Is the taste of pickles (as in cucumbers) just the taste of the vinegar and whatever else is in the stuff the cucumbers are sitting in? (I know there are pickles made without vinegar. Obviously I’m not talking about those.) Or does the cucumber itself contribute either flavor or some chemical that changes the flavor of the other ingredients?
When I eat a Vlassic kosher dill pickle, am I basically only tasting vinegar and salt, with the cucumber simply providing texture?
I can say with confidence that, once the vinegar is neutralized, there is nothing remaining which is offensive to the flavor of a chocolate chip cookie. Of course, raw (i.e., unpickled) cucumbers have a rather subtle flavor to begin with.
I can definitely smell a difference between the vinegar in my pantry and the pickles in my fridge–but I don’t really know if that’s the same kind of vinegar…
ETA: And now I see the pickles list “natural flavors” as an ingredient so that could change the smell as well…
ETA Again: Oh geez I’m forgetting about the dill. I’m going to bed.