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India’s pickle people: Decades-old culinary heirlooms, nostalgia

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Re: India’s pickle people: Decades-old culinary heirlooms, nostalgia

#121

Post by fuzztester »

danans wrote: post #108
fuzztester wrote: post #105

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>any Sanskrit dictionary I know of (I just checked several) What are those Sanskrit dictionaries you checked? I'm not saying you are wrong, I just want Sanskrit resources, since I know it some and am interested in it.

> What are those Sanskrit dictionaries you checked? I like the Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries site, which hosts several different dictionaries and has a powerful search interface. https://www.sanskrit-lexicon.uni-koeln.de/

Thanks, sounds good, will check it.

Re: India’s pickle people: Decades-old culinary heirlooms, nostalgia

#122

Post by RugnirViking »

rmk wrote: post #77

There are also the 'sweet' pickles, murabba: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murabba Don't know what they would be called in the west. I see 'preserves' often, but they seem to be closer relatives of jams than murabbas. Unlike jams, murabbas have a savory taste (much smaller than the overall sweet taste) element to them.

Hmmm. Marmalade perhaps? Chutney, or Confit

Re: India’s pickle people: Decades-old culinary heirlooms, nostalgia

#123

Post by NL807 »

phanimahesh wrote: post #112
NL807 wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would love to learn how to make this. Do you or anyone here know good recipes and the process?

Raw sour mangoes, chopped to eighths, with the seed taken out. (hard shell covering the seed is fine, but there's a thin film that is inedible on it, take care to scrape it to prevent choking hazard later). Mustard powder. Seeds freshly ground is better. Red chilli powder Salt. Methi seeds. (fenugreek seeds. You can find at asian spice stores usually). Gingelly oil. The most simple and basic aavakaya (andhra pradesh…

Thank you!

Re: India’s pickle people: Decades-old culinary heirlooms, nostalgia

#124

Post by raffraffraff »

halostatue wrote: post #87
spaceman_2020 wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To add: if you are buying them from a store, you will need to try multiple brands before you find the one that’s right for you. Unlike western-style pickles, the taste can vary very wildly across brands.

Oh yes. My personal go-tos are Shan and Deep (I really like the Shan garlic pickle and the Deep lemon and lime pickles; they both make competent mixed achar). If I can’t find either of those, I will settle for Patak's over other brands I have not tried (there are some I have tried and Do Not Like).

Pataks aubergine pickle is great though. One of the simplest ways I like it is spread on wholemeal toast, and topped with hummus. Bringing India and the middle east together on some bread. Their green chili pickle is decent too.

Edit: I'd actually take those two Pataks versions over the Shan equivalent.

Re: India’s pickle people: Decades-old culinary heirlooms, nostalgia

#125

Post by samatman »

OJFord wrote: post #103
samatman wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's true that Americans call pickled cucumbers "pickles", they are far and away the most common kind, but we're aware of what pickling is, and have pickled eggs, pickled radish, pickled beets, and while we don't refer to sauerkraut as pickled cabbage (we call it, well, sauerkraut), we do know that's what it is. We don't eat as much Branston pickle as Brits do, but it's available in most supermarkets.

I didn't mean to imply you don't, more that I'm aware of that ('a pickle') and can't speak with much certainty about what else is available. My point was only supposed to be that I can't see what's wrong with 'pickle' as a translation. I don't think any Indian would hesitate to call picallili an achar at a glance (on tasting it they might find it unexpectedly mild, but certainly you can have mild achars).

Fair enough, when buying achar at an Indian grocery in the States, it's a crap shoot whether they'll call it e.g. "Mango achar" or "Mango pickle". Oil pickling isn't a part of traditional American food, granted, but pickle is a translation that gets used.

