Hot Lemon Pickle

A couple of nights ago I sat down to a dinner of homemade lentil curry, unscrewed the lid of the hot lime pickle for to have on the side when to my alarm realised that it was the last spoonful of hot lime pickle! *Gasp* Once I'd happily devoured the lot (mmm delicious), I hastily added 'hot lime pickle' to the shopping list. Then I looked in the fruit bowl; there sat 4 lemons and 2 limes. I looked in the spice cupboard; well stocked. So I scrubbed out 'hot lime pickle' from the shopping list. I was going to make my own.

Simon brought me THIS South Indian cookbook for my birthday and there is a recipe for Hot Lemon Pickle in the chutneys and pickles section, so I decided now was the right time to give it a go. This is a really simple and quick recipe - some of the others I've come across, although incredibly delicious I am sure, require weeks of stirring, shaking and marinating in sunlight, the latter of which we are not having much of in England at the moment!

So here's what you will need;

Lemons, 6 (I used 4 lemons & 2 limes)
Water, enough to cover the lemons
Fenugreek seeds, 1 tsp
Asafoetida powder, 1/2 tsp
Sesame oil, 180ml
Brown mustard seeds, 1 tsp
Chilli powder, 4 tsps
Ground tumeric, 1/2 tsp
Green chillies, 6 chopped
Fresh ginger, 4cm piece, peeled and chopped
Salt, 6 tbsp (yes I know that's a lot, but I think it's worth it!)

And here's how to...

Dry-roast the fenugreek seeds and asafoetida powder for about 2-3 minutes. Grind into a fine powder. Set aside. 

Place the whole lemons/limes in a pan. Add enough water to cover them, and bring to the boil. Boil for 10-15 minutes, or until tender. Allow to cool, cut into small pieces, be sure to remove all the pips, and set aside. Reserve the cooking water. 

In a large heavy bottomed pan, heat the sesame oil and add the mustard seeds. 

When the seeds start to pop, add the chilli powder, ground tumeric, ginger and green chillies. Saute for 2-3 minutes.

Add the lemons/limes and reserved cooking water. Now add the salt and the fenugreek/asafoetida mixture. 

Store in an airtight jar/bottle and refrigerate.

And enjoy on the side of a homemade lentil curry!