Introduction: Beer Battered Fried Pickles

By Jonny's Homebrew Adventure's
About: Sharing my experience learning how to brew while tackling some fun DIY projects, the odd equipment and beer review's and of course Home Brewing Adventures!

As a Home Brewer and a Journeyman Cook I really get to have some fun with meals around the house. Today I am making deep fried pickles using a Amber Ale I recently brewed to make a traditional beer batter with. This is incredibly easy to do but I must say please use the proper safety precautions while working with hot oil.

This recipe is a no fail recipe, if it's too wet add flour and if it's too dry add beer or water. These measurements are just a guideline and you may need more or less.

Equipment:

Deep Fryer
Whisk
2 small bowls
1 medium bowl
1 plate

Ingredients:

3 cups of all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 Tbsp. salt
Black Pepper
2 bottles of beer approximately
1 Jar Pickle Spears (or whole pickles sliced into quarters lengthwise)

Step 1: Mise En Place - Everything in It's Place

  1. Turn on the deep fryer and set the temperature to 350°F
  2. Drain the pickles and have them in a small bowl, slice if required
  3. Mix the dredge for the pickles - 1 cup flour with salt and pepper (1tsp each is good)
  4. Mix the dry ingredients for the Beer Batter:
    2 cups flour
    1 tsp. baking soda
    2 tsp. salt
  5. The batter should be the consistency of a wet pancake batter roughly

Step 2: Clean As You Go!

Just like in brewing you need to clean as you go! set the prep aside and clean the counter and get the cutting board etc. put away. The last thing you need is a distraction while frying the pickles, this may seem a bit of a useless step but in my years in the kitchen some of the worst accidents I have seen were caused by the smallest mistakes. Lets not add to the statistics, once your ready the oil should be up to temp and it's time to get frying!

Step 3: Dip, Drop, or Dump?!?

The best possible way to keep the pickles looking there best while frying is to dredge them in flour and then shake off the excess and then dip it into the batter. You want to make sure to get a good coating and I usually give it a light shake before I start to dip it into the hot oil.

Here is where it gets a little dangerous.

The best results will happen if you float the pickle in the oil. To do this you have to dip half to three quarters of the pickle with batter into the oil and just hold for a moment or lightly drag around the oil until you see it start to float slightly and then you can gently let it go and it will continue to float and fry up. you can drop several and let them go for a few minutes before flipping them with some tongs.

I usually fry mine for about 3-5 minutes giving them a nice crisp batter with some good hot pickle.

Step 4: Enjoy!

When the pickles are ready I like to let them hang for a moment in the basket so the excess oil can drain away and then I will place them onto a plate with a paper towel to soak up any excess oil. The pickles are nice and crispy on the outside and warm and crunchy inside. You can add your own herbs or spices to the batter with great results too! Just keep in mind that some spices with burn quickly so just keep an eye on it as they cook.

This recipe I used a Galaxy Amber Session Ale I brewed and it lent an amazing aroma and flavor aswel as a nice color but you can use any ale or lager you like.