An ode to pickle juice.

The flavor-enhancer you’re probably throwing out, and unexpected ways to use it.

Remember how Alison Roman blew our minds with her shallot and anchovy pasta? It was an instant hit, thanks to the inclusion of anchovies in the sauce, which many home cooks thought would be too pungent, fishy, or salty in most dishes.

Anchovy paste had its well-deserved minutes of fame in the food world after it was revealed to be the secret kick-ass ingredient in many chef’s dishes. NYT did a feature on it, showing how it could pep up the flavors in everything from stews to chicken dishes to pasta.

Over the years, I have been using my own secret culinary weapon, and it’s pickle juice.

Pickle juice is the salty, tangy liquid you get that pickles soak in. It's made from water, vinegar, salt, and spices, which help preserve the pickles and give them their distinct flavor. People like to drink pickle juice as it is, and I’ve even used it as a mocktail ingredient in my pickle spritz. And yet most people dump this liquid gold when their pickles run out. But me? I’ll sneak a shot of pickle juice every now and then.

Now, on their own, vinegar, salt, and spices are already excellent flavor enhancers for meals. When you put them all together, you have an injection of flavor that really packs a punch. The pickle juice isn’t too salty or too tangy, it’s just the right hint of uplifting when used in small amounts. The best part? If you’re a pickle-eater, you’ve probably already honed in your tastes to a particular brand of pickles that you love. There’s no need to shop around for the ‘perfect’ pickle juice, you already have one ready to go.

I’m by no means the first person to think of this. Adding a sharp, vinegary element to dishes is a tried and true practice. In Eastern European cooking, people often add vinegar to dumplings and dumpling sauces. Sweet sauces can sometimes be too sugary or one-dimensional, and a little acidity from vinegar (or pickle juice) cuts through the sweetness, making the flavors more complex and vibrant. Here in Portland, I’m in love with the sour cherry dumplings at Kachka. Those dumplings in the buttery, vinegary sauce are a special experience, and the vinegar is what gets me there. At home, I add a splash of pickle juice.

Pickle juice works in much the same way as vinegar. It gives that little extra tang to balance out sweetness and richness. A splash of pickle juice can do wonders to enhance savory liquids like chicken stocks, broths, and soups. It’s also great in place of vinegar in salad dressings, adding a salty, zesty kick that makes the flavors pop. Even tomatoey marinara sauce benefits from a splash, because it brings out the sweetness of the tomatoes while adding extra depth.

But my favorite? Adding a splash to slow simmered chicken broth for chicken noodle soup or matzo ball soup.