Why Best Maid Pickles Are A Texas Favorite Since 1924

I'm not usually brand loyal about most things. I'll get the oatmeal that's on sale, thanks.

However, brand does make a difference when it comes to the world's most perfect food, pickles. And I find myself reaching for the crunchy, sour, salty goodness that's Texas-based Best Maid Pickles.

Many of the cucumbers that make these iconic pickles are grown right here in the Texas Panhandle.

Best Maid Pickles Are A Texas Original

The genesis of Best Maid pickles dates back to rural Texas in 1924 and a family that didn't originally intend to get into the pickle business.

The Dalton family owned a modest one-room grocery. Mildred Dalton baked pastries for the store, but found herself with an excess of leftover egg yolks.

So she did what any sensible woman would do when life gives you too many egg yolks- you make mayonnaise. The myo was a hit, so Mildred chose to expand her offerings with a sandwich spread that contained relish.

But relish prices got too high, so the Dalton family planted a cucumber patch at their Mansfield, Texas home. The crop was abundant, so the family packed the jars of pickles that would become their long-running claim to fame.

Cute fact: The cartoon logo of Best Maid pickles is a caricature of their daughter Margie, and was printed on the jars beginning in the 1940s.

Best Maid no longer produces pastries or mayo, but you can purchase many varieties of pickles, pickled okra, and even barbeque sauce and bloody mary mix off their website or at a Texas grocery store near you.

Best Maid Pickles Are Texas Grown, Too.

I was delighted to come across this Facebook post from Best Maid Pickles on Facebook, showing a healthy and robust crop of future pickles growing in Hale Center, a short drive north of Lubbock.

A Texas orginal grown in Texas and providing a Texan's favorite snack! Thanks for everything Best Maid! Next time I nearby, I am absolutely checking out their Pickle Emporium!