I bought an absolutely huge jar (12" tall) of Kosher Dill Pickles. It says to refrigerate after opening. Why? In that pickled environment is bacteria really at play here?

I do prefer my pickles cold and I will refrigerate them if TexAgs says to, it's just really hard to find a spot and the refrigerator for them. Seems like as a kid I remember large dill pickle jars being unrefrigerated on the counter of old convenient stores. Horrific first world problems.

https://homecookworld.com/do-pickles-go-bad/

Clean your fridge if you can't find a place for a pickle jar

BartInLA said:

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I bought an absolutely huge jar (12" tall) of Kosher Dill Pickles. It says to refrigerate after opening. Why? In that pickled environment is bacteria really at play here?

I do prefer my pickles cold and I will refrigerate them if TexAgs says to, it's just really hard to find a spot and the refrigerator for them. Seems like as a kid I remember large dill pickle jars being unrefrigerated on the counter of old convenient stores. Horrific first world problems.

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Because when that jar was processed, not only was the brine sterile, but the airspace was made sterile too. When you open that jar, the air is no longer sterile, and mold can form. That c-store likely didn't have any problems because they sold all the pickles before mold could form. And since I doubt you can eat that many pickles quickly enough, it's recommended you refrigerate them.

We've never refrigerated them. We didn't when I was a kid and now we don't in my house. I've had jars sit for half a year and never go bad.