Column “On everyone’s lips”: Why is everyone drinking pickle water now?

If 2024 was the year of the cucumber, 2025 will be the year of cucumber water. That's only logical, given that last year, eating a whole cucumber in one sitting was a brief summer trend. Also, the pickled cucumbers that have been sold at Munich's Viktualienmarkt for more than a hundred years went viral because a few TikTokers, well, ate them and shared video evidence of it—sometimes that's enough to create a bit of a hype. There were also recipes for fried pickles, breaded gherkins or pickles fried in beer batter, and smashed pickle salad. And also—and this is highly recommended—homemade, crunchy pickles that enhance almost any meal and satisfy many a craving.

Now for the cucumber water. Not the wellness drink with cucumber, which was available once, but the broth in which pickled cucumbers are pickled: a perfectly balanced blend of vinegar, sugar, salt, and spices.

The first signs appeared last year. Singer Dua Lipa, who has already turned vanilla ice cream with olive oil and sea salt into a TikTok trend , shared the recipe for her favorite drink last year, also on TikTok : Diet Coke, jalapeños, and pickle water. It sounds horrible and tastes terrible too (except in homeopathic cans of jalapeño and pickle water). At the men's European Football Championship, the England national team made headlines because some players drank pickle juice to combat muscle cramps. In the USA, pickle water has long been available to buy separately, where it is marketed as a sports drink. It is also said to help with hangovers and is good for digestion. Whether it actually helps – there is, of course, too little research on whether it actually works. The electrolytes are not harmful after training, and the vinegar in the brew can promote acid-base balance. However, it does contain a lot of sugar and salt.

Reusing pickle juice is definitely a sustainable option. The sweetness and acidity are balanced, and the full-bodied juice can be used to flavor dressings, as well as potato or egg salad. Or you can pickle vegetables like cucumbers, carrots, or radishes in it. Viennese star chef Paul Ivić reveals in his book "Vegetarian" that he uses pickle juice to flavor his vegetarian stroganoff sauce, for example. Potato experts Caspar Plautz make green sauce with pickle juice in their book "Recipes with Potatoes," and Stevan Paul uses it in "Simple & Clever Cooking" to make a paprika and pickle relish for baked potatoes.

A few years ago, pickle juice ice cream was trending in New York. Currently, pickle juice is making its way into drinks like margaritas and martinis. The New York Times shared a recipe for pickle lemonade, a homemade lemonade with pickle juice, which indeed adds a lovely depth of flavor. Pickle juice has another advantage at the start of summer: The acidity is wonderfully refreshing. If necessary, you can also enjoy a sip of pickle juice straight from the fridge.