During the pandemic, I’ve rediscovered my love of a good pickle as comfort food. I’ve sampled many different brands and varieties, and have discovered my favorite, by far, is just a traditional Dill Pickle. I’ll eat a Kosher pickle, but I’m not as crazy about them. I don’t know why; I do love garlic, and I know that’s the main difference between a Kosher pickle and a non-Kosher pickle. But it just doesn’t work as well for me and I don’t enjoy them nearly as much.
Now that I’m shopping specifically for them, I’ve noticed that supermarkets have shelves of Kosher pickles, but very limited non-Kosher Dill Pickles, if any at all. Are they just that much less in-demand then Kosher pickles?
I don’t recall noticing any dill pickles not labeled as kosher. In this case ‘kosher’ refers to the style not being prepared according to religious requirements, a full sour dill and garlic pickle. Many half sour pickles contain plenty of garlic and dill also but not every brand, some of them have rather mild seasoning.
Are you looking for a full sour dill pickle without any garlic? I’m sure there are some but the traditional kosher dill style may be so popular that it dominates production. In the current state of affairs a lot of manufacturers focus on getting the top sellers back on the shelves first so less popular varieties may be temporarily scarce.
Thank you, yes, I was aware of what makes a kosher pickle “kosher” (although, to be honest, I wasn’t until this recent pickle binging of mine began a few months back!). Yes, I am referring to dill pickles specifically not labeled as kosher. I have a jar of Vlasic “Original Dill Wholes” in my fridge right now; no garlic at all. They’re almost gone, and I was at another store today looking for more, but found none, only kosher. I’m sure you’re likely correct, that there just isn’t the demand, possibly compounded by the current situation.
I’m with you. I love garlic, but prefer my pickles without it. It can be a challenge to find non-garlic dills under any conditions out here, but especially now, when foods aren’t getting restocked very fast.Fortunately I’m not in a pickle mood nowadays.
My inner Beavis and Butt-head giggled uncontrollably when my mom brought home a jar of those a few years ago. Then I snapped a picture of it and texted it to my sister.
In case you want to know if the pickles (or any other store-bought food) is really kosher, look for a letter U in a circle or a K in a star or circle somewhere on the label, usually at the bottom right. The first is the symbol of the Orthodox Union, the leading kosher certification agency in the US. The other symbols are for otheragencies.
Mt Olive makes “Dills” pickles that do not contain garlic. They also have a “Genuine Dills” that are also vampire-friendly. Sadly, distribution is limited to the southeast. They also admit to having a very limited production of them as there’s low demand for them.
Vlasic has “Original Dill” that are sold at Walmart.
No it’s not your imagination. Me and my husband thought we were going crazy. Our favorite pickles are Heinz dills and they no longer make them. We actually bought a jar off Amazon for $16 lol. I said wow we got issues. But if anyone knows where to get plain dills please let us know.
I thought the main difference between a truly Kosher pickle and a non-Kosher one in style was that Kosher sours and half-sours (which is not typically what you buy at the supermarket by the major brands) are salt-brined/fermented without any vinegar, while your average supermarket pickle (even the ones labeled Kosher these days) are preserved/soured with vinegar. There’s a major difference in taste between the soft lactic acid of the fermented pickles and the sharp acetic tang of vinegar. I grew up eating the lactic fermented pickles (which are sold in Eastern European supermarkets, either in jars or straight out of the barrel) vs the typical commercial vinegar-preserved ones.
I certainly can’t speak with any authority on the matter, but pretty much everything I’ve read when I’ve looked into it was that the primary difference was the presence of garlic in kosher pickles.
The garlic and half-sour pickles are kept in refrigerated cases these days. Big Pickle has stuck with the jarred versions, though you can sometimes find a smaller brand like Wickles Pickles (good, but hot).
And Mt. Olive has bought up shelf space. I can’t imagine anyone actually liking them since they have no flavor other than vinegar.
I joined this page just to comment on the pickle situation. I, too, love DILL (“original dill”). I don’t need garlic in my pickle. I buy Vlasic Original Whole Dill pickles and they are good. However, it’s getting harder to find them. For whatever reason, all of the Walmart’s near me stopped selling them. I managed to find them at Rouse’s (only located in LA, AL and MS) and was so happy, but I swear, they taste garlic. Ugh! What is going on? Will I ever have another real dill, NOT garlicy, kosher pickle???
RealityChuck, it could be an age thing. When I was younger, all I ate were dill and I don’t recall there ever even being kosher (garlic) pickles. So I guess its what you’re used to.
Not hard to find around here at all. Strub’s full-sour garlic pickles are excellent and widely available here. I have no religious reason for seeking out kosher, but some kosher products are just better, pickles being one example. Also kosher salt, which is coarser than ordinary table salt and contains no iodine.
ps: I’m lucky. I like my pickles as Jewish and garlicky as possible.
When we’re all getting Chicago dogs from a cart, I watch other people’s baskets to see who might be ignoring their pickle. But why haven’t I ever thought of just ordering a second pickle?
So when you identify such folks do you glom onto them as a reliable source of spare pickle spears, or do you hang back and wonder what else might be wrong with them?
Our favorite pickles are Heinz dills and they no longer make them. We actually bought a jar off Amazon for $16 lol. I said wow we got issues. But if anyone knows where to get plain dills please let us know.