Eat Arkansas

I've spent my life searching for the equivalent of the pickles my great-uncle Pat made on his small farm between Little Rock and Pine Bluff. They violated all the pickle canons: they were made from huge cucumbers; they were in a kind of cloudy brine; they were a bit on the mushy side.

But my goodness, the taste: the essence of pickle, to me. And they were heavily seasoned with dill that grew along the little wooden fence on which his grapes grew, so that the taste of the pickle was the taste of summertime, of aromatic dill wafting its aroma around the truck patch and orchard on a hot summer day.

Since his pickles are as long gone as his little orchard full of old (and lose) varieties of apples and peaches, I've had to settle for second-best. I find a good kosher pickle made with brine instead of vinegar comes close, especially if it has sliced garlic all through the jar.

And I'll admit I'm mighty fond of a German brand that I notice Fresh Market is now carrying: Gundelsheim. It's not overwhelmingly vinegary (I find too much vinegar in pickles off-putting). Unfortunately, the variety of Gundelsheim I like best, their garlic pickles, aren't on the shelves there -- not yet, at least.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE Mt. Olive Kosher Dills (the baby ones). I have to agree with Big Fun on that... and try the Gabriela pickles some day soon even though I don't really prefer the taste of garlic with pickles. I think the taste of the pickle itself and vinegar is strong enough on its own. One of my all-time favorite weekend snacks is a plate full of crackers, brie, a small helping of salsa, and a jar of those baby dills. Slightly random food pairings, I know, but sometimes I'm really in the mood for something sweet and spicy, something creamy, and something super salty. All at the same time. It does the trick.

my mother always took kosher dills sliced thin. added garlic, sugar, mustard seed, bay leaf and they were the best things for sandwiches you ever saw. these sweet little things are the best sweet pickles ever we make them and send them to our son every so often when he runs out. can't have a sandwich without them. called them emilys pickles after the lady who gave her the recipe

My grandmother used to make sweet pickles from an old 13-day recipe. They were called Virginia Chunk pickles, and I would eat half a dozen of those giant sweet chunks of cucumber at a time while Mom was making tuna salad on a Sunday afternoon. The chunks were from cukes about two inches in diameter, a bit limp, and had a sweeter, milder flavor than the sweet gherkins available at the supermarket. The recipe's probably hiding out in one of those spiral-bound church cookbooks from East Arkansas, waiting for me to have the time and patience to make pickles at home.

Try rolling a slice of ham, smothered with cream cheese, and a pickle in the middle for every bite! Delish!

I have been looking for these pickles everywhere! They are incredible. Any chance you can post or email me the contact information for Harvest Foods? I would love to see if they could send me a case.

All the best!