Southern Fried Pickles

If they’re on a menu, I’m ordering ’em. So why not make them at home?

I’m a sucker for fried pickles. The first time I heard of them, I thought it sounded ridiculous. The first time I tried them, though, I was hooked. I don’t know what it is about them, but the salty tang of the pickle combined with the golden fried crust is just one of the best things ever. I rarely make them, though, because frying things can be a pain sometimes. It’s not hard, I can just be a little lazy sometimes. I’ve had it in my head to make them, though, and all because I messed up.

I bought pickles a while back. I intended to get pickle slices but somehow ended up with pickle halves. As I sliced them up, it struck me that these would make good fried pickles. If you make these, I would suggest getting them already sliced – save yourself the unnecessary step.

As far as frying stuff goes, these couldn’t be much simpler. You can season these however you would like. I was planning to add some cayenne, but it turns out I need to buy more. So instead I used one of my favorite spices of all time: smoked paprika. This was a good choice. Not spicy, but it adds a great extra something that is hard to describe. Some salt, pepper, smoked paprika, and a little sugar to balance it all out… the makings of a great snack.

Mix the flour together with all of your seasonings. Drain you pickle slices, but don’t dry them. They need to be wet for the flour to stick. If not, you need buttermilk or eggs or something, which we don’t do. Dredge the pickle slices in the flour and set aside.

Heat oil in a pot or a deep fryer. At this point, most food blogs would give you a temperature. This is not most food blogs. I have no clue what temperature. I just slowly dipped in one of the pickle slices, and when it bubbled, I figured that was hot enough. Professional, right here.

Carefully add the pickle slices in batches. I did it one at a time to keep them from sticking together. Fry the pickles until nicely golden. Don’t forget, there will be a little bit of carry-over, but not a lot.

Drain the pickles on paper towels to remove excess oil. At this point, I sprinkled on a little bit of seasoned salt. This is optional, and really easy to overdo, so proceed with caution.

A lot of fried pickle recipes use cornmeal, but breading and frying this way give a really light, crispy crust. These are great with dip or without.

• oil for frying
• 1 cup flour (sub gluten-free flour if you prefer)
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp pepper
• ½ tsp sugar
• ¼ tsp smoked paprika
• 1 cup pickle slices, drained but not dried

1. Heat oil in a pot or deep fryer.
2. In a bowl, mix together flour, salt, pepper, sugar, and paprika.
3. Dredge the pickle slices in the seasoned flour, coating well. Set aside.
4. Carefully place pickle slices in the hot oil. Do this in batches as they will cook more evenly. Fry until golden.
5. Drain on a paper towel.

Serve with or without dip. And don’t forget to share – it’s hard, but it’s the right thing to do.