>there was a tradition of pickle making (Indian pickles, or aachar
There are some good Indian pickles or preserves that are less known nowadays, or at least, I do not see or hear of them as much. A few are:
- mahani - it's made from the root of a plant, googled it ("mahani pickle") recently, may be (Indian version of) sarsaparilla; it has an unusual taste; had it at a relative's farm, where they made it from bushes growing there
- sundakai (small bright reddish-yellow fruit of a bush), sun-dried and then quickly deep-fried, to have as a condiment with meals (a kind of "vattal", it's called, in Tamil) (think something like dried then fried chillies, not in hotness but in the technique)
- karonda (a small crimson fruit of a tree, incredibly tangy and sourish (but more to it) taste, used to pick and eat them from wild trees in Central India as a kid, also once had an unforgettable pickle made from them in a Punjabi restaurant in Bangalore (it might have been Casa Piccola)
- green peppers (not chillies, the same fruit as the black pepper, but when unripe), pickled in just salted water; bought a jar a couple of times at a Kerala foods store in Pune, comes in sprigs, mouth-watering and a bit deceptively strong.
There are some good Indian pickles or preserves that are less known nowadays, or at least, I do not see or hear of them as much. A few are:
- mahani - it's made from the root of a plant, googled it ("mahani pickle") recently, may be (Indian version of) sarsaparilla; it has an unusual taste; had it at a relative's farm, where they made it from bushes growing there
- sundakai (small bright reddish-yellow fruit of a bush), sun-dried and then quickly deep-fried, to have as a condiment with meals (a kind of "vattal", it's called, in Tamil) (think something like dried then fried chillies, not in hotness but in the technique)
- karonda (a small crimson fruit of a tree, incredibly tangy and sourish (but more to it) taste, used to pick and eat them from wild trees in Central India as a kid, also once had an unforgettable pickle made from them in a Punjabi restaurant in Bangalore (it might have been Casa Piccola)
- green peppers (not chillies, the same fruit as the black pepper, but when unripe), pickled in just salted water; bought a jar a couple of times at a Kerala foods store in Pune, comes in sprigs, mouth-watering and a bit deceptively strong.