Homemade Pickling Spice for Corned Beef + Pickled Veggies

By Christie Vanover | Published March 6, 2023 | Last Updated March 7, 2023

What is pickling spice?

Pickling spice is a blend of spices used to pickle fruits, vegetables and meats. According to PBS’s The History Kitchen, pickling is a technique that has been around for thousands of years as a method to preserve food.

The method includes combining whole seeds, berries and spices with a salt or sugar brine, which is an important part of the curing and pickling process.

When using pickling spice, you can either mix it together with the brine ingredients, which is common when making dishes like corned beef brisket. Or, you can wrap the spices in a piece of cheesecloth when making smaller more delicate recipes like pickled red onions.

The cheesecloth allows the whole berries and seeds to flavor the brine. You don’t want to eat the whole spices, because they’re rather hard. Instead, they are there to enhance the brine, similar to a tea bag.

• Whole Allspice Berries: Allspice is a dried berry that grows on the pimento tree. It is very popular in Jamaican cuisine. In fact, the wood from the tree is used to make jerk chicken. Allspice tastes warm and autumn-like.
• Cardamom Pods: Cardamom is part of the ginger family. The pods contain seeds that taste a little citrusy and minty.
• Whole Cloves: Cloves, which are actually dried flowers, provide that quintessential taste of fall.
• Coriander Seeds: Coriander seeds come from the same plant that produces cilantro leaves. However, these seeds do not taste soapy. They are more herbaceous and citrusy.
• Whole Peppercorns: Whole peppercorns provide a pungent bite without being too spicy. They come in a variety of colors like white, green and pink. Black peppercorns are the most common. White peppercorns are milder, green are more bright tasting and pink are more fruity.
• Yellow Mustard Seeds: These seeds when ground and mixed with other ingredients to create yellow mustard. They taste a little acidic, which is a perfect touch for pickles.
• Crushed Red Pepper Flakes: If you like to bring a little heat, used crushed red pepper flakes. Adjust the amount to your heat preference.
• Fennel Seeds: Fennel seeds taste a little like licorice or anise with a mild sweet flavor.
• Orange Zest: You can either use fresh orange zest or you can purchase orange peel in the spice section that is already dried.
• Cinnamon Sticks: Using cinnamon sticks instead of ground cinnamon allows more of the cinnamon’s natural oils to release into the brine.
• Bay Leaves: Bay leaves are very popular in cooking, especially in Spaghetti Sauce, Pork Adobo and Pot Roast. Their earthy, slightly minty flavor helps bring dishes together.

See the full recipe card below for servings and a full list of ingredients.

1. STEP ONE: Start by crushing each cinnamon stick. Place them in a plastic bag and pound them with a meat mallet. Place those in a small bowl. Next, crush each bay leaf between your hands and add them to the bowl.

2. STEP TWO: Place the remaining pickling spice ingredients in the bowl and stir to combine.

How to use homemade pickling spice

Once your pickling spice is blended together, you can use it to make homemade pickles. I add 2 tablespoons of the spice mixture with a few other ingredients like white vinegar and apple cider vinegar sugar and pickling cucumbers when I make my Bread and Butter Pickles.

You don’t have to limit yourself to cucumber pickles. Try making other pickled vegetables like red onions, beets, green beans or cauliflower.

Pickling spice is also used to make corned beef brisket and homemade pastrami. Mix it with water, brown sugar and curing salt and soak the meat in the brine for several days. Then, season it with Homemade Pastrami Rub and smoke the meat until it’s tender.

Storage

The pickling spice blend should be stored in an airtight container like a glass jar in a cool, dark place like a pantry or your spice cabinet.

If you use fresh orange zest, it should last for 6 months. If you use dried orange zest, it can last for up to a year.