Forever I have seen those mini cucumbers for sale and wondered what people did with them. I was obviously drawn to them because I am a short human and these are short cucumbers…fate. I knew exactly what I wanted to do with them. I wanted some crisp Jewish pickles from the streets of NY or table at Katz’s Delicatessen. I wanted the ba-tampte half sour pickles I grew up putting on my Doritos and cheese sandwiches.
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| My Dad kept these a staple in our childhood fridge. |
Living in the almost sticks of VT, jews don’t exist, and so rarely do our delicious and sometimes creepy products....except for Manischewitz wine....it is everywhere! For 6 years I have been limited to dill or bread and butter or creepily sandwhich stack pickles. I longed for the crisp, green, garlicky delight of a half sour pickle. Watching Jersey Shore on Thursday and seeing Snookie walk in and immediately ask if the guys bought pickles was clearly a sign that I needed to make some damn jew pickles...and clearly get cable so I could enjoy more Jersey Shore. After researching various recipes, particularly Tommy J’s ,and ingredients on the ba-tampte label, I did pickle making, all of which took 15 minutes from start to finish. I am left with a 2 day wait of fermentation and then the tasty oasis of half sour will fill my inner soul. The best part of half sour pickles is you need no fancy heated canning supplies, just a jar and a cool dark space. Make sure you are using clean supplies and tools so as not to get any bacteria growths in your pickle jar, if things look funked in a day or more, throw out immediately
