Thursday, March 08, 2007

Sweet and Sour Mango Pickle


Though the weather is nowhere near warm in England, I know that summer has crept upon all my asian bloggo-buddies full blast. And what makes summer bearable? Its the mangoes of course. Mangoes, the one thing that I miss most here. I do eat mangoes in the UK ,not that I don't but somehow its not the same as eating mangoes in India. Calling the Alphonso Mango a fruit would be the understatement of a lifetime. Its not eaten its practically worshipped at breakfast ,lunch ,teatime and supper and then again as dessert after the meals.
I think the Indian summer adds to the charm. I still associate the hot summer days with school vacations and hot afternoons spent lazying in front of the telly with plates full of luscious mango slices which have been cut for you by your mom.
Equally irresistible is the raw green mango. I remember eating pieces of raw mango coated heavily with chilli powder salt and pickle masala while my mom and grandmother prepared this yearly pickle. And by eating I mean eating them till my throat was sore. Well this pickle is something that I still always get from my mom and now also from my mom-in-law. I think some things are best left for the veterans to make.But what I have for you today is a delicious sweet and sour pickle which is ready in a matter of minutes.
May I also add that once its made it disappears in a matter of minutes too.
You need:
2 raw mangoes (grated),
5 tblspns grated palm sugar (jaggery),
1 tspn fenugreek seeds (optional),
1.5 tspn mustard seeds,
1 tspn asafoetida (hing),
1 tspn chilli powder,
1/2 tspn turmeric powder,
2.5 tblspns oil for tempering,
salt to taste.
Procedure:
1. Heat the oil . When the oil is very hot add to it the mustard seeds, asafoetida and fenugreek seeds. Switch off the heat when the mustard have spluttered and the fenugreek seeds have just turned brown. This is your tempering. (Caution: Fenugreek seeds burn very easily)
2. In another bowl mix the grated mangoes, chilli powder , turmeric, grated jaggery, and salt.
3. When the tempering has cooled down a bit add it to the mangoes and mix well. The jaggery takes some time to dissolve and blend with the mangoes . Once the jaggery has dissolved give the pickle a taste and add more jaggery, chilli powder, or salt as per your taste.
4 Your pickle is ready to eat. This must be stored in the fridge and used up in 7 to 8 days.

10 comments:

Priya said...

I can assure you this will disappear in a matter of mins...No matter how big a batch my mother tried to make of these, the jar would be scrapped clean in no less than a week.
Mangoes are programmed into our body clocks...come summer and the cravings hit automatically !

Swapna said...

Yummy-Yummy yummy..I love mango pickles and muramba..I have promised myself that I will buy mangoes in US no matter how costly they are..Can't imagine missing them in any summer..
Swaps

Viji said...

Very interesting Aumpama. Viji

Sia said...

feeling nostalgic anu... good old summer days in india han?

Vaishali said...

...some things are best left for the veterans to make...

That's a gem of a sentence, Anupama. Damn good! :-)

Bong Mom said...

mmmmm..now you make me crave mangoes and summer when I am trying to keep myself warm with a sweater, jacket, mitten, muffler & waht not

Prema Sundar said...

I have had this in one of my friend's house but had no idea how it is made. I love mangoes too and would love to try this out. thanks for the recipe.

Anonymous said...

ooh, the pickle looks beautiful! I really hope I can find fresh green mangoes somewhere this year. If so, will certainly try this :)

Anonymous said...

Anupama, This mango pickle was a hot favourite with most of my family. My aunt was the only one who had the recipe and we are all glad that we have the recipe now. The presentation is also great.
Thank You!

Sreelu said...

Anupama,

First time to your blog, felt very nostalagic about mangos and summer vacations, those laid back days with nothing to do.boy were they wonderful.
Never knew it was this easy to prepare mango pickle looks yummy

thanks for the recipe.

I am fairly new to blogging and must say I am enjoying every bit of it

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