With a shared love of entertaining and recipes, two lifelong friends have turned a party hit into a growing business.
MINNEAPOLIS — It takes a certain amount of pluck to start a business, and Sara Doherty and Britt Jungerberg have it.
Best friends since high school, the two have always enjoyed hosting parties and experimenting with recipes together. Their pickle dip — a mix of white beans, cream cheese, herbs, spices and pickles — was always in high demand.
"We had been making a simple version of the pickle dip at our get-togethers and everybody raved about it and requested it every time," Doherty says. "So we decided to start a business."
In 2017, after tasting parties and recipe tweaking, they started selling Darling Pickle Dip at local farmers markets. A trademark hiccup led to a name change, and they landed on Plucky Pickle Dip.
"It really resonated with us because to be plucky means to be spirited or undaunted. Or just keep on chugging. And that really felt like our journey," Jungerberg says.
That journey started with the two — who work in sales and marketing — mixing the dip, filling and labeling containers and selling them at farmers markets. They soon landed in local stores, and eventually turned over the making of Plucky Pickle Dip to a manufacturer.
"We were so thrilled to not be in the kitchen anymore," Doherty says. "We wanted it to be the best of the product that we loved and made ourselves, but we were definitely excited to ... focus on the sales and marketing and growth."
Does it compare to the original, beloved pickle dip?
"I would say it's gotten better," Doherty says. "It tastes like how we used to make it ourselves in the kitchen, but with a better shelf life."
For now there are four varieties: original dill, spicy dill, cheddar and mustard, and an original vegan version. It's widely available locally ($5.99, pluckypickledip.com has a store locator), and a recent deal with Target now has it in 40 states.
Doherty mixes the dip with a can of tuna for a quick tuna salad, or slathers it on burgers. Jungerberg enjoys it on brats, hot dogs or anything off the grill, but her favorite is as a dip with pretzels.
It's also an obvious choice as a sandwich spread or on vegetable trays, and its flavor profile makes it a natural with fish (a swipe toward the end of cooking does the trick). Warmed up, the cheddar-mustard version can be a dip for soft pretzels.
They both encourage experimenting, and say so right on the package: "Because the dip is plucky, but so are you."
