EST. 2011 BY LIZ RUEVEN
Our Favorite Pickles & Where to Find Them

Our Favorite Pickles & Where to Find Them

Katy Morris

We know that you all know that most fresh produce can be pickled easily. We also know that sometimes you just want to reach for a jar from the experts.  So we’ve rounded up our  our top choices of  “dillicious” pickles for you.  Any of these crisp delights made by passionate picklers will make the perfect pairing with whatever you’re grilling this Labor Day!

We’ve found salty, spicy, sweet, sharp and mild pickles for every taste. And we’re amazed at the array of vegetables being brined. Beyond the classic pickled cucumbers we’re raving about pickled green tomatoes, carrots, beets, cabbage, beans, okra and onions.

Has anyone tasted pickled watermelon? We haven’t found it jarred yet but Liz’s father-in-law used to make it by the half gallon when watermelons flood the Israeli markets each summer. She vows that it’s uniquely crisp and surprisingly refreshing.

 

Certified Kosher

 

Photo: Robert Wright
Photo: Robert Wright

Adamah

 

Adamah grows, pickles, and packages their certified Kosher, Organic pickles (and lots of other vegetables) using “lacto-fermentation” (versus with vinegar) to enhance their natural health benefits. Rebecca of Adamah says that, “A pickle a day keeps the doctor away!” True to KosherLikeMe beliefs, they aim to empower young Jews of every age “to connect to the source of their food, to the natural world, and to the magical process of lacto-fermentation.” With Adamah, you get to enjoy the summer harvest even longer and reap the super health benefits as well!

 

Where to buy: Check out their Pickle Parties, or buy at various markets throughout the Northeast, including the Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center

Qualities: Certified Kosher, Organic, locally sourced

What else to try: Israeli Lemon Pickles, their various flavors of seasonal jams and Sauerkraut

 

Bubbies

 

 

Photo: Bubbies
Photo: Bubbies

Their Pure Kosher Dills are the real dill, so to speak. They’re 100% raw and natural, and are cured in salt-water brine without any vinegar or anything artificial. Karon over at Bubbies says that their dills “should have a cloudy brine; the almost carbonated taste you’ve encountered means you got a really good jar!”

 

Where to buy: Nationwide (click here to see at store near you)

Qualities: Non-GMO Project Verified; Certified Kosher

What else to try: Also check out their Sauerkraut, Horseradish and Pickled Green Tomatoes!

 

Woodstock

Photo: Woodstock
Photo: Woodstock

 

It’s no wonder they have a Woodstock-like fan following for their pickles. Their classic varieties are made with absolutely no artificial colors and offer the perfectly natural crunch and flavor you’re craving. What’s more – Woodstock is whole-heartedly committed to providing delicious, pure food from “sources you can trust.” They even started their own “Team Non-GMO”! Be sure to check out their website to learn more (and snag some fantastic recipes while you’re there).

 

Where to buy: While they do sell their products (much more than just pickles) nationwide, your best bet will be to purchase online to get exactly what you want

Qualities: USDA Certified Organic; Non-GMO Project Verified; Certified Kosher

What to try: Their 5 varieties of Kosher Pickles and Sauerkraut and Relish, too!

 

Brooklyn Brine

 

Photo: Brooklyn Brine
Photo: Brooklyn Brine

Handcrafted, Certified Kosher, Brooklyn-made unique pickles? Yes, please! Brooklyn Brine’s pickles – and impressive assortment of other pickled veggies – are right up our alley (actually, right over the bridge in Sunset Park) and are made with “responsibly” sourced ingredients, even down to their glassware.

 

Where to buy: Pickle Shack, their vegetarian Brooklyn restaurant, various NYC-area stores (check out their store locator on their website) or easily online

Qualities: Certified Kosher; Non-GMO; Hand-crafted

What else to try: Chipotle Carrots, Fennel Beets, Moroccan Beans and their booze-inspired pickles, including the Off-Centered Beer Pickle (which has Dogfish Head Craft Brewery’s 60 Minute IPA beer), Whiskey Sour Pickles, infused with Finger Lakes Distilling White Dog Rye Whiskey, and Maple Bourbon Bread & Butter, infused with McKenzie Bourbon Whiskey

 

 

Rick’s Picks

Photo: Rick's Picks
Photo: Rick’s Picks

 

With fourteen creative and delectable varieties of pickles (savory, sweet and spicy), Rick’s Picks are a must-try. Made with ingredients sourced from local farmers and jarred in NYC’s Lower Eastside using traditional home-canning methods, their seasonal Kosher pickles include the Passover Pickle, which is only made once a year (yep, that means once they run out, you’re going to have to wait ‘til next year). Find those at Whole Foods now! But don’t worry if you miss them; they also offer the K.O. Pickle (K.O = Kosher and Organic) which you can get year-round in stores throughout the country. Rick offers recipes, serving suggestions and even nutritional benefits on his website.

 

Where to buy: NYC’s Greenmarket Farmers’ Markets, fine retailers throughout the US or online

Qualities: All-Natural; 8 varieties are low sodium; 7 are low sugar; Vegan (note only the K.O and Passover Pickles are certified Kosher)

What else to try: Spicy Mean Beans, Smokra, and their Phat Beets

 

Wickles

 

Photo: Wickles
Photo: Wickles

Made with a decades-old family recipe, Wickles Pickles are made with the perfect combo of dill and garlic to create a wickedly delicious (sorry, we couldn’t help it!), sweet and spicy pickle. Check out their website for even more pickled veggies plus lots of creative recipes.

