Lemon Pickle

This pickle is made with lemons which have a thin skin and is known as kaagji nimboo (kaagji means paper thin).
This type of lemon is available during the winter months.
It takes 3 weeks for the pickle to be ready and can be stored and used for a year or more like mango pickle.
With time the pickle turns darker.

Ingredients:
Kaagji nimboo or lemon with thin skin-1 kg,
Salt -3/4 cup or 150 gms,
Turmeric pwd- 1 tsp,
Red chilli roasted and grind to coarse pwd -2 tsp,
Yellow mustard seeds ground to coarse pwd- 2 tsp,
Methi seeds or fenugreek seeds roasted and ground to coarse pwd- 1tsp,
Hing or asafoetida-1/4 tsp,
Juice of 10 lemon or 1/2 cup,
Mustard oil-1/2 cup-heated and then cooled,
Fresh ginger thinly sliced- 2 inch or 50 gms.

Note :To make pickle all the utensils,cloth,spoon and jars have to be washed with hot water and wiped clean to avoid the pickle not to be spoilt.
If possible keep them in the sunlight for few hours as you make the preparations.

Method:
Wash and wipe dry all the lemons.

With a clean knife slice or cut the tip in the top center of the lemon.

Cut the lemon into half and then each half into half again and then into quarters.
You can cut into 6 or 8 pieces, depending on the size of  the lemon.
Remove the seeds.
Take a clean bowl and put all the lemon pieces in it.

Add 3/4 cup of salt and 1 tsp of turmeric. 

Mix with a wooden spoon and then transfer the salted lemons to a clean jar.

Cover the jar with a clean cloth and show sunlight for 3 days.

Hold the jar in the hand and give a shake twice or thrice a day to mix and toss the lemons so that all the lemons are coated with salt and do not dry out.

On the fourth day,roast and grind mustard seeds,roasted whole red chillies and fenugreek or methi seeds. Squeeze out the juice of 10 lemons in a bowl.

Take a wide bowl and transfer the salted lemon pieces in it.

Sprinkle mustard pwd, roasted red chilli pwd,methi pwd,1/4 tsp of hing or asafoetida and juice of 10 lemon.

Mix with a wooden spoon and then transfer it to the jar.

Cover the jar'mouth with a cloth and leave it in the sun for a week or 10 days depending on the weather and sunlight.

Stir the lemon pieces  with the wooden spoon twice or thrice each day.
After a week or ten days depending on the sunlight,add 1/2 cup of mustard oil which has been heated and then cooled.

Add two inch thinly sliced ginger to it.

Stir with a wooden spoon and then cover with a cloth.

Keep the jar in the sun for another ten days.
Pickle is ready when the lemon does not taste bitter.

The pickle is ready within 3 weeks to serve.

Keep the pickle jar in room temperature.
With time it tastes better each day and is very good for digestion.
This pickle can be kept for a year until the next winter arrives!
Goes very well with puri,paratha,rice or any vegetarian meal!

Ool ka achar(Yam or Jimikand pickle)

 
This is my mother-in-law's recipe!
Thanks Bhibha di and Archana for  sharing this tasty pickle recipe which ma made.
The pickle has  come out very well!
This is a winter pickle and made in the month of november!

Ingredients:
Ool or jimikand or yam -1 kg,
Imli with seeds(tamarind)-one small piece or  size of one lemon,
Green chilli-50 gms-( the picture shows 100 gms but I used 50 gms only )
Garlic-2 pods or 50 gms,
Ginger-2 inch or 50 gms,
Mustard seeds-50 gms,
Lemon- 10,
Ajwain or carrom seeds-1 tsp,
Mangraila or kalonji or onion seeds-1 tsp,

Haldi or turmeric pwd-1 and 1/2 tsp,
Salt-4 and 1/2 tsp,
Mustard oil-1 and 1/4 cup.

Note: Ool or Jimikand or yam is boiled in tamarind water to remove the irritant. 
I have not used measuring spoons for the spices and salt,but regular tea spoons.

Method:
Wash and then chop the yam into big pieces.

Slice off the skin and cut into 2 inch pieces.

Wash again and put them in a cooker.
Add 3 cups of water and a piece of tamarind.

Raise the heat to high and let the cooker give out 3 whistles.
Once the cooker has cooled down,check the pieces by inserting a knife.

If hard,then leave it to boil till done.
You can use a pan to boil the yam if not using cooker.
Once boiled,then strain the water through a sieve.

Spread a clean muslin cloth on a tray or big plate.
Pick up the boiled yam pieces and spread it on the cloth.
Remove any tamarind if sticking on the pieces with a clean cloth.

Place the boiled yam to dry in the sunlight for few hours.

As the yam is drying, we prepare the spices.
In between turn the sides so that the yam pieces are evenly dried.

Spices:
Heat 1 and 1/4 cup of mustard oil in a kadhai.

Once the oil reaches a smoking point,close gas.
Leave it to cool.
Wash the green  chillies and lemon and wipe dry with a cloth.
Once wiped dry,remove the stick of the green chilli and make a slit lengthwise.
If the chilli is long chop into half.
Keep in a bowl.

Cut each lemon into half and strain out the juice through a lemon press and collect in a bowl.

Take two garlic pods and peel and divide into two parts.
One half is sliced or crushed and the other half will be made into a paste.
Like wise we peel the ginger and divide into two parts.

One half of ginger is cut into thin slices and the other half is grated or made into a paste.

Grind the mustard pwd in a grinder.

Once the mustard is powdered,add the garlic paste and  ginger paste.

Add half of lemon juice and grind into a paste.

Take out in a bowl.

Assemble:

Take a large bowl and place the dried yam in it.

 Break all the yam pieces using your fingers to make it into small chunks.

Add slit green chillies,sliced garlic pieces,sliced ginger pieces,mustard ginger garlic lemon paste.
Add ajwain seeds,kalonji or onion  seeds,turmeric pwd and salt.
Add the leftover lemon juice.

Mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon.

Once the spices are mixed,taste the yam and adjust salt or lemon juice accordingly.

Pour  half cup of the cooled mustard oil.

Mix again.
Place the bowl in a sunlight area for few hours.

In the evening, transfer the yam mixture into a clean jar.

Pour the left oil in the jar(3/4 cup).

Cover the mouth of the jar  with a clean cloth.

The jar is kept in the sunlight for four days.
Keep tossing and turning the pickle everyday.
The colour of the green chilli will change from bright green to light as the pickle gets ready.

Taste the pickle and you should not get any irritant.

The readyness of the Pickle will depend on the day temperature and sunlight.
This is a winter pickle and will survive only for the winter months.
To last it longer,keep the bottled pickle in the fridge.