These fried pickle spears are the ultimate, easy to make griddle appetizers. Whether you have a Camp Chef or a Blackstone griddle, you’ll want to add these to your list of favorite game day appetizers!
Football time is coming up quickly, so I’ve been gearing up by experimenting with all sorts of appetizers on the flat top grill. Nothing says football food like some good fried finger foods, after all. And since my wife and daughter both love dill pickles, I knew that I had to add some fried pickle spears to my list of must-make football appetizers.
And these easy griddle snacks turned out so good that even my wife watched a few quarters of the football game with me… even if she did call them “innings”. Ha!
If you’re looking to fry up some pickles on your griddle, then this easy recipe should be at the top of your list! While you don’t get the same 360 degree crust as you would from deep frying, these fried dill pickle spears still ended up crunchy and delicious. And they even got the stamp of approval from my picky ten year old, pickle-loving daughter.
Here’s how to make fried pickles on the griddle (or inside in a skillet):
Ingredients for Fried Dill Pickles
Here are the ingredients you’ll need to make these awesome fried pickle spears on your flat top grill (or inside in a skillet):
- pickle spears – I like the Clausen brand of pickles found in the refrigerated section of the grocery store.
- eggs
- hot sauce
- half and half
- canned breadcrumbs
- panko
- Creole seasoning
- oil for frying – I used my trusty avocado oil… Since we’re not deep frying the pickles, you don’t need as much oil.
- all purpose flour
I also made a simple dipping sauce for fried pickles by mixing together my favorite store-bought Ranch dressing and a bit of creamy style horseradish. Super easy and the perfect compliment to the crunchy fried dill pickles!
How to Make Fried Pickles on the Griddle
Step 1: Dry your pickles overnight.
The key to getting your batter to stick and not just slide right off is drying your pickles.
To do this, place a few layers of paper towels on a large plate. Lay your dill pickle spears on top of the paper towels with a bit of space in between each pickle. Then, refrigerate the plate uncovered for at least 8 hours to draw out as much moisture as possible. Yes, this does take a bit of pre-planning, but this extra step is worth it!
Step 2: Preheat your flat top grill.
Preheat your griddle on low until it reaches about 425 to 450 degrees. That my seem high, but if you’ve been cooking on a flat top grill for a while, then you know that it can reach some high temperatures, even on the low setting. And cooking the dill pickles at this temp will give them a nice crispy crust.
Step 3: Make the fried pickles batter.
Just like you would fry pretty much any food, you’ll need a dredging station. And the secret to getting the perfect crispy crust on these flat top grill appetizers is all in the batter. To batter your dill pickles, prepare the following 3 bowls first:
- large bowl of all purpose flour
- medium bowl with 2 eggs and about 1/2 cup of half and half mixed together – You can also add a tablespoon or two of your favorite hot sauce to the wet ingredients for a little extra kick.
- large bowl with 2:1 ration – two parts panko and 1 part breadcrumbs plus some Creole seasoning – I love using panko when frying, because it adds an extra layer of crispiness… exactly what you want in a fried appetizer.
Step 4: Batter the dill pickle spears.
Once your dredging station (3 bowls) is ready, it’s time to batter the pickle spears so they’re ready for frying. Here are the steps to do that:
- Toss your dried dill pickle spears in some all purpose flour until they’re evenly coated. For the best coverage, work in batches and don’t overcrowd the bowl.
- Take a few of the flour-coated pickle spears at a time, and dunk them in the 2nd bowl, the egg wash mixture.
- Just make sure that they’re completely wet on all sides, then immediately transfer the pickle spears to the third bowl, the breadcrumbs and panko.
- Toss the spears in the panko and breadcrumbs coating until they’re completely covered on all sides. Then, transfer them to a wire rack until you’re ready to fry. By the way, the wire rack in the photo below comes with a melting dome, and it is one of my absolute must-have flat top grill accessories!
Step 5: Shallow fry the pickles on the griddle.
Add a good layer of your favorite frying oil to one section of your preheated flat top grill. I used avocado oil, which is the oil I use pretty much exclusively for cooking and seasoning my flat top grill. You will need a bit more oil than you would normally use on your griddle because you will be shallow frying, which is much different than sautéing vegetables or making a cheesesteak.
Then, carefully lay your battered pickle spears down in the oil, taking care to not drop them so that the hot oil doesn’t splatter and burn you. Leave about 1/2 to 3/4 inch of space in between each pickle spear so that they cook evenly and are able to crisp up.
