I had never heard of freezer pickles until a few weeks ago, when we picked up a copy of Linda Ziedrich's book, The Joy of Pickling. We had lots and lots of cucumbers but were mostly out of pint jars and so needed another way to keep them all from turning to mush right before our eyes. Luckily, we stumbled onto Chapter 8 and our minds were blown:

Pickles you store in the freezer? It doesn't seem right, but we're here to tell you that they are awesome.

Freezer pickles, like New Pickles, are a great way to preserve if you don't want to mess around with the whole hot water canning process, and the best part is that they magically stay crunchy and fresh-tasting after you take them out of the freezer.

The basic process is to soak the cukes in a salty water brine for a couple hours, then mix with a flavored vinegar liquid and refrigerate for 8-10 hours. Finally, you pop them in the freezer to store for however long you'd like, and just pull them out to defrost before you eat. (Alternatively, just eat them frozen, as we've taken to. It's the best on a hot day.)

Our favorites so far are these Lime Mint Freezer Pickles, which are sweet and sour and a little like a Mojito, in the best possible way. 

I want to thank the first person who decided to store pickles in the freezer, but the internet doesn't seem to know who it is, so instead, here's the earliest mention of them on Google Books, from a 1984 cookbook. 

And if you're ready to try, here are a few recipes:

Crunchy Sweet & Spicy Freezer Pickles

Freezer Pickles

Dill & Garlic Freezer Pickles