The lovely people at Matt and Steve’s sent me some of their pickled veggies to try after finding me on Instagram. I am very thankful for their generosity, and was very excited to try their wares.
And why is that? Because I love green beans, and pickled green beans may be my favorite Bloody Mary Garnish (well, maybe after bacon).
Matt and Steve’s Extreme Beans
I was sent a jar each of the classic Garlic and Dill Green Beans, Hot & Spicy Green Beans and Garlic and Dill Asparagus as well as a tin of Bloody Mary rim spice. They advertise big beans with a bold taste, which can be used in other dishes beyond just garnishing a cocktail (check out their recipe page for ideas.)
Given that it’s a work day, I did not yet try the rim spice, as I can’t really be day drinking and then going in to the “office”. Instead of a cocktail, I added some veggies to my breakfast on the porch.
Breakfast! Bagel with cream cheese and home grown radish, and Matt and Steve’s veggies.
Starting with the classic Garlic and Dill, the flavor was really fantastic. Sometimes dill can be overwhelming to me, and this is a nice balanced pickling mix. Like I said, I love green beans, and I plant a ton every year. One of the problems with large beans, is they can be tough, so while the beans maintained a good crunch, some were more chewy than others. No fault of Matt and Steve, it can’t be helped!
The Hot & Spicy beans were also nicely garlicky, as well as having a kick to them. Even if you aren’t into super spicy foods like I am, these are a good spice level to be tolerable (just don’t eat too many, the heat does build).
Enter the asparagus. I don’t have a lot of experience with asparagus in any form. I’ve only had it a few times, and I suppose I find it to be a bit similar to green beans, just with a slightly milder flavor. But maybe I’m way off in this assessment, I’ve never had them side by side to compare….until now! The pickled asparagus has the same garlic and dill mix as the green beans, and they were delicious. They stayed crunchy yet tender in the jar, and were probably my favorite of the 3. I guess I’m a pickled asparagus convert! And they are available in the Hot & Spicy version too. Yum!
Extreme Bean and Asparagoos
If you are in Canada, like Matt and Steve they also have regular cucumber pickles and canned Caesars made with Canadian vodka, tomatoes, spices and Extreme Bean brine! Next time I’m allowed in Canada (go away Covid!) I’ll have to look for some Caesars to take home.
Thank you again Matt and Steve! (If you missed it, I was sent these products, but these opinions are my own.)