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-   -   Cheese & Pickle ~ Help me do it right? (https://www.fodors.com/community/europe/cheese-and-pickle-help-me-do-it-right-951604/)

nyse Sep 24th, 2012 02:30 PM

Cheese & Pickle ~ Help me do it right?
 
I have the cheddar cheese and the Branston pickle, but need directions please.
What kind of bread makes a proper cheese & pickle sandwich?
Butter or other additions?
Thank you to the UK!

hollywoodsc Sep 24th, 2012 02:46 PM

Oh my gosh, that's my favorite sandwich ever!! People in the US think I'm nuts.
I like a nice soft bread, not too strong to over-power the cheese and pickle. Butter, slice the pickles very thin and layer the cheese then pickle...yum!

It's definitely an aquired taste. My Mom ate them while pregnant so I was born with a taste for them :)

Darn, now I'm craving one.

nyse Sep 24th, 2012 03:14 PM

Thanks but my Branston pickle is like a thick relish.
What kind of pickles are you slicing? And you're using cheddar cheese, right?

adrienne Sep 24th, 2012 03:37 PM

I don't use any butter with pickle and use any type of mild bread such as white or oatmeal. IMHO dark bread would detract from the pickle flavor.

I also like pickles on my sandwiches but that's another discussion.

Fra_Diavolo Sep 24th, 2012 04:37 PM

Stilton isn't bad either.

I use a whole grain bread.

And an apple.

Some pale ale or cider is not amiss.

PatrickLondon Sep 24th, 2012 09:47 PM

All a matter of taste. It isn't a gourmet experience for most of us.

janisj Sep 24th, 2012 10:10 PM

hollywoodsc: 'pickle' isn't like kosher dill pickles or sweet gherkins that one can slice. It is a brown relish made of finely chopped veggies. Believe it or not - cauliflower, carrots, rutabaga, onions and marrows (squash).

nyse: Just experiment to see how you like it best. I personally don't use butter when using pickle and usually a crusty/country white bread.

But sometimes I also just like to take Carr's wheatmeal biscuits and put a slice of cheese and a dollop of pickle on each one - instead of making a 'real' sandwich.

Avalon2 Sep 24th, 2012 11:38 PM

I like it with brown bread or rolls. LAtely I have been using Pappperride Farms frozen whole wheat rolls. Noticed that Branston makes a fine cut relish in addirition to the reglar. Haven't tried it yet

unclegus Sep 24th, 2012 11:44 PM

Nice crusty white bread, thin spread of butter, thick slices of strong cheddar and a good spreading of branston on top.
Also good with baked potatoes. just add buter to baked potato,some grated cheese and a dollop of branston on top.

MissPrism Sep 25th, 2012 12:05 AM

If you use cheddar, make sure it's a really good one. Unfortunately the name isn't protected. A Californian friend tried Montgomery's cheddar and says that it has put her off all other versions.
The website http://www.farmhousecheesemakers.com/ unfortunately doesn't say where you can buy it in the US

Micheline Sep 25th, 2012 12:14 AM

I like it with crusty bread, just one slice or with crackers. Pickled onions on the side. Just bought some porc pies with pickle at a fair in Norfolk. Yum! I always bring back some jars of Branston pickles. You can buy them in plastic containers.

tarquin Sep 25th, 2012 12:27 AM

Cheddar and mango chutney is also a good combination. And toasting the sandwich is good too. I don't use butter, pickle or chutney is sufficient lubrication.

CarrieAnn40 Sep 25th, 2012 01:51 AM

Back in 2004 the Branston Pickle factory burnt down and jars were being sold on EBay ... http://preview.tinyurl.com/c38em73 At one point people were actually trying to sell part used jars!

chartley Sep 25th, 2012 02:04 AM

Personally, I find Branston pickle too coarse and acid for use in a cheese sandwich. There are plenty of alternatives on sale in British supermarkets, made with many different fruits and vegetables. None is more authentic than any other - it's just a matter of taste. A smooth pickle made with apple or tomato is probably best for a sandwich.

Although Cheddar is the commonest British cheese, and comes in many different styles, there are lots of other cheeses suitable for sandwiches - Leicester, Double Gloucester, Wensleydale, Caerphilly, Cheshire, etc. All have their own characteristics. There are also a lot of artisan cheeses available now, which you will findn at street markets, country fairs and farm shops, as well as at specialist cheese shops.

bilboburgler Sep 25th, 2012 02:57 AM

well are you doing an open sandwich or a closed one. I'd prefer to use a bun or a roll (assuming this is wholemeal bread with seeds and stuff in, white bread must be eaten by someone, I guess), tear it open, stuff in cheese (not very flavoured so maybe a mature cheddar or a very runny somerset brie) and obviously not butter (who eats butter and cheese? what next extra virgin olive oil and olive oil, yuch) and then some pickle on top of that. Trouble is Branston pickle is basically the Macdonalds of pickle (cheap, tasteless, and far too salty (to keep it cheap)), you would do better at any market stall in any festival in the UK or I guess US. (avoid pikilili, gastly stuff even if spelt correctly)

Rubicund Sep 25th, 2012 04:35 AM

Mature cheddar and branston is excellent on buttered crusty white or wholemeal bread. Wholemeal or Hovis doesn't have seeds etc in, that's granary or multi seed here in the UK.

By the way Avalon2, I've tried the fine chopped Branston and it just doesn't do it for me. The whole point of Branston is the crunch that you get from it. The fine version just doesn't have that.

unclegus Sep 25th, 2012 05:08 AM

Must admit i prefered Pan Yan pickle to Branston but I don't think it is made anymore

Morgana Sep 25th, 2012 08:11 AM

Something a little different are cheese and pickle scones.
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/2...chutney-scones
My family pounce on them warm from the oven spread with butter.

mjdh1957 Sep 25th, 2012 09:16 AM

Branston pickle for me is one of those nostalgic taste sensations... it may be 'cheap' but there is no substitute for a real cheese-n-pickle sarnie! Takes me back to childhood straight away.

luvvintravel Sep 25th, 2012 09:21 AM

I grew up on this and learned to hate it but am back again to loving it. Plain old white bread with a scrape of butter, the Branston and the cheddar. Serve a pickled onion on the side and it's heaven!


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