Jul 17, 2007

Preserving the love for pickles

This week I am going to present 3 entries for 3 different blog events;the first one being MBP. Every month Coffee chooses a theme and bloggers have to try fellow blogger's recipes based on the chosen theme. This month's theme is Preserve it.

PICKLES - the very word flashes images of raw mangoes hanging from trees, pickle bottles containing a heavy oil layer, the "khatta meetha" taste of different pickles, the summers when mom made heavenly pickles, and then suffering from cough after eating too much pickle:)
Every summer, Mom would make pickles without fail. She used to buy kilos and kilos of raw mangoes and spend an entire day in washing, peeling, and making the pickle. Though I am a die hard fan of pickle, the very thought of mom getting tired would make me deter her from the task. My only contribution in the pickle making process would be to convince mom to make a smaller quantity and then eat as much pickle as I could. I and Dad would hardly wait till the juices had settled in. We would taste the pickle the very next day. Being a cook who has just mastered some vegetables and chapati, I had not ventured into the area of pickle making. That changed since I saw this.

After seeing Manisha's recipe, I have been returning to the post to see the wonderful picture and drool over it. I was waiting for the right time and enthusiasm to try my hand at pickle making. Coffee's MBP presented the perfect opportunity to make lemon pickle. I used 3 lemons to make this pickle and half the ingredients. 3 days after I made it, the pickle looks like this.

(Lemon pickle without oil)

Manisha says that it takes 2 long months for the pickle to be ready. It's a long wait for me. Meanwhile, P keeps checking Manisha's post to confirm that she has written 2 months and it's not one of my ploys to keep him away from eating it. Thanks Manisha for this wonderful recipe!

13 comments:

bee said...

swapna, there's hope. i've set manisha's lemon pickle two days ago. i think it will take three weeks. 'cos the lime pickle took just that. it's so damn hot here, it should be done in three weeks. or four.

Anonymous said...

Swapna, 2 months in India in winter, which is when my sister usually makes hers. In the Colorado sun, it was done in 4 weeks last year and 3 weeks this year. :-D I gave away all my pickle as gifts to friends and family. It made a lot of people happy! Does this make P feel better?!

Roopa said...

nice entry Swapna. the color of pickle is mouth watering...

Coffee said...

Thanks for the lovely entry Swapna! I made these too and they are awesome indeed!

Nupur said...

That looks good, and the bottle is cute :) I made the same pickle, and it was actually ready in 3-4 weeks. Keep tasting ;)

Sharmi said...

thanks for leading me to her recipe. it is so beautiful.

FH said...

Looks delicious!! My cheeks are hurting!!:))

Sia said...

oh yes...summer means mangoes and mangoes means pickles... even now when i go home i get one big bag filled with different pickles. even my contribution in pickle making is very similar to the one u mentioned;) that lime pickle u made looks really good. i still have to try making it

Tee said...

yum! can't say more cos my mouth is watering ;)

swapna susarla said...

hi swapna
lemon pickle looks mouth watering!!

Swapna said...

Bee: Thanks! Never give up hope:)I hope the pickle's ready soon.
Manisha: P and I are definitely feeling better:)The problem is it's raining after every 2 days here, so the pickle's not getting any sun.
Roopa and Coffee: Thanks for the comment, girls!
Nupur: Walmart zindabad!that bottle was purchased from there. I saw ur post and Bee's post on the same pickle. It increased my resolve to make it:)
Sharmi: There u go! Try it without fail.
Asha: Thanks!
Sia: Haven't we come a long way since then? I miss Mumbai summers.
Tee and Swapna: Slurrp! Thanks for the comments.

Anonymous said...

There you go, girl!

Don't worry so much about the sun. It will be fine. We had many cloudy and rainy days last year when I put my lime pickle together. Don't fret - set it out in the warmest part of your home.

Manasi said...

Hi!! I made this too!!! seems like many bloggers did!!! Nice and easy! I am impatiently waiting till I can just devour it!!!