Don’t knock it until you try it! Fast food restaurants have been hopping on the brine trend, coming out with pickle menus and drinks, including this delicious pickle lemonade. It’s sweet, salty, sour, smooth, and the perfect digestif after a heavy meal.

Make this funky and refreshing pickle lemonade with your favorite lemonade recipe and a splash of pickle juice. It’s briny, sweet, sour— the perfect summer beverage when you need something to replenish your electrolytes!

Here’s how to make a refreshing pickle lemonade at home!

Why You’ll Love This Drink

• Four S’s: Sweet, salty, sour, and smooth.
• It’s a natural electrolyte drink, perfect for hot weather or post-workout.
• A fun twist on a classic lemonade!
• Super easy, refreshing drink to make at home!
• Easy hangover drink.

What is Pickle Lemonade?

It’s exactly what it sounds like: pickles and lemonade! More specifically, lemonade with pickle juice added. It might sound interesting, but the salty pickle juice works so well with the sweet and tart lemonade. Both liquids are sour and tart, so really, you’re just mixing salt with sweet! Which we know works incredibly well (salted caramel, salt water taffy, a little salt on a fresh chocolate chip cookie…).

Now, I’m not sure when it exactly started, but adding pickle juice to drinks isn’t entirely novel. People have been adding pickle juice to martinis, margaritas, shots, or even drinking it straight for years. I’ve even seen pickle soda! Disneyland came out with a pickle lemonade in 2024, Popeyes came out with a version in 2025, and I’m sure it’s been a staple at American State Fairs for years. It’s definitely having a moment!

What Does Pickle Lemonade Taste Like?

Honestly, it tastes like a more briny lemon-flavored Gatorade! Natural salt and sugar in lemonade with a hint of dill. If you made it sweeter, it might even taste more like relish, haha. It’s not as sour as you might think, and it has that classic funky pickle aftertaste.

If you’ve had any type of salty lemonade, like Vietnamese chanh muối or Indian nimbu pani, then you’ll love this pickle lemonade. Not sure if you’re a pickle person? If you like salty-sweet combos like Tajín on fruit, salted lassi, or even a margarita rimmed with salt, this drink might surprise you—in the best way.

Do Pickles and Lemonade Work?

Yes! Actually, salt works nicely in sour drinks because it enhances the sweetness and also tricks our brain into thinking the drink is less sour (wow, science!). So, following this principle, pickle juice works nicely with lemonade on a fundamental level.

Taste-wise, it’s also great! Like I mentioned, together they taste like a briny Gatorade, and the sugar tastes even sweeter in contrast with the salty pickle juice. There’s also a subtle umaminess that comes out in this pickle lemonade, which I love.

Pickle juice is also packed with electrolytes like sodium and potassium, which help your body rehydrate faster. That’s why athletes and even marathon runners sometimes drink it after intense workouts!

What Pickles to Use

You can use any pickle you’d like, as long as it has pickle juice. I used a spicy pickle juice for my drink, but any regular pickle works. I would not use the sweeter pickle varieties like bread and butter pickles or regular sweet pickles since we want a salty kick.

Instead of store-bought, you can also make your own pickles and use the pickling liquid as a replacement.

Tip: Refrigerate the pickles and use cold pickle juice in your lemonade.

How to Make Pickle Lemonade

Ingredients:

• 1 oz pickle juice or 2 tbsp
• ¼ cup lemon juice or the juice of one lemon
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup ice
• 1 pickle garnish
• 2 lemon slices garnish

Pickle Lemonade Recipe

1. In a glass, add lemon juice, sugar, and pickle juice. Stir with a spoon or whisk until sugar dissolves.
2. Add ice and fill to the top with water.
3. Garnish with lemon slices and a pickle.
4. Mix and enjoy!

Other Pickle Lemonade Variations

Regular pickle lemonade is good, but try these other variations to dress it up!

• Spicy: I love spicy pickles, and adding spice to drinks is not uncommon! Think: spicy margarita, spicy bloody mary, or a spicy martini. Use spicy pickle juice for a sweet, salty, and spicy lemonade that’s perfect for replacing Gatorade.
• Sparkling: Sparkling lemonade is even more refreshing with the fizzy bubbles. Use plain or flavored sparkling water as the water in the lemonade. You can also use club soda or a homemade fizzy water. You’ll get a fizzy pickle lemonade that’s crisp and refreshing.
• Limeade: Don’t have lemons? Use limes! Pickled lemonade works great with lime, which adds a nice, subtle floral flavor.
• Kool-Aid: Have you ever had a Kool-Aid pickle? These sweet and salty pickles are also a must-try, but you can make them in drink form! Add a little bit of Kool-Aid powder to the lemonade or make a pickle Kool-Aid! It’ll be pretty and delicious.
• Slushie: Want the ultimate cooling drink? Blend the lemonade, pickle juice, and ice in a blender until slushy-fied. You may need to add more ice than the recipe calls for.
• Spiked: Want to turn this into a cocktail? Add a splash of vodka or tequila for a fun pickle twist on a spiked lemonade!

Other Refreshing Recipes

Nothing beats a cold, crisp, and refreshing drink on a hot day. This pickle lemonade is perfect for replenishing lost salt from sweating, but if you fancy something else, here’s some great inspiration for your next refreshment:

• Korean kiwi ade
• Strawberry Shirley Temple
• Matcha Shirley Temple
• Strawberry acai lemonade
• Blackberry vanilla cream soda

Tips:

• Customize Amounts: If you want a more sour lemonade, add a little more lemon juice. For sweeter lemonade, add more sugar. Want a bolder flavor? Use less water. Tweak this recipe to your flavor preferences!
• Use Simple Syrup: Regular sugar won’t dissolve instantly into lemon juice (I’m sure you’ve tried dissolving sugar into cold water before). For an easier method, use simple syrup or agave, which dissolves more easily into cold liquids. The taste is the same, just more efficient!
• Garnish with Dill: Looking for a nice garnish? You can add some fresh dill or mint to add some color to your final drink. Also, for more bulky garnishes, you can use a garnish pick.
• Gradually Add Pickle Juice: If you’re not sold on the pickle flavor, add a little bit and taste before using the whole ounce. It’s quite a briny and tart flavor, but I promise it works nicely with the sweet lemonade! You can always omit it if you don’t like it.