Home canners and amateur chefs are invited to submit their pickles for BC’s first pickle contest, to coincide with Dunn’s Famous Restaurant and Deli’s new Vancouver location, the first in Western Canada. Judged by a panel of food writers, chefs and pickle experts, one winner will be chosen to receive an all-expenses paid trip for two to Montréal, dinner at Montréal’s Dunn’s Famous Restaurant Deli, and pickles for life at Dunn’s in Vancouver.
Dunn’s Famous is excited about coming to BC and working with local suppliers. Bread for Dunn’s famous Montréal smoked meat sandwiches will be baked locally in Vancouver. The all-beef hot dogs will be provided by a local sausage maker. This iconic Montreal smoked meat restaurant deli serves thousands of whole pickles everyday in their Montreal establishments.
Dunn’s Famous BC has partnered with four British Columbia farmers’ markets to bring together home canners, pickling cucumbers, and local farmers.
On Saturday, October 1, both pickle pros and amateurs will be able to drop off their pickles and recipes at the following locations:
Trout Lake Farmers Market in Vancouver
Moss Street Market in Victoria
Penticton Community Market in the Okanagan
Haney Farmers Market in Maple Ridge
The fine print
Participants must register online and be able to supply an original pickle recipe along with a total of 30 pickles in sealed glass jars (whole or whole spears pickling cucumbers only). Pickles can be dropped off on Saturday, October 1 at the Dunn’s pickle contest table (located at each of the four farmer’s markets mentioned above). The online form must also be printed out and attached to each pickle jar entered.
The judges will remain anonymous until after October 1 to ensure the contest’s integrity. Around that time, pickles will be divided into identical containers and numbered for a blind tasting before being distributed to judges located across the province. Using a point system for flavour, presentation, taste and texture, eight finalists will be chosen by secret ballot.
The pickles from the eight finalists will be judged live at Trout Lake Farmers’ Market on Saturday, October 15 at 11 am, with a grand prize winner and runners-up prizes distributed to the remaining finalists.
