in a bowl. Stir with a large spoon or a whisk until the salt and the sugar are completely dissolved. You should not feel any grains at the bottom of the bowl. Pour the brine over the tomatoes, leaving about 1/2 inch of headspace, then seal the jar with a tight lid.

Pickling in the fridge

The last step is patience. Let the tomatoes pickle in the refrigerator. They are ready to eat after about a week. They keep improving as the days pass, and they stay fresh for several weeks or longer. I open my first jar at day seven and my last one about a month later.

Serving

These pickled cherry tomatoes go with almost anything you pull off the grill or out of a skillet. I serve them with brisket, steak, smoked pork chops, grilled chicken, fried chicken, fried eggs, and oven baked beef with potatoes. The sour bite cuts through rich meat, and a spoonful wakes up a plain plate of eggs.

They also earn a spot on a sandwich or a board of cheeses and cured meats. This recipe was last updated on September 3, 2024.

Ingredients

Here are the exact amounts I use for one batch.

• 1 1/2 lbs cherry tomatoes, preferably multicolored heirloom cherry tomatoes
• 5 sage leaves
• 3 dill twigs
• 3 cilantro twigs
• 1 dill umbrella
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 Tbsp black peppercorns

For the brine:

• 2 cups water at room temperature
• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• 2 Tbsp white balsamic vinegar, or white vinegar of Modena
• 1 Tbsp salt
• 1 1/2 Tbsp white sugar

The water should be at room temperature so the salt and the sugar dissolve quickly. Stir the brine until it looks clear instead of cloudy with grains.

Instructions

Follow these steps in order and you will have a jar of pickled cherry tomatoes ready in a week.

1. Rinse the tomatoes and cut them in halves.
2. In a 1 quart mason jar, lay a dill umbrella on the bottom. Pack in the tomato halves, tucking the herbs, garlic and peppercorns between the layers. Leave about 1 inch of headspace.
3. In a separate bowl, stir the brine ingredients with a large spoon or a whisk until the salt and the sugar fully dissolve. Set the brine aside.
4. Pour the brine over the tomatoes, leaving a 1/2 inch of headspace, and close the jar with a tight lid.
5. Refrigerate for one week before eating. The tomatoes improve with age and stay fresh in the fridge for several weeks.

A few notes that make the difference. Pack the tomatoes snugly, because loose tomatoes float and the top layer can sit above the brine.

If you need a little more liquid to cover everything, mix a small extra batch of brine using the same ratio of water, vinegar, salt and sugar.

Keep the jar in the main body of the fridge rather than the door so the temperature stays steady, and always use a clean spoon when you dip into it.

Recipe details

Preparation takes 25 minutes. Pickling takes 7 days. From start to first bite that is 7 days and 25 minutes, and the batch yields 4 servings.

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