Pickle Reubens

Here at Delish, we LOVE pickles. We’re all about perfecting classic recipes featuring pickles, like fried pickles or the best copycat Big Mac, as well as finding new ways to use them, like in pickle popsicles or pickle cheesecake. For our next trick, we’re replacing the bread on a reuben sandwich with a pickle, turning the deli classic into a low-carb treat you can make anytime.

Admittedly, calling this a reuben is a bit of a stretch, since it’s only got a short-cut Russian dressing, no sauerkraut, and, of course, no rye bread. Despite that, we’re still extremely happy with it, and think you will be too. Particularly if you’re the type to eat a pickle straight out of the jar while ruminating with the fridge door open about whether or not you actually want to cook. This recipe is perfect for you. It only takes 15 minutes to throw together, meaning you can turn your quick pickle snack into a light meal that’ll keep you going till dinner.

Because it isn’t super authentic, you can feel free to play around with the (minimal) ingredients. You too can build your favorite sandwich on a pickle, get creative! We definitely recommend doing as we did here, and pulling out the seeds as best you can to create a well for your fillings, particularly if you can’t find giant pickles.

If you’re really having trouble getting pickles that are large enough, take inspiration from our reuben pickle bites or pickle sliders, and use slices instead. Just make sure to grab some toothpicks too, to help hold things together.

Made this? Let us know how it went in the comments below.

Editor's Note: This recipe was updated on August 26, 2022.