Indian Pickles By Ramandeep Anand

Do you want to eat unique side dishes to boost your appetite? Do you want to eat a uniquely tasted pickle on a burger? Do you want to taste different flavors such as sweet, sour, salty and spicy in just one bite? Then find Indian pickles and be ready for a mouth sizzling meal.

Pickles are preserved foods soaked in brine or a salt and water solution. Pickled foods could be stored for months and these are commonly used as side dishes. Pickles could be made in anything edible such as vegetables, fruits, meat, fish, and eggs. Pickles also have a rich vitamin content which makes the body strong.

Pickles from India or achaar are unique because these are mixed in spices that only the country has. India is considered as a spice rich country because there are so many spices there that no other countries have. These spices are used on a daily basis and they mix it before cooking to release its unique flavors. Some common Indian spices include cumin, mustard seeds, carom seeds, saffron, kennel, curry, mango powder, bay leaf, fenugreek, turmeric, coriander and asafetida.

Pickles from India have a different aroma and flavor because it is made with different spices, cooking styles and ingredients. Usually these pickles are made from four or more ingredients. These pickles are traditionally cooked in oil. There are many different varieties of pickles according to its made and region.

The most common main ingredients used in pickles from India are mangoes (pickles called as (aam ka achaar) and lime (nimbu ka achaar). Other varieties are made from common ingredients such as cucumber (kankro achaar), turnip (shalgam ka achaar), cauliflower (gobi ka achaar), carrots (gajar ka achaar), lotus stem (kamal kankri ka achaar), pumpkin, (kaduu ka achaar), ginger (adrak ka achaar), garlic (lahsun achaar), mushroom (krumb achaar), eggplant (baigan ka achaar), jackfruit (chakka achaar), chili peppers (mirchi ka achaar), bitter melon (karela ha achaar); and unique ingredients such as rose petals, kohlrabi, gunda, kerba, Indian gooseberry and zimikand; or a combination of two or more main ingredients.

Making pickle Indian-inspired is not that hard to do. All you need is to chop the main ingredient and let it dry in the sun. Afterwards, it can be mixed or cooked in some spices and oil.

Pickling is also a main tradition in India. Women line up on the streets to chop ingredients and let dry in the sun. They usually talk while chopping and preparing pickles. Every Indian woman has her own pickle recipes that were passed down on her grandmother and mother. These pickles are usually stored in a martbaan or an attractive Indian pickle jar.

Other than Indian homemade pickles, there are also other pickles sold online. These are usually comes in neat jars or aluminum cans with the name of the product. You can be sure that you can still taste the Indian flavor of the pickle like you are eating in India.

Indian pickles will not replace pickles from other countries because of its distinctive taste. Every food aficionado would want to have a bite of this unique pickle.