PURPOSE: To prepare a composition for pickling, capable of giving pickles having the deliciousness easily in a short time, by mixing a KOJI with common salt.

CONSTITUTION: Wheat or barley grains are mixed with rice, soybeans, etc., and the resultant mixture is then expanded and seeded with spores of aspergillus to prepare a KOJI. The resultant KOJI is dried and mixed with common salt at a ratio between the common salt and the KOJI of 1:(0.5W2)pts.wt. to give a composition for pickling. An organic acid, e.g. succinic acid or citric acid, or seasoning, e.g. sodium glutamate, alum or polymerized phosphoric acid, is added thereto if necessary. Water in an amount of 7W13pts.wt. based on one pt.wt. common salt is added to the composition to give a pickling solution, and vegetables, etc. are dipped in the solution to give the aimed pickles.