The Baja Blast Pickle Hack You Might Think Twice About

While we can thank Reddit for entertaining posts dedicated to who is in the wrong in any situation, helpful life or productivity tips, and money saving grocery hacks, the online community hub might not be the best place for out-of-the-box pickling recipes. In a video from the unofficial Mountain Dew reddit page, a post regarding pickling cucumbers in Baja Blast has gained popularity over the past two years, so much so that the official Instagram and TikTok for the brand reposted it. The hack uses a mixture of Baja Blast, garlic, and sugar to pickle cucumbers. Have people been successful? Not exactly. One Reddit user mentioned that after close to two weeks, the cucumbers took on some of the color from the Baja Blast, but they still tasted like cucumbers.

Despite unsuccessful attempts in making pickles from Baja Blast, combing the cultish soda flavor with already pickled pickles is a hit! For some people, adding a few pickles from their jar at home to the drink while enjoying Taco Bell is the way to go. For others, they're taking pickle containers directly to their local Taco Bell and filling them with Baja Blast straight from the fountain — like a sparkling, twist on agua fresca con pepino, which are super delicious.

In theory this could work, the execution is what it comes down to, and making pickles at home isn't as difficult as it might seem. The brining liquid is the key. For a basic pickle brine, you need equal parts water to vinegar as well as some salt. From there you can add dill, add pepper flakes to make them spicy, or some form of sugar to make them sweeter. Now, the goal of flavoring pickles with a sugary beverage isn't unique to the Baja Blast attempts across social media. Kool-Aid Pickles, popularized in the Mississippi Delta and surrounding southern regions, go back generations.

For a Kool-Aid pickle, you combine a packet of the Kool-Aid flavor of choice, maybe cherry or fruit punch, with about a half cup of sugar. Once the sugar dissolves, the slurry mix is then combined with pickle brine before being added back to the pickles. As some Reddit users were quick to point out in the comments of the original post, you could make a reduction from Baja Blast and either add it in place of sugar for your sweet pickles recipe or add it to an already establish pickle brine to produce a true Baja Blast pickle. Perfecting these would be a flashy addition to your relish tray instead of a crudité, and would be an homage to the suspected origin of the Kool-Aid pickle.