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Branston Pickle is a relish of diced, crunchy mixed pickled vegetables in a sauce.

The sauce is dark brown, with a sweet and sour taste, about the thickness and texture of HP Sauce or ketchup.

It is more popular in the south of England than the north (in the north, Piccalilli is preferred.) It is made by Crosse & Blackwells (owned by Premier Foods as of 2002.)

Branston Pickle is more like what North Americans would refer to as a chutney. In the UK, the word "pickle" used by itself (as opposed describing something such as "pickled onion") is often likely referring to Branston Pickle. It's the "pickle" that is meant whenever you hear a Brit refer to a "cheese and pickle" sandwich.

North Americans look at it and think "brown sludge", in the same way that Brits look at North American neon green hot-dog relish and think "nothing without formaldehyde is ever that colour."

Vegetables in the mixture include carrots, cauliflower, gherkins, marrows, onion, rutabaga and tomatoes. They are diced to about (1 cm) square. The ingredient list for the original Branston Pickle is: Sugar, Rutabaga, Carrots, Malt Vinegar, Onions, White Vinegar, Cauliflower, Water, Dates, Salt, Zucchini, Apple Puree, Cornstarch, Tomato Paste, Gherkins, Caramel, Lemon Concentrate, Spices.

Other versions:

• Small Chunks version has the vegetables cut to a finer dice for sandwiches, so it doesn't tend to fall out as much;
• Smooth version has no chunks, making it good for hot-dogs and hamburgers;
• Branston Rich & Fruity has more of a fruity taste;
• Spicy has chile and extra spices added.

It is good with cold cuts and cheese, and is often served with a "Ploughman's Lunch." Some people even put it on their pizza. Many people like it on open-faced melted cheese sandwiches (aka cheese on toast.)

Over 28 million jars a year are sold (as of 2006.) A 13 oz (360g) jar of the original sells for around 83p ($1.65 US), 2007 prices. It is carried by some stores in Canada and in America, though not all the varieties are available.

Several other brands, such as Norfolk Manor Country, Marks & Spencer and Heinz sell the pickle under the generic name of "Ploughman's Pickle." There are also several supermarket own-brand versions calling it things such as "Sweet Pickle."

There are also many homemade recipes for brown pickle, another name for it.

Nutrition
Per 100g: .8g protein, 109 calories, 26 g carbohydrate, .2g fat, 1.1g fibre, 1.6g sodium

History

Branston Pickle was first made in 1922 in the village of Branston, 2 miles (3 km) south of Burton-on-Trent in Staffordshire (now a suburb of Burton-on-Trent), by Crosse & Blackwell.

Production started in a building on the north side of Burton Road. In 1921, they purchased a large house in Branston called Branston Hall on Clays Lane, for use as a residence by single women working at their factory. They also had a built an area that they called "Wayside": a grouping of 30 Arts and Crafts style houses for other workers of theirs.

Production stayed Branston for only 2 years. In 1924, it was moved down to London, first to Crimscott Street, Bermondsey in South London (close to the factory where Crosse & Blackwell made its own cans for its other products) and then to the Docklands, then up to the Nestlé plant at Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, then in 1998 back down to England to Hadfield, near Glossop, Derbyshire when Nestlé closed the Crosse & Blackwell plant in Peterhead.

Nestlé purchased the Crosse & Blackwell company in 1950. In May 2002, Branston Pickle, along with the complete Crosse & Blackwell line, was bought from Nestlé by Hicks Muse (a US company) to become part of their UK subsidiary, Premier Foods. In early 2004, they moved to Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, a move that cost £3m. A subsequent fire in that new factory on Mildenhall Road in Bury St Edmunds (Suffolk) on 27 October 2004 led to fears of a shortage, causing panic buying.

The original building back in Branston is still standing. It is a brick building, with stone accents, with a high brick wall in front. The building had been completed early in 1918, intended to make machine guns for World War One, but the war ended before production really started. Crosse & Blackwell bought the building from the government in 1920. Pickle production was done there from 1922 to 1924. By 1927, the building had been sold to the Branston Artificial Silk Co. Ltd, which remained there until 1930. From 1937, the building was home to a War Office ordnance depot. During the Second World War, Italian prisoners were housed in Nissen Huts (long, greenhouse-looking buildings of corrugated steel) behind the building.The War Office remained in the building until 1974. In 1976, the building was transferred to the Home Office prison service, which still controlled the building though it had partially vacated it as of 2002.

Crosse & Blackwell has changed the recipe and production method for the pickle many times over the years as they found ways to do so without changing the appearance or taste of the final product. [1]

Acknowlegements

Other entries for:

Pickles
Branston Pickle, Caperberries, Capers, Chutney, Cocktail Onions, Cornichons, Kimchi, Pearl Onions, Pickle Juice, Pickled Eggs, Pickled Onions, Pickled Walnuts

Other entries for:

Preserves
Jams, Jelly, Mostarda di Cremona, Olives

Related Recipes

Branston Pickle and Sardine Sandwiches