Gobi Shalgam Gajar Achaar and School Days

I remember my school days with a lot of fondness. I am sure it is exactly like that for most if you out there. The fun times, the innocence, the principals office. Everyone has their most favourite memory of school. The times you got into trouble. The times when you were commended. Appreciated for work well done or punished for a lack of application. And the friends. Chatting away during class times. We always had something to chat about. Always. The assembly. The excitement of getting to read the news or thought for the day. Even writing something on the notice board was something we looked forward to. Hating the times when teachers punished us by making us sit with the boys. 

I studied in a small town so there was not much life beyond school. All friends outside of school hours were only school friends. Everyone knew everyone else. We were neighbours, friends and schoolmates. 

But I think there was a very close bond we girls from the same class shared. Much closer than with the others in the school. And I think this has continued over the years. I find that we can pick up exactly where we left off even though there may have been thirty years in between.

But one of my most favourite memories of school days was sharing of food. different tastes from different homes all brought and shared during the lunch hour. We were exposed to many foods from all parts of the country. But of all those memories the one that stands out is the packing of a little pickle in a piece of torn out notebook sheet. Furtively opening it in class and each one putting their finger in to get a taste. It used to be so exciting. Someone would bring a Punjabi mango pickle, while someone else would bring a sweet pickle. Gleefully tasting each one. I really don't know what draws girls to pickle but at least in our school it was something we all looked forward to.

Anyway to come to the recipe of gobi shalgam achar, it is from the north of India. It is essentially a winter pickle and has very lovely sweet, tangy spicy taste. Goes very well with rotis and parathas but tastes simply wonderful all on its own too. I got this recipe from here. And I am reproducing it exactly like in her blog.

INGREDIENTS;

1 kg each of Turnips, Carrots, and Cauliflower
400 ml White Vinegar
1 kg Jaggery
200 grams Garlic
200 grams Ginger
500 ml Mustard Oil
200 grams Salt
50 grams Red Chilli Powder
10 grams Cardamom
5 grams Cinnamon
5  grams Cloves

METHOD:

Trim cauliflower into florets. 

Cut carrots into thick 2″ long batons. 

Trim and slice turnips into thick quarters. 

Bring 3 litres of water to boil. Blanch the prepared vegetables in boiling water for 2 minutes. 

Drain, spread on absorbent cloth and dry in shade for a day.

Boil vinegar and jaggery together into a syrup.  

Pound ginger and garlic coarsely and fry in oil over medium heat. Take off heat. 

Pound the whole spices coarsely. 

Into the oil mix in all the spices and the vinegar syrup. 

Add salt and the prepared vegetables. 

Mix well and transfer to clean dry stoneware or glass jars.

Leave in the sun for a couple of days for all the flavours to get absorbed.

ENJOY!!!!!!

The vegetables cut and drying:

The vinegar and jaggery boiling:

Adding in the vegetables:

Korivi Kharam ( Red Chilli Pickle) and Andhra Food Series

This is going to be a real quick post. It has been on the back burner for a long long time. Made the pickle, forgot to take the picture. By which time the fresh red chillies disappeared from the market. And I was determined to take the picture only with the red chillies in it.

The pickle started getting consumed and also changing colour. First I pondered on whether to make a fresh batch whenever I saw the red chillies again. But then better sense prevailed. Thanks to todays daily updates on health and nutrition, I decided that there was no need for any one in the family to eat such spicy food or one that is loaded with salt.

So the next time I saw fresh red chillies in the store, I quickly brought them home and took the pictures. As you can see, the colour of the pickle has changed from a bright red to a a little more brown. When you first make the pickle, it has a beautiful fiery red colour. This pickle has a long shelf life of a year at least. The only thing is that there will be a little colour change.

It is a begging to be eaten food. It just calls out for some hot rice with melted ghee to be poured generously over. But I have to warn you - IT IS SPICY and definitely not for the faint hearted. Actually, at home there is only one brave soul who can take on the might of this spicy pickle. He thoroughly enjoys eating this even if the tears pour down and his face turns red with the heat of the pickle. So this post is for you, Vin.

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 kg Ripe red chillies

250 grams Salt

125 grams Tamarind

1 teaspoon Turmeric powder

25 grams Fenugreek seeds (Methi)

200 ml Gingelly Oil (Sesame Oil)

1 teaspoon Asafoetida

METHOD:

Wash and dry the red chillies thoroughly

Grind the red chillies, salt, tamarind, and turmeric powder to a coarse paste.

Store in an airtight and sterile jar for about 2 to 3 days.

Roast and powder the fenugreek seeds.

Heat the oil to medium hot (not smoking) and add the asafoetida.

Cool and add to the ground red chillies mixture.

Finally add the fenugreek powder and mix thoroughly.

ENJOY!!!!!

Avakai - Andhra Food Series

Though from Andhra who are traditional pickle eating people, our family never ate that many pickles. Even if we did, as children, we would wash the mango piece (wash off the spices) and then take little bites from it to eat along with curd rice.

But as I got older, I developed a taste for the famous Andhra pickles. What do you think? Are we genetically wired to like some foods? Or is it that we feel its familiar and therefore end up liking it?

The pickle that I enjoy eating is Avakai which is mango pieces in mustard and chilli powder with oil and salt. The hot chilli taste really appeals to me and in combination with curd rice..?? I cannot describe the heavenly taste. Also, just plain avakai masala with plain hot rice and a dollop of melted ghee????? .. Simply delicious.

But the only thing was that my mom never made pickles back then. Cos we did not consume pickles regularly, it was not the annual routine summer time event. All this changed when I got married. Here every summer, come mango season and the pickle making would start. Jaadis will be washed and thoroughly dried. Powders will be bought.. Scout for good mangoes and then a whole day will go in the pickle making. Mom in law uses the recipe given by her mom in law... and so the tradition goes on. I always thought pickle making to be a hard, laborious process, but actually it is not that hard. Just need to have everything at hand and put it together.

When I heard of Sunitas think spice event on mustard, I thought avakai will be the perfect entry as it typifies the use of mustard. Ava itself means mustard in Telugu and Kai refers to raw fruit. This is my entry for the Think Spice: Mustard event.

This is the recipe handed down to me by my mother in law which was handed down to her by her mother in law. So I can safely say that this is a tried and tested recipe.

Ingredients:

1 kg Mango pieces cut with a part of the shell in each
250 grams mustard powder
125 grams chilli powder
250 grams salt
1/4 litre gingelly oil
2 teaspoon turmeric powder


Seasoning:

1 teaspoon methi seeds(fenugreek)

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

Method:

Mix all the dry powders together.
Heat 2 teaspoon oil and fry seasoning ingredients.
Cool and add with remaining ingredients to the powdered ingredients.
Finally add to it the mango pieces and mix thoroughly.
Store in a DRY clean bottle or Jaadi. It should easily last for about a year.


Main thing to watch out for is that no moisture should come in contact at any point. This will result in the pickle getting spoilt.




UPDATE: I believe this is also called Mavinikai Upinikai in Kannada so this goes as another entry for RCI: Karnataka.