Pickle in a Bag!

On my whirlwhind trip to the Southern U.S. a couple of weeks ago, I came across an old favorite food packaged in an unusual way: A single, chunky dill pickle, swimming in brine, inside of plastic bag.

Since my two siblings and I are fanatical about pickled foods (artichokes, olives, cucumbers, beans and so on), I just had to invest the $1.49 it cost for me to acquire the 5 calorie, "cholesterol-free" delight, which also boasts a generous quantity of yellow #5.

I brought PIB home to Vermont with me, where I was able to wow my co-workers. "A pickle? In a bag?" They chorused.

It turns out that my very own pickle in a bag was flavored with "hot dill." It was firm of texture, although not as crisp as a Claussens model, and was spicy enough to make my mouth tingly for a few minutes. Since the pickles are shelf-stable for up to two years, it could be good to stock up on these, along with duct tape and flashlights, in case of emergencies such as blizzards or terrorist attacks.

If you want a PIB (or a whole stash) of your very own, you can find them online. The maker, Freestone, has been around since 1903 and is a "proud member of the Pickle Packers International trade association." They also run a 24-hour-a-day pickle store, because "loyal Freestone pickle fans [read: pregnant women] crave pickles at all hours."

What they neglect to mention is that Freestone can't beam your pickles to you via teleportation and the US postal service doesn't give a shit about your late night hankerings, so you probably won't get that late-night pickle you crave for several days. A dream deferred.

Comments

[Alice Levitt]

Believe it or not, you need look no further than the Cumby's on River Road for a pickle in a bag. Theirs has a cool picture of an antropomorhized pickle on it.

[Cathy Resmer]

I want a pickle in a bag right now!

[David Millar]

Thanks for finding this product. We at bobspicklepops.com love the bizarre unusual packaged foods especially pickles. I would like to taste test it compared to our Jalapeño Pickle Sickle frozen ice pops.

[David Millar]

Thanks for finding this product. We at bobspicklepops.com love the bizarre unusual packaged foods especially pickles. I would like to taste test it compared to our Jalapeño Pickle Sickle frozen ice pops.

[David Millar]

Thanks for finding this product. We at bobspicklepops.com love the bizarre unusual packaged foods especially pickles. I would like to taste test it compared to our Jalapeño Pickle Sickle frozen ice pops.

[Annette]

After pickle in a bag, you'll have to try pickles in Kool-Aid. Seriously. If you can't get to the Mississippi Delta to try them (come on, you know you want to follow the Blues), then you'll have to google it to learn more. Pucker up!

[Anony]

Lol. Every "Circle K" convenience store in this town (Cape Coral) sells Pickles in bags. Kosher, Dill, and Hot! I get a craving for these damn things all of the time. I going to the store right now.

[Nate]

Hi.

You don't know me, but I ran across your picked blog entry and thought I'd share a recent personal story.

Sunday, May 17, 2009: a couple of friends and I (in a very 1980's mood), decided to drive to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina to see a Queensrÿche show.

On the way, we came to the world-famous tourist trap South of the Border, near Dillon, South Carolina, where we stopped for a convenience store run.
While inside, we saw box after box after box of Van Holten's pickles(s) in a bag(s).
These were not the same as the ones in your blog because each of these bags was adorned with cartoon artwork of a smiling, anthropomorphized pickle dressed to resemble either a pimp or a prostitute (depending on the character's gender, I suppose).
Google it if you don't believe me.

Anyhow.

I love those pickles and count them as quintessential road trip food.
But one of the guys with whom I was traveling hates them much more passionately than I love them.

So as a compromise, I purchased two of them:
Outside, in the South of the Border parking lot, I opened one of the pickles, tossed it under the front tire of my vehicle and backed over it as slowly as possible (throwing the bag with the pickle-hooker art into a garbage receptacle nearby).
At about 1:00 A.M. later that day (or early the next morning; whatever), we stopped back by after the show to check on progress. It had been a cold, drenching rainy day, and the football-sized moist green squish was now covered with tire treads from other South of the Border customers. So I got out of my vehicle, opened the second pickle, dumped its juice out onto the first ("reanimating" it, my road trip buddies claimed), and then ate the second pickle during the remainder of my trip back home while the others slept.
It was delicious.

All of the above was documented photographically.
Feel free to check it out:
http://picasaweb.google.com/wchildres/QueensrycheHotMamaExtravaganza?authkey=Gv1sRgCObGhdzis5DinAE&feat=directlink#

Thanks for the blog story -- it was a hoot.

--N

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Claussens model, and was spicy enough to make my mouth tingly for a few minutes. Since the pickles are shelf-stable for up to two years, it could be good to stock up on these, along with duct tape and flashlights, in case of emergencies such as blizzards or terrorist attacks.

[RUGS]

Note to all readers, do NOT read this if you are hungry! I've always been a pickle lover and this is something I've never come across. I question the hot / spicy taste but nonetheless I would like to try!

[Black Vodka]

Great post, I love me some pickles. I always name them Jamal and I say "JAMAL I'M ABOUT TO EAT YOU!!" I know it's silly but I seem to enjoy eating pickles more if I'm silly about it!

[Karen Bittleston]

I ordered a case of dill's from Freestone Pickle Company, not Firestone!! We bought a pair of tire chains today and I must have tires on the brain. OMG I need a pickle fix and I'm completely out. See what they do to me!!!