Not that it’s a foregone conclusion, but after all these years, can’t we agree that it’s time to move on? With a new, potentially divisive, pie making its way onto menus across the country that deserves our attention instead: Ladies and gentlemen on the social media debate stage, I present to you Pickle Pizza. discuss.
No matter how you feel about this development in human history, it may be time to prepare your talking points. Pickle pie has a moment.
It’s a new food item this year in Minnesota and Indiana State Fairs, advertisements for them have attracted attention from local media and social media dignitaries. Pickles are among the traditional offerings in pizzerias too chain joints For cheffy pizzerias. Often served over a white or ranch dressing instead of the classic red, pickles prove to be more than just the new business in the pizza game.
“There’s this delicious, citrusy, and refreshing bite,” says Rachel Jennings, who recently opened her own pizzeria. Boogie and Billin Washington after years of working as a chef at White-hot luxury rose. Pickles are the star of their Big Mac-inspired pie, which pairs a version of the fast food icon’s special sauce (spoiler alert: it’s basically Thousand Island sauce, she says) with American cheese and ground beef. From the blown oven, the pie is topped with crunchy iceberg lettuce, sliced white onions, special sauce – and house pickles.
Jennings admits that her pies, which she calls her style “New Neapolitan,” aren’t even close to traditional. “If you take this to your nonna in Sicily, she’ll spit in your face,” Jennings says. “But, like, try it and tell me it’s not delicious.”
Many saltwater lovers agree that pickles have earned their place in the number one pantheon. Although there is no definitive date for pickled pizza, research by Nexis in news stories suggests that after its odd appearance in a few restaurants over the years, they started getting wider notice around 2018.
That year, a video clip of pickled pizza being made in New York went viraland Al Roker and his gang on “Today” bravely tried to serve up a pickle pie for yuk on screen—they came from Rhino pizza in upstate New York, which they called the inventor of creation.
Since then, it’s been released at a handful of state fairs, including in Ohio, Florida, and West Virginia, as well as the Calgary Stampede—places where eye-catching food thrives. However, the pickle pizza seems to be a superstar.
The early creator was Dennis Schneikloth, owner of QC Pizza, which has two locations in Minnesota and specializes in exotic recipes (think lobster-inspired muffins-rangoon-and avocado-toast). He was scouting ideas for his recent oddball show, and it occurred to him to make a pizza based on a popular state delicacy, pickle roll, sometimes called Minnesota sushi. This snack has pickles dipped in cream cheese and wrapped in a slice of ham.
“I posted about it in a Facebook group, and people were saying, ‘No way, that sounds awful,'” he says. “But I had a feeling about it.”
After some repair work and searching for fresh pickles that could withstand the heat of his 500-degree ovens, Schneekloth was able to think of what he decided was a successful combination. Its base is a white sauce topped with garlic and dill, layered with pickles, mozzarella, and slices of Canadian bacon that’s been smoked for 48 hours. Because he makes his own pizza in Quad-style city A lesser-known type of pie is named for its origins in the region that spans four cities in Iowa and Illinois—most toppings are under cheese (a last garnish for more pickles and fresh dill tops the whole thing), and pizza is sliced, not wedges.
He proved his Facebook friends wrong – customers loved it. She drew international attention at the FoodBeast blog show his character in 2019.
“It just exploded,” he recalls. “I was in the UK newspapers” is now selling frozen pizza on food delivery service Goldbelly and driving a Mercedes Sprinter truck covered in pictures of pickles.
Since then, he’s seen a lot of pickle pies grow. “More power to them,” he says.
He’s back in R&D mode, working on a deep-dish pickled pizza he calls the mega dill. “If I can master this, people will buy it,” he says.
in Coal Slice Pizza Company In Vernon Hills, Illinois, pickle pizza has been a special item on the menu lately. Graeme Nyland, the restaurant’s general manager, said the creation was a team effort. He argued, pointing out the long lines of the pickled pizza booth at the Wisconsin State Fair, and thought they could do it way more elevated.
Slyce’s version uses extra virgin olive oil and garlic as a base, topped with prosciutto, sliced tomato, and house-made pickles using English cucumbers. A chili oil spray finished it off. Nyland appreciates the culinary qualities of the star ingredient – and its divisive appeal.
“It just has a nice vinegar punch that really kicks things up,” he says. “Pickles are the kind of thing that people either love or hate, and there are more who like them.”
“Explorer. Unapologetic entrepreneur. Alcohol fanatic. Certified writer. Wannabe tv evangelist. Twitter fanatic. Student. Web scholar. Travel buff.”