Mango Pickle

Well I made this pickle a couple of months back when raw mangoes were available in the market. My mother-in-law makes delicious pickles and a variety of them. We generally bring back pickles when we visit her. But since we really do not consume a lot of pickle they seem to last ages and then I don’t get the chance to make any pickle of my own. Hence I decided to stop getting back pickle from my visits to my in-laws place (except for her stuffed red chilli pickle). Since we had run out of mango pickle I made this last season. It has still to completely mature...but the mangoes have now become a little tender. As it is known the more it will age...the better it will taste.

Chopping raw mangoes which already have hardened seeds is quite a task. Here during the season some vendors chop it for you at an extra cost. They have a special equipment for it. I however didn’t get it done from them and hubby did this muscle-task for me :-).

Ingredients

1.3 kg raw mango (chopped and without seeds),

100 grams mustard seeds,

50 grams fenugreek seeds,

100 grams fennel seeds,

50 grams black pepper,

50 grams red chilli powder (spicy variety),

1 heaped tsp turmeric powder,

½ tsp asafoetida,

Salt to taste,

About a litre of raw mustard oil

Method

Wash and wipe dry the mangoes. Ensure they are completely dry before you chop them. If you have pre-cut mangoes from the market, wash them and drain well. After this let them dry completely in the sun or under the fan. They should be completely devoid of any moisture, this is an extremely important step to making great pickle which will last long.

Dry roast the mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, fennel seeds and black peppercorns one by one on low heat till a nice aroma emanates. Let this cool and grind it into a coarse powder. (After I made this pickle I felt I should have made the masala a little more fine!).

In a large mixing bowl add the mango chunks and sprinkle the masala mix, red chilli powder, asafoetida, turmeric powder and salt to taste. Mix well, cover and let stand for a day. The next day fill this into sterilized completely dry bottles (glass is best here).

Let the containers stand in the sun for 2 days. On the third day pour the raw mustard oil over the pickle, till a layer of oil appears above the pickle.

Some people prefer to heat the oil and pour it after it cools, but I prefer to add raw oil and then let it stand in the sun for about a week.

This pickle completely matures in about three months, but if the variety of mangoes you have used have a thick skin like the ones I used, it will take about 8-9 to completely mature. But, you can start having it about a week after it is done, that is what my hubby did :-).