Pickle is a vegetable or fruit preserved in vinegar or some other food acid. Pickles may be either sweet or sour. They are made with or without sugar and salt and are usually seasoned with spices.
The most common vegetable for pickles is the cucumber. Other vegetables and fruits often used in making pickles or relishes (chopped pickles with a sweet seasoning) are cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, olives, onions, peaches, pears, green and red peppers, tomatoes, and watermelon rinds.
The process of pickling begins by soaking the vegetable or fruit in brine (salty water). The acid that is responsible for the preservation of pickles is then either added by the food processing company or is produced by bacteria in the brined pickle. Bacteria produce this acid by means of fermentation (a breaking down of chemicals in the pickle). To aid preservation, the processor may also use refrigeration or pasteurization (heating to kill harmful bacteria), or the processor may add chemicals to the brine.
Pickles are flavored with various seasonings, such as allspice, bay leaves, celery seed, cinnamon, cloves, dill, garlic, horseradish, mustard, and peppercorn. Pigs’ feet, hard-boiled eggs, and other foods can also be preserved in a pickling solution.
