Trending: Pickled Foods

Jeff Hunt, Spork’s executive chef and co-owner, has a love for all things pickled.

“We love pickles of all types at the restaurant,” affirms Hunt—and with a primary focus on fermented pickles, quick pickles, and vinegar pickles, that love is evident throughout the flavorful dishes on Spork’s menu.

Korean-style fermented pickles, known as kimchi, commonly uses beachu, which is made from napa cabbage. At Spork, kimchi is made by cutting up heads of napa cabbage and then salting it for about 24 hours before adding garlic, ginger, brown sugar, green onion, and a Korean chili powder called gochugaru. Spork uses its house-made kimchi as a side to its rice bowls, in soup stocks, and stir-fried with noodles or rice.

Quick pickles, says Hunt, as their name implies, are easy to make, and can be enjoyed immediately, though they tend to hit their flavor sweet spot about four hours after they’re made. Quick pickles are made using any vegetable, thinly sliced, and rubbed in three parts sugar and one part salt. Spork’s jalapeno quick pickles are frequently used on their tacos or lightly breaded with rice flour, fried crispy, and served as a snack.