Book 9, Question 40
Why Do Pickles Taste Sour and Salty Together?
Pickles taste sour and salty together because the brine uses both salt and acid! The acid comes from vinegar or from fermentation. Both signals hit your tongue in one crunchy bite.
More fun facts
- Pickles come in many kinds, including sweet, sour, bread and butter pickles and gherkins, which are pickled baby cucumbers.
- Some pickles are kept in vinegar, a strong acid that few bacteria can live in.
- Other pickles are soaked in a salty brine.
- The acid in pickles gives them their sour tang.
- Salty, sweet and umami tastes pull us toward foods we need, while bitter and sour warn us to be careful.
- A deli owner said a bite of pickle between bites of a sandwich refreshes your taste buds.
Sources: Smithsonian Magazine, Exploratorium, Exploratorium, Scientific American
Questions kids ask
What is a gherkin?
It is a pickled baby cucumber.