In recent columns, I revisited food finds from my summer wanderings. Vichyssoise. Tomato vinaigrette. Irish sausage.
Now pickles. Not as a mere aside to a burger but in appetizers and cocktails. And as a pizza topping. You read that correctly: pickle pizza.
Some claim deep fried pickles sprouted from Southern roots. Some call them “drunk food.” Cracker Barrel sells, well, barrels of them. Many years ago, Gourmet Magazine (I’m dating myself) discovered them at a neighboring Lynn eatery where a delivery driver left too many cases of pickle chips on the loading dock. The owner decided to profit from the error by putting them on the menu. The deep fryer was nearby. Happy customers alerted the foodie magazine.
DEEP FRIED PICKLE CHIPS
Makes one 16-ounce jar.
Crumbs adhere better and form a crispier crust when pickles are completely dried before starting the recipe. First, drain well in a colander; then, pat dry with paper towels. Some cooks mix a bit of cornmeal into the flour.
Vegetable oil to come 2- to 3-inches up the sides of the saucepan.
1-½ cups all-purpose flour (plus ½ cup cornmeal, optional)
1 egg beaten with 1 teaspoon water
2 cups panko bread crumbs
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon each garlic and onion powder
16-ounce jar dill pickle chips, drained
Pat pickle slices dry with paper towels.
Stir together flour, and cornmeal, if using, in a bowl. Beat eggs and water in a second bowl. Pour panko and seasonings into a third. Dredge pickle slices first in flour, lightly shaking off the excess. Then dip into egg wash. Last, press them into the crumbs to coat all over.
Heat oil in a deep saucepan. Add pickles, a few at a time, cooking 1 to 2 minutes, until golden. Remove with a slotted spoon to drain on paper towels.
DIRTY PICKLE MARTINI
The dirty pickle martini hails from the Deep South. Throughout Georgia, on the Florida panhandle, and at Nashville honkytonks, bartenders shake up nearly as many as the “dirty” version. Based on gin or vodka, brine poured from the jar of pickles replaces green olive brine in the original drink. Pickle chips, dill sprigs, or both, provide garnish. Great with pre-dinner munchies.
Makes 1.
2½ ounce vodka or gin
½ ounce dry vermouth
½-to-1 ounce dill pickle juice (brine from the jar)
Whole ice cubes
Dill pickle round, or fresh dill sprig
Chill a martini glass, 5-7 minutes, in the freezer. Put ice, vodka or gin, dry vermouth and pickle juice in the cold shaker.
Shake for 15 to 20 seconds, until the shaker looks frosty. Strain into the chilled glass. Garnish with a pickle chip or float a fresh dill sprig on top. .
PICKLE PIZZA
I first encountered pickle pizza on a road trip. A voice on the radio claimed to have tasted the pickle-topped pie in Minneapolis. As a purist — pineapple, never! — I was curious. Many phone interviews later, I unearthed and confirmed the pizza’s origins. It debuted to rave reviews just three years ago at the Minnesota State Fair. Pizza shops all over the Twin Cities hopped on the bandwagon.
Minneapolis-St. Paul pizza shops agreed that its ancestry traces back to a local delicacy, a sort of cream cheese and pickle wrap.
Rick’s (like Casablanca), a delivery-only shop, originated the tomato-free delicacy spread with “ranch sauce,” mozzarella, and a double layer of dill pickle rounds. QC Pizza calls their dilly offering “Kinda Big Dill" pizza. Pizza Luce sprinkles theirs with crushed potato chips. Recently Rick’s added pepperoni to their original toppings. I’m not ready to try it yet.
Linda Bassett lived in Marblehead for years and has worked as a cook, trained up-and-coming chefs, studied food history and led food tours. Her book, “From Apple Pie to Pad Thai,” is about local cooks and cooking.
