Reading and cooking have been my two hobbies since childhood. I used to read a number of comics, some subscribed and others borrowed. In addition to comics, two other magazines were also subscribed by my mother- Grihshobha and Sarita. I used to love Grihshobha because of its cookery section. I cut out all the recipes and by the time I grew up, I had a huge collection of recipes.

 Once, they published a recipe called sweet and sour chillies. My young brain was intrigued to know how chillies could be both sweet and sour at the same time. The moment I made it and presented it before my family members, it was a hit. In fact, a super hit. It became a regular among the pickles to be made. Even our guests were all praises for it.

When I got married, in my new home, no one had the taste for sweet pickles or chutneys except for gobi, gajar, shalgam pickle and sweet mango chutney. Since my marriage, I have made it only once when my lovely sister came back from America and asked for it.

Once my sweet little daughter went to my friend’s house and had sweet mint chutney, which was once my favorite. But I had stopped making as no one in my family had taste for it. Since then she keeps on demanding the same chutney. This made me realize that she has the same tastes like me. Now, I have a companion. So I thought of making this sweet and sour chili pickle, which she liked instantly. To my surprise, even my son liked it.

Here is the recipe from my sweet childhood.….

Stepwise Pictorial Description Of Sweet, Soup & Spicy Green Chili Pickle

Soak tamarind in ½ cup of vinegar to soften it. Mash it and take out the pulp. If need be, add a little more vinegar.

Dry roast sesame and mustard seeds.

Cool then and grind in a grinder to a coarse powder.

Wash and dry green chilies.

Chop them into 1 cm pieces.

Take oil in a pan and heat it to smoking point. Reduce the heat and add ginger garlic paste.

Fry it for 2-3 minutes till raw smell of garlic goes away.

Add ground sesame and mustard seeds and saute for a minute.

Add crushed jaggery and cook it on medium heat till the jaggery melts.

Add tamarind-vinegar paste, salt and turmeric powder and mix properly. Be ready to bear the smell of vinegar mix being cooked. But the taste of pickle is worth it.

Finally toss in chopped chilies and cook for 8-10 minutes till the chilies get softened.

Switch off the flame and let it cool. Once cooled, transfer the contents to a clean and sterilized dry container.

Enjoy this sweet, sour and spicy pickle with parantha of your choice.

Note:

Pickle, if consumed immediately, will be very spicy. So use it after 4-5 days for the proper taste to develop.

recipe of sweet, sour & spicy green chili pickle

---

Prep Time: 20 min       Cooking Time: 25 min           Difficulty Level: Easy

---

Ingredients

Green chilies	200 grams
Ginger paste	2 teaspoons
Garlic paste	1 teaspoon
Mustard seeds	2 tablespoons
Sesame seeds	1 tablespoon
Jaggery	½ cup
Vinegar	¾ cup
Tamarind	¼ cup
Turmeric powder	½ teaspoon
Salt	1 tablespoon
Mustard oil	¼ cup

Method:

1. Soak tamarind in ½ cup of vinegar to soften it. Mash it and take out the pulp. If need be, add a little more vinegar.
2. Dry roast sesame and mustard seeds. Cool then and grind in a grinder to a coarse powder.
3. Wash and dry green chilies. Chop them into 1cm pieces.
4. Take oil in a pan and heat it to smoking point. Reduce the heat and add ginger garlic paste. Fry it for 2-3 minutes till raw smell of garlic goes away.
5. Add ground sesame and mustard seeds and saute for a minute. Add crushed jaggery and cook it on medium heat till the jaggery melts.
6. Add tamarind-vinegar paste, salt and turmeric powder and mix properly. Be ready to bear the smell of vinegar mix being cooked. But the taste of pickle is worth it.
7. Finally toss in chopped chilies and cook for 8-10 minutes till the chilies get softened. Switch off the flame and let it cool. Once cooled, transfer the contents to a clean and sterilized dry container.
8. Enjoy this sweet, sour and spicy pickle with parantha of your choice.