GET INTO A PICKLE

HOW TO MAKE THESE SOUR, SNAPPY STAPLES THE STAR OF YOUR SUMMER COOKING

- PRODUCED BY AMELIA SCHWARTZ PHOTOGRAPHY BY GREG DUPREE ILLUSTRATIONS BY MADDIE FISCHER

PICKLES ARE A SHORTCUT to a more satisfying bite, instantly adding a little tangy zing to summer's parade of sandwiches, grilled and barbecued meats, and salads.

There are countless pickle brands to choose from at the grocery store (for the best ones to keep in your pantry and refrigerator, see “Best Pickle Brands,” opposite), but they’re also remarkably easy to make at home. Cucumbers are a popular choice for pickling, but pretty much any ingredient can become a pickle, from hard-boiled eggs to green beans (recipe on p. 73). And what goes in the pickling liquid? Fresh herbs, garlic, and just about any whole spice in your pantry—the options are endless. Here’s everything you need to know to become a pickle pro.

—BREANA KILLEEN

PICKLE TERMS

DILL

A dill pickle is any cucumber pickled with dill. If the dill pickle jar is labeled as “kosher,” it has nothing to do with kosher laws, says Emily Paster, author of The Joys of Jewish Preserving. Rather, kosher dill pickles include garlic as well as dill in the brine. Vinegar-brined dill pickles are zippy and crunchy—and easy to make at home (recipe p. 74).

SOUR

Half-sour and sour pickles are fermented in a salt brine (see below). “A sour pickle is one that is left to ferment all the way, so it is softer, more olive green, and has a strong, puckery, fermented tang to it,” says Paster. Half-sours ferment for a shorter time to make a milder, crispier pickle with a greener color. (For a recipe for Half-Sour Dill Pickles, see p. 73.)

BREAD-AND-BUTTER

Bread-and-butter pickles emerged during the Great Depression, when meat and cheese sandwich fillings were scarce and cucumbers plentiful. Sugar in the pickling liquid makes them sweet and only slightly acidic. They’re most often pre-sliced and vinegar-brined with onions, mustard seeds, and turmeric (recipe p. 74).

PICKLE TYPES