Fried Pickles

I love to fry.

I used to be "afraid" of it when I started out. Timid. However, my mom did a lot of frying and I knew I could count oh her to help me out. Ended up not really needing much assistance. Growing up, Friday nights were special. One of three things happened. We made boxed pizza. We ordered pizza. Or we fried. But we always had a trip to the video store to rent VHS tapes or Nintendo games. Movies were always involved.

Frying. We're talking about frying. My mom would fry chicken or shrimp and home fries. Man, can my mom fry. Usually when we had fried shrimp, I would wake up early the next day and eat the leftovers for breakfast. I was greedy. GREEEEEDY.

My mom used to fry in a Fry Baby and used Crisco. I use a very large cast iron skillet and canola oil. Much healthier. Or at least better than a lot of other fats out there.

Pickles. I love pickles. And the first time I heard of fried pickles, it grossed me out. Then about a year or two ago, I had my first taste. And I'm hooked. That crunch, that dill flavor... Ugh.

Sadly, I don't have any pictures - not even from my students' frying labs. Shame. But here's the process. And I'm going to get long-winded because it isn't really a recipe, but a how to.

Assemble your ingredients.

• Frying pan - Something heavy to keep your fat at a slow, even temperature
• Canola oil - Not too much. You want a 'deep' fry but it's pickles, they're thin. Maybe a quarter of an inch in your frying pan.
• Thermometer - Only if you need it. You want your fat to reach 350F. I rely on time and swirls.

• Pickles - I do regular hamburger dill slices. But you can get all fancy if you want. You want your pickles dry. You can also slice your own pickles. And if you can, get/slice your pickles about double thickness compared to your regular jarred dill pickles.

• Flour - No amount necessary. It really depends on how much you want to make.
• Egg - Scrambled. One egg will do ya
• Milk - About a tablespoon per egg, mixed with the egg of course.
• Seasoned bread crumbs - Italian seasoned bread crumbs are good. This is the perfect amount of season. 

Notice I'm not listing salt or pepper or whatever. Your pickles are flavored enough. That flavor will come through.

PROCESS
Oil in your pan, heat to medium-high.

While your fat is heating, get three dishes for battering/breading.
1. Scrambled egg & milk
2. Flour
3. Bread crumbs

Take your DRY pickles and dip in flour, then egg, then bread crumbs. Coat evenly. Batter all of your pickles. It's a very quick fry and you don't want to put any in the oil yet (it may not be hot enough or it may be hot enough and you'll end up burning your batch if you're still breading pickles.)

Your fat should be hot enough by the time you've got your pickles coated.
One by one, put your pickles in the hot oil. This is so they don't stick together.
It will only take a minute, IF THAT. You're only cooking the breading. Be sure to give your pickles a flip for even cooking. Your pickles should be a golden brown. I prefer a darker golden brown - more crispy.

Set on a pile of paper towels for draining.
I like a 'dipping sauce' with my pickles. Ranch dressing with parmesan cheese mixed in.

Enjoy!