Fry the pickle spears on the first side until golden brown and crispy, and then flip to the next side. Obviously you don’t have to worry about cooking the pickle all the way through, because it’s a pickle and not a piece of meat. So all you’re looking for is the exterior of the pickle to get crunchy.
Once the first side is done, you can simply rotate the pickles to the second side. After you rotate them, you can use a squirt bottle of your frying oil to add some more oil in between each pickle spear… Be careful to not add extra oil on top of the pickle, because you don’t want to make the crispy crust soggy. Just add a line of oil to the griddle surface in between each pickle. The extra oil helps the frying process and makes for a crispier dill pickle.
Your dill pickle spears should be a triangular shape, so you’ll need to fry them on all 3 sides for the perfect crispy fried griddle appetizers.
Step 6: Remove the fried pickle spears from the griddle and let them cool.
Once your pickles have been fried on all 3 sides and they’re done to your desired “crunchiness level”, carefully remove them from the flat top grill and transfer them to a wire cooling rack. The wire rack allows any excess oil to drip off.
And while the fried pickles are cooling down a bit, you can whip up a super simple fried pickle dipping sauce…
Easy 2 Ingredient Dipping Sauce for Fried Pickles
Ranch dressing and pickles go together really well, just ask Texas Roadhouse, and adding a little kick from some horseradish just makes this kicked-up sauce the perfect dip to serve with your fried pickle spears… and it only takes about 60 seconds to make.
Simply mix together your favorite Ranch dressing (I used Litehouse Ranch) and creamy style horseradish. If you like a spicier sauce, you can use more horseradish to give it an extra kick. I used about 3/4 to 1 cup of Ranch and about 2 tablespoons of creamy style horseradish.
Fried Pickle Spears Recipe
Want to print out this easy fried pickle spears recipe to add to your list of Blackstone griddle appetizers to make? Just use the recipe card below… and then check out this easy Loaded Cheese Fries recipe for more griddle appetizer ideas!
Fried Pickle Spears with Horseradish Ranch Dipping Sauce
Ingredients
- 14 dill pickle spears
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 eggs
- .5 cup half and half
- 1 tablespoon hot sauce
- .75 cup plain breadcrumbs
- 1.5 cup panko
- 1 tablespoon Creole seasoning
- about 1 cup frying oil or enough to shallow fry pickles
For the Horseradish Ranch Dipping Sauce:
- .75 cup ranch dressing
- 2 tablespoons creamy horseradish
Instructions
- Place pickles on a paper towel lined plate uncovered in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours or overnight. This allows the dill pickles to dry out some so that the batter sticks to them.
- Preheat griddle or skillet until it reaches a temperature of about 425 degrees to 450 degrees.
- To make the dipping sauce, add ranch dressing and horseradish to a small bowl and mix to combine. Set aside.
- While griddle is heating, set up a dredging station to batter the pickles. Add all purpose flour to one shallow wide-bottomed bowl (Bowl #1). In a second bowl (Bowl #2), add 2 beaten eggs, half and half, and hot sauce. In a third bowl (Bowl #3), add breadcrumbs, panko, and Creole seasoning and mix to combine.
- To batter the pickle spears, working with about 2 to 3 pickles at a time, add the spears to the flour (Bowl #1) and gently toss so they are completely coated. Then transfer the flour-coated pickles to the egg wash (Bowl #2) and coat completely. Use a fork to remove the dipped pickles from the egg wash and transfer them to the panko/breadcrumb bowl (Bowl #3). Carefully coat each pickle spear in the breadcrumb mixture and transfer to a wire rack. Continue that process until all pickle spears are breaded.
- Add about .75 cup of frying oil to the heated griddle surface. Carefully lay the breaded pickle spears in the oil to start shallow frying. Allow the pickles to cook on the first side for about 3-5 minutes or until they're golden brown on the first side, then rotate to the second side. The pickle spears should be more triangular in shape and have 3 sides.
- Continue to shallow fry the pickles in the oil until all 3 sides are golden brown and crispy. You may need to add additional oil to the griddle using your squirt bottle – add the oil directly to the griddle surface in between the pickles, not on top of the actual pickles so that they don't get soggy.
- When pickles are done frying, transfer them to a wire cooling rack to drain and cool. Serve warm with horseradish ranch dipping sauce.
Notes
- This recipe makes 14 fried pickle spears, which was one whole jar of the pickles that I was using. You may need to adjust the amount of the ingredients for each dredging station bowl.
- Adjust amount of hot sauce and horseradish for more or less spice.
Comments & Reviews
Tyler Boicourt says
Excited to try this out next weekend.