Homemade pickles in Ball Mason jars (photo © Ball.
May 2008
Last Updated November 2025
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Different Pickle Types
Types Of Pickles & Pickled Vegetables
Page 4: Pickle Terms Beginning With Letters M ~ P
This is Page 4 of a 5-page glossary of different pickle types. Some of the terms below include mason jar, pepperoncini, and pickled peppers. After you’ve peeked at the pickles, take a look at our many other delicious food glossaries—an easy way to get up to speed on more than fifty different food categories.
Click on a letter to go to the appropriate glossary section:
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
This glossary is protected by copyright and cannot be reproduced in whole or in part. You are welcome to link to it.
MASON JAR
Mass-produced glass jars for home canning, invented by Philadelphia tinsmith John Landis Mason and patented in 1858 (photo at the top of the page). They are also known as Ball jars after an early manufacturer of that name, plus fruit jars and glass canning jars. Today, the Ball and Kerr brands are manufactured in the U.S. (by the same company), in a variety of diameters and volumes, including half-pint, pint, quart, and half-gallon. Food is packed into the jar, and the lid, with a rubber seal, is placed on top. A metal band is screwed loosely over the lid, allowing air and steam to escape as the jar is heat-sterilized. When the jar cools, a vacuum is created, pulling the lid into a hermetic seal. See photos above and below.
National Canning Day is celebrated each year on October 23rd.
The history of canning.
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OSHINKO
Oshinko, along with tsukemono, is a general Japanese term for pickles. Many different fruits and vegetables are pickled and served as side dishes with Japanese cuisine. See also tsukemono.
OVERNIGHT DILL PICKLE
This is a quick preparation in which the fresh cucumbers are placed into the brine, generally without vinegar, for a brief period, about one to two days, under constant refrigeration. The result is a bright green pickle that tastes like a marinated fresh cucumber, much less acidic than a typical pickle. These are akin to “half sours.”
Here’s the easy recipe for the overnight pickles in the photo below. Both are from Love and Lemons.
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Takuwan, pickled daikon; one of our favorite oshinko. Photo by Katharine Pollak | THE NIBBLE.
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PEPPADEW
Peppadew is a trademarked brand of sweet piquanté chile peppers of the variety Capsicum baccatum. The little round chile peppers are de-seeded, then preserved in a sweet-tangy brine (vinegar, sugar, salt, spices). They have many uses (see them here), including as a Martini garnish!
Peppadews were introduced to the U.S. from South Africa in the early 2000s. Here’s more about peppadews.
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Takuwan, pickled daikon; one of our favorite oshinko. Photo by Katharine Pollak | THE NIBBLE.
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PEPPERONCINI
This pickled pepper is a medium-hot chile, grown in Italy. They are also called Tuscan peppers or golden Greek peppers. Pepperoncini are popular in antipastos and Mediterranean-style salads and are sliced into cold rice and pasta dishes. They can be stuffed with mozzarella and other cheeses.”
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Pepperoncini (photo © DeLallo).
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PICKLE
In Western cuisine, a pickle generally refers to a pickled cucumber. In Korea, it would refer to pickled cabbage (kimchi); in Japan, to pickled vegetables. Each region of the world has its own pickling tradition. In Western European tradition, the pickling brine is often flavored with dill and garlic. Our word comes from the Middle English “pekille.”
When Americans think of pickles, they mean cucumber pickles. But almost every vegetable and fruit can be pickled (photo below, © Rick’s Picks).
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PICKLE CHIPS
Chips, a.k.a. slices, are meant to be served on (or with) hamburgers and sandwiches. Popular varieties include bread-and-butter, genuine dill, and kosher dill. Pickle chips are available in smooth or waffle-cut styles. Waffle-cut places ridges across the face of the pickle.
PICKLE RELISH
See relish.
PICKLED PEPPERS
More than 15 varieties of chile peppers are pickled in the same way as cucumbers. They range from mild pepperoncini to banana peppers to the hotter cherry peppers and the very hot pickled jalapeños. They are available whole and in rings, which are used to garnish hors d’oeuvres, salads, and sandwiches/burgers.
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Pickle chips, in a Mason jar manufactured by Ball. Photo courtesy Heinz.
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PICKLED VEGETABLES
Almost any vegetable or fruit can be pickled. Aside from cucumbers, cabbage (sauerkraut) is the most universally found. Some of the more popular pickles include asparagus, beets, carrots, cauliflower, cocktail onions, green tomatoes, and okra. See our review of Tillen Farms pickled vegetables.
Any vegetable or fruit can be pickled (photo © Typhoon Housewares).
Did you know that you could make quick-pickled vegetables and fruits in an hour? Here’s how.
POLISH STYLE DILL PICKLE
A garlicky pickle, similar in flavor profile to the kosher dill pickle.
PROCESSED PICKLE
See fermented pickle.
PROCESSING METHODS
Most pickles are produced by one of three methods: refrigerated, fresh-pack, or processed (also called cured or fermented). Each method creates distinct flavors and textures. Additional flavors are achieved by adding different herbs, spices, and seasonings to the brine toward the end of fermentation. See also cuts.
Continue To Page 5: Pickle Terms Q ~ W
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