Name: Fried Pickle Spears
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 5 min
Yield: 10 spears
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 jar pickle spears (pat pickles dry with a paper towel); vegetable oil (enough to pour about 1-2 inches in pan); garlic (powder); cayenne pepper; Slap Yo Mama Seasoning; 1 cup flour (seasoned); 4 eggs (seasoned); 1 cup panko crumbs (seasoned)

If you are looking for a quick snack, this crispy fried pickle spears recipe is waiting for you. Made the same way you make crispy fried chicken – egg wash, seasoned flour, egg wash, seasoned panko crumbs, this method gives you the most satisfying crunch.

Fried pickle spears cut in half with pickle showing and golden crispy panko crumb outside.

While fried pickles have been around a long time (especially here in the south where we fry pretty much anything from Oreos to Crab Claws and eat it), we were reintroduced to this incredible addicting snack on TikTok through user @BrittKHam, who has the cutest accent ever.

Ingredients

I love deep fried pickles because its just so easy to make a personal snack!

Egg – the amount of eggs you need depending on how many pickles you fry, but 4 eggs can usually get about 10 pickles quite easily.
Flour – a cup of flour in a bowl or a plate, well seasoned with garlic powder, Cayenne pepper and Slap Yo Mama seasoning.
Panko – Seasoning matters here because this is the outside crunchy panko crumb layer, so be generous. Again, Slap Yo Mama seasoning into the panko as well.

How to make Fried Pickle Spears

It is so easy to learn how to fry pickle spears!

Step 1: Prepare the Pickles First, remove the pickles from the jar and pat them dry with a paper towel. Place them on a sheet pan.

Step 2: Set Up Your Breading Station Next, take out three bowls. Add flour to the first bowl, crack and whisk 4 eggs in the second bowl, and place panko crumbs in the third bowl. Season each bowl with Slap Yo Mama seasoning to your liking. In the flour, add extra garlic powder and cayenne pepper, typically 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon depending on your heat tolerance.

Step 3: Coat the Pickles Now, dip each pickle spear in the seasoned egg mixture, then coat it in the seasoned flour. Dip it back into the egg mixture and finally, coat it with the panko crumbs. Place the coated pickle spear back on the sheet pan and repeat this process for all the pickles.

Step-by-step process of coating pickles with breadcrumbs

Step 4: Fry the Pickles Heat oil in a deep pan on the stovetop, adding enough to almost cover the pickle spears, about 1-2 inches of oil. Bring the oil to medium-high heat and make sure it is fully hot and sizzling before adding the pickles. Using tongs, carefully add the pickles to the hot oil. They should sizzle immediately.

Fry until golden brown, about 1-2 minutes per side, then flip and fry the other side. Remove the fried pickles and place them back on the sheet pan to drain excess oil.

Can pickles be cut into slices? Technically yes. But you will need to use tongs to carefully fry both sides and the timing will change. You also run the risk of the crispy panko falling off in the pan with less surface. I recommend pickle spears for sure. Spears are easier to handle, dip, and great for parties as one pickle = one serving.

Close-up of fried pickles with golden brown coating

What dips go best with Fried Pickles?

My favorite is this Ranch Dip Recipe, but to mix it up, Sour Cream and Chives Dip or Garlic and Herb Dip works well too.

Fried pickles served with a side of ranch dip.

If you love this snack, you must try my newest pickle snack recipe! My new Pickles and cheese recipe, with take tiny little dill pickles and smother then in fried cheese is a stand by the stove and eat snack. Or check out one of the other pickle recipes below.

Ranch Pickles

Bacon Wrapped Pickles

sliced cucumbers with ranch in a mason jar.

Ranch Cucumbers

Pickle Cookies

Steps

Remove pickles from jar and pat dry with a paper towel. The coating will not stick if they are too wet. I find its easiest to set them all down on a sheet pan.

Take out 3 bowls. In one bowl add flour, in one bowl crack 4 eggs (whisk together) and in the last bowl add panko crumbs.

Add Slap Yo Mama seasoning (to liking) in each bowl, seasoning each one. Add extra garlic powder and cayenne in the flour (typically about a tsp to a tbsp. of each, depending on heat tolerance.

Dip one pickle spear in seasoned egg, then in the seasoned flour, back into egg and then into panko crumbs. Set coated spear back on sheet pan.

Continue coating all pickles.

Heat oil on stove top, adding enough that it almost would come to the top of the pickle spear, about 1-2 inches of oil. Bring to medium- high heat. Do not add pickles until oil is FULLY HOT and SIZZLING.

Using tongs, add pickles to the oil and they should sizzle immediately. Wait until brown and flip, each side should take about 1-2 minutes or less.

Remove pickles and sit back on sheet pan. Continue until all batches are done.

Serve fried pickles with ranch dip.