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Burning Questions for Mr.
Crisp
updated 1/17/07
Barrels
Best If Used By Date
Finding Products
Fun Facts
Gluten
Ordering Pickles
Pickle Making
Pickle Terms
Refrigeration
Visiting Mt. Olive
Barrels
Q: Does Mt. Olive Pickle have barrels that
it makes available to the public for purchase?
updated 4/07/08
A:
Mt. Olive Pickle
Company has 55-gallon plastic barrels available in sizeable quantities
at certain times of the year. Drought conditions in North Carolina
have created a tremendous surge of interest in these barrels. At this
time, however, high demand for barrels and a lower-than-expected
supply have created a backlog for requests. Mt. Olive will be unable
to accommodate any new requests for barrels.
We prefer selling
our barrels in bulk to non-profit organizations and select dealers who
work with non-profits and municipalities to provide rain barrels to
the public at affordable prices. Because of the drought, we had made
barrels available to the general public for $5 each with a maximum of
6 barrels per person. We can no longer accommodate these requests. We
will evaluate whether to once again make the barrels available to the
public, based on our anticipated inventory and requests from local
governments, non-profits, and select dealers. We will post on this
website when, and if, additional sales are warranted. Additionally, we
are not adding any new dealers at this time.
In the meantime, if
you are interested in purchasing a finished rain barrel, we suggest
you contact your local municipality or Soil & Water Conservation
officials.
Best If Used By Date
Q: Where do I find the Best If Used By Date
on Mt. Olive products?
A: We stamp our
Best If Used By Date on the glass itself, on the shoulder of the jar
where it curves to go up into the lid. This applies to all of Mt.
Olive's products except for our Jalapeno Pepper items. On our Jalapeno
Pepper products, you may find the Best If Used By Date stamped on the
rim of the jar lid, or on the shoulder of the jar as described above.
Finding Products
Q:
Why can't I find Mt. Olive's Super Sweet Dill Strips, Sweet Sandwich
Chips, Hot Mixed, and Chow Chow items?
A: We discontinued those items because of slow movement,
and we no longer have any in inventory. The folks who loved them really
loved them, but there wasn't enough demand for them overall for us to
continue packing them.
Q: Why can't I find my favorite Mt.
Olive product at my local grocery store?
A: Mt. Olive packs almost 230 different items, and grocery
stores, which typically have limited shelf space, must decide which
items to carry. Stores try to carry the most popular items that appeal
to most of their customers. The faster moving items need more shelf
space in order to maintain an adequate supply until the next shipment.
Stores determine what product mix they
will carry based on their customers’ preferences, sales information and
input from our own sales people. So product availability varies from
store to store.
Look up some of our
Hard to Find items, including
Sour, Sweet Mixed, and Polish Kosher Dills.
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Fun Facts
Q: Where does the term 'bread &
butter' come from?
A:
The term bread
and butter pickles actually comes from Sweden's smorgasbord -- which is
a table of delicacies eaten as appetizers before dinner. Included are
several kinds of breads and butter, as well as pickled vegetables,
(including pickled cucumbers) pickled and smoked fish and meats.
Smorgasbord means "bread and butter table." Here in the U.S., of course,
smorgasbord means a buffet-style meal.
Q: If Peter Piper really picked a peck of
pickled peppers, how many pickled peppers did he pick?
A: If he picked a peck of banana peppers, he'd have 20-24.
Q: Why doesn't Mt. Olive pack olives?
A: Well, the Mt. Olive Pickle Company is named for its hometown,
Mount Olive, North Carolina. (Things just happen.) Most olives are
packed in Spain.
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Gluten
Q: Are your products gluten-free?
A:
All
of Mt. Olive's products are now
GLUTEN FREE. Prior to January 1, 2006 we manufactured three products
that did contain gluten:
When purchasing these three items, please
confirm that the Best If Used By Date is July 2008 or later. Click
here to learn where
to find the Best If Used By Date on the jar.
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Ordering Pickles
Q: Can I have you ship me cases of pickles?
A: We
can now ship any 12 oz. or 16 oz. item we pack in our gift pack
packaging. We ship UPS anywhere in the continental U.S.
We also offer two pickle assortments, our standard Gift Pack, and our No
Sugar Added gift pack. To order
any of these items, call
us at 800.672.5041 and ask for the Gift Shop.
We can
not accommodate individual orders for anything larger than a 16 oz. jar.
For larger items, we suggest you ask your local store to special order a
case for you. Sometimes this is possible, and sometimes it isn't. For
reference, it's helpful to provide your store with the product UPC
number, a 10-digit number that starts with 09300. You'll find UPC
numbers listed with items on our
Product Line pages.
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Pickle Making
Q: How long will a cucumber in brine keep?
A: It depends on the size of the cucumber. The smaller cukes keep
longer than the larger ones. But cucumbers will keep in brine as long as
two or three years if proper care is given to them. At Mt. Olive,
cucumbers are stored in brine tanks an average of three to nine months.
Q: Are your pickles pasteurized?
A: Yes, all of our shelf size pickles are pasteurized. Our fresh
pack pickles are pasteurized in order to preserve them. Otherwise, they
would have an extremely limited shelf life. Although is it not necessary
to pasteurize our processed pickles, we do so to offer a more uniform
distribution of flavor and to strengthen keeping qualities.
Q: What is used in pickles for flavor?
A: We use many different spices and oils. In addition to dill,
vinegar and sugar, we use oil of cloves and oil of cassia, as well as
tumeric, celery seed, mustard seed, allspice, oil of orange, nutmeg,
ginger and anise.