Re: India’s pickle people: Decades-old culinary heirlooms, nostalgia

#126

Post by raffraffraff »

wtmt wrote: post #18
beebeepka wrote: post #15

Wow, 27 year old open pickle jars! I expected canned food but not like this. I really should visit India before I grow too old. There's so much veggie food to try. Recently met a childhood friend who, apparently, used to live there for decade. No he has a small Indian restaurant serving food that is nothing like the places I have been to in Europe and the UK. No garlic, no onions (I like both), etc. Love it

> No garlic, no onions, etc. The no garlic and no onion are part of a much broader practice to avoid root vegetables. Anything that grows below the ground is not consumed. Jains (the people who follow Jainism) mostly follow this (I say “mostly” because even though they’re supposed to, many may not). Orthodox Hindus may also follow similar practices. Hindu festivals and rituals also avoid onion and garlic. There’s a l…

I once read that hing (asafoetida) is used instead of garlic for that reason.

Re: India’s pickle people: Decades-old culinary heirlooms, nostalgia

#127

Post by suryao »

plastic_bag wrote: post #85
dilawar wrote: post #39

Ah, the "achaar". So wrongly translated as "pickle". In my village (Ganges plain, North India), making achaar was a significant seasonal community event. When mangoes were small, we used to wait for heavy winds during early monsoon. A lot of raw mangoes would fall on the ground, and the next day they would be sold at a much cheaper price. There were two broad classes of mango varieties: one for eating ripe, and the o…

This brings back memories of my childhood. I am from a coastal village in (northern) Andhra Pradesh, India. We call it "పచ్చడి" (pachchadi) in Telugu. If it were to be made in a process usual to the rest of the state (or the country), it would not last longer due the village's close proximity to the sea. So my aunt and grandmother would also add jaggery to the pickle, to stop it from developing fungus sooner and to g…

I love bellam Avakaya. And the ginger garlic varieties are to die for.

My uncle (60+ yo) is a true connoisseur though. He loves it so much and abhors the mass manufactured stuff that he actually gets small batches made in India and even sells it in the US where he lives.

I helped build a Shopify storefront for him at Avakaya.com

Re: India’s pickle people: Decades-old culinary heirlooms, nostalgia

#128

Post by selimthegrim »

satvikpendem wrote: post #76
smusamashah wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My grandmother use to tell about beef pickle but didn't make it when I req. It was a difficult one. Would love to try meat pickle someday.

I've had chicken and mutton pickles, you can get them at certain Indian restaurants and stores, often in the refrigerator section.

You can usually cook them yourself too see for example Shan masala “Achar Gosht”, or for another culture’s take Polish zupa ogórkowa with chicken.

Re: India’s pickle people: Decades-old culinary heirlooms, nostalgia

#129

Post by selimthegrim »

raffraffraff wrote: post #124
halostatue wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh yes. My personal go-tos are Shan and Deep (I really like the Shan garlic pickle and the Deep lemon and lime pickles; they both make competent mixed achar). If I can’t find either of those, I will settle for Patak's over other brands I have not tried (there are some I have tried and Do Not Like).

Pataks aubergine pickle is great though. One of the simplest ways I like it is spread on wholemeal toast, and topped with hummus. Bringing India and the middle east together on some bread. Their green chili pickle is decent too. Edit: I'd actually take those two Pataks versions over the Shan equivalent.

Patak’s will do in a pinch if there’s nothing else but I don’t like the smaller size of their jars and the lack of variety. I agree the Shan versions of those you cite are not particularly distinguished. They offer some unusual ones like lasora but for things like amla which are usually not pickled in Muslim community you are better off with another brand.

Re: India’s pickle people: Decades-old culinary heirlooms, nostalgia

#130

Post by selimthegrim »

RugnirViking wrote: post #122
rmk wrote: post #77

There are also the 'sweet' pickles, murabba: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murabba Don't know what they would be called in the west. I see 'preserves' often, but they seem to be closer relatives of jams than murabbas. Unlike jams, murabbas have a savory taste (much smaller than the overall sweet taste) element to them.

Hmmm. Marmalade perhaps? Chutney, or Confit

Probably somewhere between chutney and preserves. Its slang usage, definitely accentuate the kitchen-sink /lots of things thrown together element to it, (“choon choon ke murabbe” is an affectionate term of abuse you shout at misbehaving children, at least in North of subcontinent, roughly “naughty little rascal/scamp”)
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