 

Where to buy: Online here

Qualities: Certified Kosher, Gluten-Free

What else to try: Pickled Okra, Garden Mix, Jalapeño Chips or their Relish

 

ORGANIC

 

Real Pickles

 

Photo: Real Pickles
Photo: Real Pickles

This small, locally-owned cooperative makes their products with certified organic vegetables from New England farms out of their Massachusetts based, solar-powered facility. These guys are true locavores and are dedicated to making efforts toward a “regional food system.” They work hard to make the highest quality, naturally fermented pickles. They source and sell their pickles only in the Northeast! Check out their website for more info on the health benefits of their pickles, plus lots of great recipes.

 

Where to buy: Stores throughout the Northeast as well as online

Certifications: 100% Organic; all products are made using natural fermentation

What else to try: Beet Kvass (a 2015 Good Foods Award Winner!), Ginger Carrots and their Kimchi

 

Rejuvenative

Photo: Rejuvenative Foods
Photo: Rejuvenative Foods

 

Refresh your body with some of Rejuenative’s uber-healthy, live-cultured, probiotic pickles.  High in fiber, super nutritious and made with the healing properties of dill, caraway and garlic, they are some of the best live pickles out there and are never made with vinegar or heated.

Where to buy: Whole Foods around the country, various stores, but your best bet is online

Qualities: Raw, Organic, GMO-free, Gluten-free, Vegan

What else to try: Their other raw-cultured veggies include Kimchi and Saurkraut

 

ALL NATURAL

 

Real Dill

Photo: Real Dill
Photo: Real Dill

 

Denver-based Founder Justin Park of the Real Dill says that they “make an effort not to do anything that has already been done before…[they] approach everything with a creative, culinary mindset and try to make inspired products that stand out.” Mission accomplished. Check out their website for some mouthwatering, unique recipes!

 

Where to buy: Various Denver, CO stores or online (ships from MOUTH in Brooklyn)

Certifications: 100% Natural

What else to try: Habanero Horseradish Dills, Creole Spiced Okra, Spicy Caribbeans and much more!

 

Scrumptious Pantry Heirloom Pickles

Photo: Heirloom Scrumptious Pantry
Photo: Heirloom Scrumptious Pantry

 

Why pick these pickles? They use heirloom varieties, (as their name suggests) which according to Lee of Scrumptious Pantry makes them “taste so much better than commercial veggies because their seeds predate the time when we started manipulating seeds to fit mass-production agriculture and large-scale distribution needs.” They also use very little salt, sugar or vinegar and have found the perfect balance of herbs and spices [like lemongrass and cayenne, or crystalized ginger] “to really accentuate the vegetable’s flavor.”

 

Where to buy: Selected retailers (check their site to find stores near you like Eataly and Whole Foods) or just order online

Qualities: Non-GMO; Made using locally sourced ingredients

What else to try: Their three pickled products include Lemon Cucumbers, Bread & Butter Pickles and Beaver Dam Pepper

 

 

Jane’s Good Food

 Jane's Pickles

Have you been to the Westport Farmers’ Market recently? If so, you’ve probably seen Jane with her tantalizing jars of seasonal, fresh pickles that attract a long line of patient enthusiasts. She offers Sweet Dill Pickle Chunks, Relish, “Just Dills”, Dilly Beans and much more – all made with natural ingredients. She recommends trying her Pickle Chunks “at your next cocktail party with bowls of pretzels, nuts, and hummus. Sweet, salty, spicy, smooth. Yum.”

 

Where to buy: Various CT Farmers Markets

Qualities: All natural, seasonal

What else to try: Cranberry Tangerine Relish and her Spiced Peaches

 

Epic Pickles

 

Photo: Rob Seufert of Epic Pickles
Photo: Rob Seufert of Epic Pickles

“Epic pickles was born in 2011 from a passion for fabulous food,” Founder Rob Seufert says. Rob makes these epic pickles (yes, they are indeed epic) in small batches by hand with the freshest ingredients, in York, PA. These bold, crisp beauties are perfect in a spicy Bloody Mary (check out his recipe on the website).

 

Where to buy: Various Philly retailers as well as easily online

Qualities: Hand-crafted

What else to try:  Their pickled Killa Dillas (order quickly – they sell out fast!), String Beans, Spicy Onions or Okra

 

Did we leave out your favorite brand?  Have a tip about pickle pairings? Do you pickle anything as unusual as watermelon? We want to know!

8 Comments

    • We love everything Adamah is up to and highly recommend that readers take a look at their jarred products and opportunities to enjoy programming at their CT. retreat center. Anyone else up for a pickle party? It would be so much fun to place all of our favorites side by side and taste them!

    • Jane, we are thrilled to share your info with all of our readers, especially those here in CT! Those SPICED PEACHES you sell at the Westport Farmers’ Market are my new addiction! Can’t wait to taste what you’ll be pickling as the season changes.

  1. Gotta love pickles! You should try out Cook’s Pantry, they’re pretty new, but they’re made with simple ingredients and no added nonsense. And organic! Thanks for sharing this list though, definitely some brands on here I want to try!

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