Fried pickles are a fun, crispy snack just like you’d find at the county fair. This easy version makes crispy fried pickles with a quick batter and crunchy panko. Serve them warm with ranch for dipping, or pile them onto burgers for extra crunch.
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Holly’s Recipe Highlights
- Flavor: Tangy dill pickles with a light, golden Panko crust for the ultimate crunch in every bite.
- Skill Level: Intermediate. This recipe requires shallow frying and attention to oil temperature for the best results.
- Prep Note: For the best crunch, dry the pickles first, fry them in batches, and keep them warm in the oven for easy serving.
- Serving Suggestions: Serve crispy deep-fried pickles right away with your favorite dips like buttermilk ranch dressing, blue cheese dressing, or homemade aioli.
Ingredient Notes
- Pickles: Use dill pickles for a classic flavor and crunch. Spicy, sour, or garlic pickles make fried pickles into a new recipe every time. For the best results, choose a thicker pickle and pat them dry before coating for a good crunch. Thin slices won’t hold up or give that bold pickle bite in every piece.
- Breading: A quick batter helps the crumbs stick to the pickles, especially after a short 5-minute rest. Panko gives the crispiest crunch, and dried dill adds a flavor boost.
How to Make Fried Pickles
- Combine batter ingredients (full recipe below) and let it rest for about 5 minutes.
- Pat pickle slices dry, dip each piece in the batter, then into the breadcrumbs.
- Fry in hot oil until both sides are golden brown.
Serve warm with your favorite dipping sauces.
Perfect Pickle Partners
Did you make these Fried Pickles? Leave a rating and comment below!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 12 dill pickle slices
- 1½ cups Panko bread crumbs
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper optional
- ½ teaspoon salt
- oil for frying
Batter
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon dried dill optional
Instructions
- In a non-stick skillet, preheat oil to 360°F to 370°F. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk Panko, cayenne pepper, and salt.
- In another medium mixing bowl, whisk flour, milk, baking powder, egg, paprika, black pepper, and dill until smooth. Let rest for at least 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, dab the pickle slices dry with paper towels.
- Place about ½ cup of Panko bread crumb mixture in a small bowl.*
- Dip each pickle slice in the flour mixture and then gently dip into the bread crumbs. Set the dipped pickles on a baking sheet and let them rest for a few minutes while you dip the remaining pickles. This will allow the crumbs to stick better.
- Fry in small batches for 3 to 4 minutes or until brown and crispy. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate and immediately sprinkle with salt.
- Serve with ranch or your favorite dipping sauce.
Notes
- *Note: If the crumbs get wet, they don’t stick, so it’s best to use just a little Panko at a time, and keep adding to the bowl as you go (work in small batches).
- *Nutritional information is an estimate and will vary based on ingredients used and the temperature of the oil.
- Additional seasonings can be added to the batter. Try garlic powder or Cajun seasoning.
- Leftovers can last up to 3 days in the fridge. Reheat under the broiler or in the air fryer until crispy again.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Appetizer, Party Food, Side Dish, Snack
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Recipe slightly adapted from Bake Like a Pro as seen on YouTube
Beyond amazing!
Thanks Laurie!
Super easy and very yummy! Will definitely use this recipe again!
Glad you loved the fried dill pickles Monic!
I omitted the panko bread crumbs because the first time I tried this recipe, the breadcrumbs scratched up the roof of my mouth! So if you plan on eating more than 6 of these fried pickle spears, here’s your word of caution!
I have the same problem with panko breaded fried stuff, always get scratched on the roof of my mouth. Same with chips. It limits me to only have a couple pcs (sighs).
BTW, I followed other tips by adding old bay seasoning in the batter. This is my go- to website if I want to try something yummy.
Thanks Holly!
You’re welcome Jewel!
1st time I made these and were perfect! Husband loved them! I had leftover coating but next time I will make for company! Thanks so much!
Just made these, they were great!
I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
What exactly is the batter ingredient?
The batter includes the ingredients from the flour down. Thanks Abby!
A little too much breading for me
OH MY GOSH. I am SO glad this popped up on my Pinterest feed!! Going to try them this weekend. My mouth is watering. Thanks!
You cans also use onion ring batter which is great. It gets nice and thick too. Either one is good.
I’d be kicking this recipe up a bit. I’m a tweeker.
I looked at several recipes before settling on this one. It seemed more like what our local restaurant makes and what we wanted to replicate. OMG, this recipe is better. We used kosher dill pickles that you get in the barrel at your local deli or food store. Way to go Spend with Pennies. This was spot on and the first time I used Panko bread crumbs (really!!). I used the rest of the batter and Panko to make chicken fries. They were amazing too!! Thank you. I have a new food crush on these, and will be using Panko more often.
Thank you so much Beth! I am so glad that this recipe was a hit with your family!
These r the bomb right now bc im n my 9th week of prenancy and am strating to get cravings all i can say is yum
Make make a whole bunch of them. Then place them on a cookie sheet with parchment paper or wax paper and stick them in the freezer then after they’re frozen put them in a ziplock bag. Then cook them as directed
CAN’T TO GET TO THE STORE AND BUY PICKLES!
Wow! Tried these tonight for the Super Bowl, and they were excellent! Better than my favorite restaurant version, can’t wait to make these again. :)
Can’t wait to try. My daughter in law loves pickles.
I made the Crispy fried dill pickles tonight and my husband and I throughly enjoyed them. Thanks for the great recipe.
I’m so glad you loved them!
Whst oil do you suggest we use for frying?
Virgin olive oil should work just fine.
Avocado oil is amazing for frying. Olive oil has too low a smoke-point. Vegetable oil is the usual “go-to” for its mild taste, but avocado is much healthier and has a buttery quality.
Thank you for the tips!
I used your recipe and they turned out great. We got more than 12 pickles out of your recipe. We even had batter left over. You are right about the panko crumbs, they need to be added to after about 6 or 7 pickles.
So glad you enjoyed them!!
Hi Holly !
We have been making these for a couple years now and everyone loves them. We use corn starch instead of flour because it ends up with more crunch and we take the panko and mix in some yellow cornmeal then pulse it a few times in a food processor. This makes the panko smaller and mixes with the cornmeal for a super crunch. It also helps refrigerate them for 30 mins after coating them. It helps the breading stay on while frying.
Sounds delicious! I’ll have to give that a try, thank you for sharing!
I love these! What I do is make a bunch and put them on trays. Then I freeze them and put into bags. Then when I want some I pull out how many needed and fry them up. Thanks for the recipe!
What an awesome idea! Thank you for sharing.