Amy Toth, age 8, of Allentown, Penn., for her question:
HOW WAS THE PICKLE NAMED?
Perhaps the worlds most famous pickle is the dill pickle. It is actually a cucumber that has been preserved with the aid of the dill plant. The dill, which is an herb related to the parsley, anise and caraway, grows wild in southeastern Europe and has an unusual umbrellalike shape. The plant's bitter seeds and tiny leaves are used to season foods.
A pickle can be any number of different fruits and vegetables. The name comes from the special process that produces the good tasting finished product: pickling.
To pickle a fruit or vegetable, a brine or other liquid is used to preserve the finished product.
Vinegar and salt are usually used and sometimes sugar is also added. Spices are then added for seasoning.
Most common vegetable for pickles is the cucumber. Other fruits and vegetables that are often used to make pickles or pickle relishes are cauliflower, onions, tomatoes, beets, both red and green peppers, cabbage, crab apples, pears, peaches and watermelon.
To make most pickles, the fruits or vegetables are soaked in brine and vinegar. Then flavoring is added. Among the seasonings used in pickling are mustard, dill, horseradish, allspice, cinnamon, cloves, celery seed, peppercorn and pimento. A mixture of many spices called "pickling spice'' is also available for making certain types of pickles.
After the fruit or vegetables have been preserved in the marinade for the correct amount of time, the pickles are sealed tightly in jars.
Either sweet or sour cucumber pickles are available, and both of them are popular. The biggest selling cucumber pickle in the world is the dill pickle, which is classified as sour.
Most popular sweet pickle is the small cucumber, or gherkin, which is preserved either whole or sliced.
The pickling industry has grown very rapidly since the 1930s. Today more than $450 million worth of pickles and pickle products are made each year in scores of food processing plants in North America.
Pickled meats are also available and they are usually preserved in brine and vinegar. Pickled pigs' feet and corned beef are two favorite products which are prepared in a special pickling solution.
Cucumber pickles have very little food value, but they rate high in dietary popularity because they taste good and they add a special flavor boost to any meal.