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Bread-and-Butter Pickles
Not just any crispy cuke will do.
Top Pick
WinnerBubbies Bread & Butter Chips
Buy at AmazonThese small-producer slices picked up a subtle, briny tang from their all-natural solution.
Price at Time of Testing: $4.69 for 33 oz.
These small-producer slices picked up a subtle, briny tang from their all-natural solution.
Price at Time of Testing: $4.69 for 33 oz.
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What You Need to Know
Many barbecue aficionados are quick to point out that a plate of smoky brisket isn’t complete without the sweet-and-sour tang and snappy crunch of bread-and-butter pickles. After topping our Barbecued Brisket with six brands, we learned that not just any crispy cuke will do.
Though some form of sweetener is essential for preserving and flavoring a bread-and-butter chip, many brands have opted to replace real sugar with cheaper high-fructose corn syrup. Five of the six pickle brands we sampled list this shelf-stable syrup as their second ingredient, which led to complaints about “artificial sweetness” and “syrupy” flavors. Our favorite is made with real sugar, and our tasters could tell the difference.
Everything We Tested
Recommended
WinnerBubbies Bread & Butter Chips
These small-producer slices picked up a subtle, briny tang from their all-natural solution.
Price at Time of Testing: $4.69 for 33 oz.
These small-producer slices picked up a subtle, briny tang from their all-natural solution.
Price at Time of Testing: $4.69 for 33 oz.
Recommended with reservations
Vlasic Bread & Butter Chips
Your basic, well-balanced sweet-sour-salty pickle. Tasters had few specific complaints about this sample but found it “boring.”
Price at Time of Testing: $2.50 for 24 oz.
Your basic, well-balanced sweet-sour-salty pickle. Tasters had few specific complaints about this sample but found it “boring.”
Price at Time of Testing: $2.50 for 24 oz.
Mt. Olive Bread & Butter Chips
These petite chips were especially crunchy, but their “fake,” “saccharine” flavor was overwhelming.
Price at Time of Testing: $2.69 for 16 oz.
These petite chips were especially crunchy, but their “fake,” “saccharine” flavor was overwhelming.
Price at Time of Testing: $2.69 for 16 oz.
Vlasic Zesty Bread & Butter Chips
Some tasters enjoyed the spicy version from America’s pickle giant, but most agreed that the extra “zing” (a product of the bits of dehydrated onion and bell pepper floating in the brine) is a distraction from true bread and butter pickle flavor.
Price at Time of Testing: $2.50 for 24 oz.
Some tasters enjoyed the spicy version from America’s pickle giant, but most agreed that the extra “zing” (a product of the bits of dehydrated onion and bell pepper floating in the brine) is a distraction from true bread and butter pickle flavor.
Price at Time of Testing: $2.50 for 24 oz.
Not Recommended
Mrs. Fanning’s Bread ‘n Butter Pickles
Their strange tawny hue, “mushy” texture, and “soapy” flavor made tasters’ faces scrunch up.
Price at Time of Testing: $1.99 for 14 oz.
Their strange tawny hue, “mushy” texture, and “soapy” flavor made tasters’ faces scrunch up.
Price at Time of Testing: $1.99 for 14 oz.
Claussen Bread ‘N Butter Sandwich Slices
These sandwich stackers live in the refrigerated section of the supermarket but taste no better than the other shelf-stable samples packed in corn syrup. Tasters found them “overly vegetal and mushy,” and missed the “crunchy skin ring” common to this style of chip.
Price at Time of Testing: $3.49 for 20 oz.
These sandwich stackers live in the refrigerated section of the supermarket but taste no better than the other shelf-stable samples packed in corn syrup. Tasters found them “overly vegetal and mushy,” and missed the “crunchy skin ring” common to this style of chip.
Price at Time of Testing: $3.49 for 20 oz.
*All products reviewed by America’s Test Kitchen are independently chosen, researched, and reviewed by our editors. We buy products for testing at retail locations and do not accept unsolicited samples for testing. We list suggested sources for recommended products as a convenience to our readers but do not endorse specific retailers. When you choose to purchase our editorial recommendations from the links we provide, we may earn an affiliate commission. Prices are subject to change.
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The mission of America’s Test Kitchen Reviews is to find the best equipment and ingredients for the home cook through rigorous, hands-on testing. Have a question or suggestion? Send us an email at atkreviews@americastestkitchen.com. We appreciate your feedback!
Reviews You Can Trust.
See Why.