Something rich, something sharp, something with crunch. Two Wild Root jars reminded us how little it can take to make an ordinary lunch better.
Tacos with Wild Root Pickled Pink Cauliflower: a maker serving suggestion, not a recipe tested by The Local. Credit: Wild Root in-house photographer/creator
The best reason to open a jar of pickles is not that a recipe tells you to. It is that the food in front of you could use something the jar provides.
A cheese toastie might want a sharper edge. A soft sandwich might need bite. A salad can have plenty of ingredients and still lack the contrast that makes you want another forkful.
We tried Wild Root’s Bread & Butter Pickles and Pickled Pink Cauliflower with everyday food. Both stood out for their crunch and bright flavour. Here is how we would put them to work.
Give rich food a sharper edge
Our standout pairing was the cauliflower on homemade sourdough cheese on toast with mature cheddar. The cheese was rich and full-flavoured; the pickle brought tang and crunch. Neither disappeared into the other.
It also worked in a cheese quesadilla. That is a useful starting point for your own lunch: when a dish is rich and soft, try a small amount of something sharp and crisp.
A grazing board or a creamy sandwich could suit the same approach. Those are suggestions, rather than additional dishes from our tasting.
Wild Root in-house photographer/creator
Make texture do some of the work
The Bread & Butter Pickles earned their place in a chicken salad by adding bite as well as sweetness and acidity. They helped the richer parts of the dish feel fresher, without making everything taste of vinegar.
We also made Wild Root’s crispy tofu burger with dill slaw and pickles. The contrast was the highlight: the pickles cut through the richer elements, giving the whole bite more life.
You do not need to make a burger to use that idea. Think about the next sandwich you are assembling: is every layer soft, or is there something crisp to interrupt it?
Choose between the two jars
For us, the Bread & Butter Pickles are the easy starting point. Their balance of sweetness, acidity and crunch makes sense in sandwiches and salads, and we would happily reach for them alongside a burger.
The Pickled Pink Cauliflower brings a different appeal: vivid colour, firm crunch and a bright tang that was particularly good with cheese. It can be a topping or a side, rather than something that has to disappear inside a sandwich.
These are our impressions of the jars we tried, not a ranking of the entire Wild Root range. We enjoyed both enough to eat them straight from the fridge.
Wild Root in-house photographer/creator
Four questions, no new recipe
- Is the dish rich? Try a little acidity.
- Is it soft? Look for crunch.
- Does it taste flat? A sweet-sharp or spiced element might help.
- Is it already very sharp? Taste before adding more acidity.
Start with a small amount and try a complete bite. A good addition should make you want more of the dish, not drown out everything else.
Follow the storage and opening instructions on your own jar. Then give it a regular job: beside lunch, inside a sandwich or on that piece of cheese on toast. A pickle is much more useful on the plate than waiting for a special occasion.
