An Invitation to Indian Cooking - Madhur Jaffrey [102]
Unable to find the bleeding “black” carrot, I have substituted the ordinary orange carrot. However, I have thrown in some beets to supply the necessary color. I eat both the carrot and the beet. The juice, of course, is the best part of all.
This pickle is good for 10 days to 2 weeks. It will get more sour as time passes. You may need to add more salt as that happens. One way to slow its deterioration is to refrigerate it.
1⅓ tablespoons salt
4 tablespoons black mustard seeds
1½ pounds carrots
2 medium-sized beets
2 hot dried red peppers
Bring 4½ quarts water and the salt to a boil in a large pot.
Meanwhile, crush, pound, or grind the mustard seeds coarsely, so that they split at least in half, using either a heavy mortar and pestle or an Indian grinding stone.
Peel the carrots, removing the green top portion, and quarter them lengthwise. Halve each piece lengthwise once again.
Peel the beets and cut each into 3 rounds.
Place the beets and carrots in a clean 5–6-quart wide-mouthed jar. Pour boiling salted water over them. Add the mustard seeds and the red peppers. Allow to cool. Stir and cover.
Put a small label with the date on it so you will not forget exactly when you started the pickle. Stir once a day for 7 days with a clean wooden spoon. Keep covered. It should be ready on the seventh day.
To serve: Place in a bowl a slice or two of carrot plus half a ladleful of juice for each person eating. Cool in the refrigerator. Serve in small, individual, nonmetallic bowls.
Turnip “water” pickle
ABOUT 5 QUARTS
Water pickles are a specialty of my family. I love them and find them very similar to the gherkins and cucumbers pickled in barrels and found in good delicatessens all over New York City.
This pickle takes a week to mature and then can be eaten for the next 2 weeks. It gets very sour as time passes, and you may need to add more salt to it. One way to slow its deterioration is to refrigerate it once it has matured. Both the vegetable and the juice are consumed.
5 tablespoons black mustard seeds
3 pounds medium-sized white turnips
1⅓ tablespoons salt
2 whole dried hot red chilies (optional)
Crush, pound, or grind the mustard seeds coarsely, so that they split at least in half, using either a heavy mortar and pestle or an Indian grinding stone.
In a large pot, bring 4 quarts of water to a boil. Add salt to the water.
Peel the turnips and place in a clean 5–6-quart wide-mouthed jar. Pour boiling salted water over them. Add crushed mustard seeds and red chilies. Allow to cool.
Stir and put lid on. Stick a label with the date on the jar. Stir it every day with a clean wooden spoon. On the seventh day it will be ready to eat.
To serve: Place in a bowl a piece of pickle and half a ladleful of juice for each person eating. Cool in refrigerator and serve in small individual nonmetallic bowls.
Carrots pickled in oil
ABOUT 1 QUART
This is perhaps the simplest oil pickle you could make. It takes about a week to mature. It can then be refrigerated and kept for months.
2 teaspoons black mustard seeds
1 pound carrots of medium thickness
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
2 cups vegetable oil
Crush, pound, or grind mustard seeds coarsely, so that they split at least in half, using either a heavy mortar and pestle or an Indian grinding stone.
Peel the carrots. Cut off the coarse top and the bottom. Cut each carrot in 3 pieces. Halve or quarter these pieces lengthwise according to the thickness of the carrots.
Place carrots in clean, dry quart jar. Add salt, cayenne pepper, turmeric, and crushed mustard seeds.
Warm the oil and pour over the carrots. Put lid on tightly and shake the jar well. Leave in a warm place for 7 days. Shake the jar once or twice daily.