Q: Why isn't dill weed used in your Fresh Kosher Dills?
A: In earlier years, dill weed itself was the only thing
available for giving the dill flavor to pickles. Today, oil of dill weed
(an extract of dill weed) is used. It provides a more uniform and
attractive product. In addition, the shelf life of products packed with
oil of dill weed is longer than those packed with dill weed itself.
Q: I want to pickle my own cucumbers or peppers at home. Do you have recipes I
can use?
A: We do not. We have found the recipes we use in the commercial
pickling process do not translate very well in home kitchens. Of course,
we prefer you buy Mt. Olive Pickles instead of making your own! But if
you are faced with a bumper crop of cucumbers in your garden without a
clue what to do with them, we suggest these sources for home canning
information:
Next year, just plant fewer cucumbers and eat more Mt. Olive Pickles -
it's a whole lot easier.
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Pickle Terms
Q: What is the difference between Kosher
Dill pickles and Dill pickles?
A: Kosher Dill pickles have garlic flavoring in them. (Kosher
denotes garlic.) Dill pickles do not have garlic.
Q: What are polski wyrobs, and does Mt. Olive pack them?
A: Polski wyrobs are a spicier, hotter version of dill pickles,
and they are usually packed with pepper. Mt. Olive packs a polski wyrob,
but we label it Polish Kosher Dill.
We have a fairly limited distribution of this item.
Q: What is a ‘kosher pickle?’
A: The word "kosher" itself is derived from Hebrew and actually
means religiously proper or acceptable. Today, however, for many
avid pickle lovers "kosher" has come to mean that garlic flavor has been
added. Mt. Olive's pickles are both kosher and kosher: our kosher dills
are not only garlic flavored, but they are also produced in accordance
with kosher dietary laws. All of our products
have the approval of the Jewish Orthodox Congregations of America and
carry the widely recognized OU symbol.
Q: What are fresh pack pickles?
A: Fresh pack pickles are those made from fresh cucumbers which are
graded, washed and packed. Fresh pack pickles are different from
processed pickles (see below) in that fresh pack pickles do not undergo a lactic
acid fermentation process before being packed. Fresh pack
pickles may be sliced, chipped or packed whole using various sizes of
pickles and containers. After these pickles are packed in jars with
either sweet or dill juice, they are vacuum sealed. The pickles are then
pasteurized to prevent the product from fermenting, and quickly cooled.
This process also preserves the unique flavor and distinct texture of
the fresh cucumber.
Q: What are processed pickles?
A: Processed pickles are made from cucumbers which have been
graded and placed in a salt solution in large storage tanks. In these
tanks they undergo a lactic acid fermentation process sometimes called
"curing" or "preserving." During this month-long
curing process, salt is gradually added according to a precise formula
so that is permeates the cucumbers. By the end of the curing period, the
cucumbers have become what is known as "brine stock" from
which processed pickles are made. These pickles may be sweet, dill or
sour, and they may also be sliced, chipped, cubed or packed whole using
various sizes of pickle containers.
Q: What does vacuum pack mean?
A: Vacuum pack pickles are those in which a vacuum is created by
replacing air with steam just before the cap is applied. When the steam
condenses, a vacuum is created and oxygen is reduced. The original
quality of the cucumber is preserved until the jar is opened. All shelf
size Mt. Olive pickles are vacuum packed as well as pasteurized.
Q: What is a midget? A gherkin?
A: When we refer to the terms midget and gherkin, we are
referring to small cucumbers that come from the same plant that produces
larger cucumbers, cucumis sativus. These midgets and gherkins are picked
before they have a chance to grow up to be big ones. However, there is a
different species of cucumber called a gherkin, cucumis anguria. These
cucumbers are known as West Indian or Burr gherkins, and they produce
small, exceptionally spiny fruit that is used for pickling. Mt. Olive,
however, does not pickle this type of gherkin.
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Refrigeration
Q: After I open my jar of Mt. Olive pickles, should I store it in
my refrigerator?
A: Yes, you should. Pickles will keep indefinitely in your
refrigerator. Refrigeration
ensures product quality remains
intact over time, and in the case of fresh pack items it prevents
fermentation.
Fermentation is a natural
process, and eating fermented pickles does not pose a health threat
(fermented pickles just may not look and taste as appetizing.) A
telltale sign of fermentation is a milky, cloudy appearance in the
juice.
By the way, we suggest you chill that unopened jar of pickles before
serving to enhance the flavor.
Q: My power has been out for several days.
Are the pickles left in my refrigerator safe to eat?
A:
The good news is that your
pickles should be safe to eat, even though they have been left without
refrigeration for a number of days.
We generally recommend that our products be refrigerated after opening.
This ensures product quality remains intact over time, and in the case
of fresh pack items it prevents fermentation. Fermentation is a natural
process, and eating fermented pickles does not pose a health threat
(fermented pickles just may not look and taste as appetizing.)
A telltale sign of fermentation is a milky, cloudy appearance in the
juice. If you see this in your pickles, just discard. Short of that,
count the pickles in your fridge as at least one item you don't have to
throw away.
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Visiting Mt. Olive Pickle Company
Q: Do
you offer tours of your factory in Mount Olive?
A. We do not offer tours of our facility to the general public.
But, we have a great
little gift shop here, and we have a tour video that you can ask to see
while visiting. The gift shop hours are 8-5 Monday through Friday; it's
open Saturday mornings till noon beginning the Saturday after
Thanksgiving and running through Christmas. For driving directions, go
to Contact Us.
Have your own burning question?
Ask
Mister Crisp personally!
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