Make no-jar pickles with the White Mountain Pickle Company
How to make delicious pickles (no canning equipment required) with White Mountain Pickle Company.
If you’re currently nursing cucumber vines, we applaud the effort. Between the unrelenting rainfall, record-setting heat and humidity, not to mention fungi and pests, we’ve all had our work cut out for us this growing season. The fruits of your garden this year, whether large or small, should be cherished as a product of labor and love. Are you looking to try out something different with your fresh cukes? Are you wondering how to make the most of your harvest? The White Mountain Pickle Company has got you covered.
This Derry, NH-based company taps into homestyle traditions of preserving and canning and applies a passion for natural methods of preservation with a dash of the futuristic. To look at one of the company’s silvery, vacuum-sealed pickle kits, one is left wondering how true the kit stays to our idea of what a pickle is. Pickles and jars seem a ubiquitous pair. But even the most skeptical of would-be picklers are sure to be impressed by the kit’s ease, effectiveness, and the resulting product.
According to Mark, company head and developer of the revolutionary pickle-in-a-bag method, there are three qualities that set his pickle kits apart from all other types of refrigerator pickles on the market: freshness, flavor, and safety.
No glass jars, no canning pot, no boiling water, no spilled salt and slippery tongs. No cabinet shelf commandeered by row upon row of veg in brine. And yet, with the help of these kits a quality batch of pickles is within reach.
Pickling is one of the oldest traditional ways to preserve vegetables. Long before refrigeration, cultures around the world developed ways of making their crops last by curing with salt, preserving in brine, or fermenting with bacteria. These all transform humble ingredients into delicacies of unique flavor and texture. The method of pickling with vinegar, as the White Mountain Pickle Company employs, involves no fermentation whatsoever, thus making the kits safer and more effective for short-term results. Their Double Dirty DillTM flavor is a spin on the traditional fermented kosher dill pickle, where the intense sour taste comes from lacto-fermentation, a process of cultivating the bacteria on the starches within the cucumber. To contrast, these quick pickles are transformed purely by the acidity of the vinegar and natural spices and salts. The depth of flavor is enhanced by the process of diffusion and osmosis, where the acidic solution is gradually drawn into the neutral interior of the cucumber through the skin.
Much of what might put someone off from starting their own batch of pickles is solved by two components of these pickle kits: hand-measured blends of natural salts and spices tested for deliciousness, and the substitution of any canning equipment (including a jar) with a foil-lined pouch. If the labor and margin of error involved in home canning is what’s been putting you off making pickles this whole time, WMPC takes care of all for you. They pride themselves on consistency in every bag, to ensure the best results each time.
Flavor-wise, there’s something to suit everyone’s taste. Mark says his spice blends are something very close to his heart. He has fond memories of making pickles together with his daughter, and chooses his flavors as homages to the tastes he grew up with, along with regional staples tried and true. Their Bread-and Butter pickles and Mustard pickles are excellent representations of long-standing favorites. When looking at the number of artificial colorants and preservatives in commercially jarred pickles, it seems to Mark that we’ve strayed far from traditional ingredients for no reason other than cost-cutting and convenience. To him, if you wouldn’t add it onto your plate, why would you put it in a jar? That’s why his pickle kits use only premium spices and pure sea salt.
Because of the potency of each bag, you can even get a second batch of pickles out of the same brine. Not to mention, each batch only takes three days to complete and commands little space in your fridge. It’s a great way to enjoy fresh pickles with ease and safety. Even if you've never fancied yourself much use in the kitchen, these kits will allow you to enjoy a fresh pickle without investing in specialty equipment or trial-and-error. The attractive price is part of the company’s promise to you, as well. They believe in affordable ways to make good and healthy food accessible to all, which is why you’ll find these pickle kits well-suited for your kitchen throughout the year without breaking the bank.
The White Mountain Pickle Company seems to embody that do-it-yourself ingenuity that New Englanders are known for. Many of us fall out of touch with that part of our lives, either due to accessibility, convenience, or lack of time. At Essex County Co-Op, we’re proud to carry their pickle kits because we value makers of all sorts, whether you’re a home-canning expert or someone who’s just experienced the joy of growing their first flush of cucumbers.
From cultivating a garden to feed your family, to finding workarounds for time and space, there’s nothing quite like seeing your hard work pay off. Check out White Mountain Pickle Company's pickle kits today in our country store.