Mum’s kitchen had tall windows on 2 sides bringing the garden outside closer.

Mum did all the cooking when we were kids growing up in Mumbai. Watching her make the pickles or chutneys once in a way, was a treat. We often had boiled rice, a simple dal, fried fish or cutlets made with mince and fried papad for lunch. Chilli pickle goes really well with this.

Ingredients

375gm green chilli ( we bought about 500 gms)

1 cup oil

1-2 tsp salt ( to taste)

½ dl ground jaggery or sugar

vinegar to taste ( we used about 3 tbsp)

Spices for the masala

2 tsp mustard seeds

2 full heads of garlic

1 tsp methi seeds

2 inch ginger

2 tbsp haldi / turmeric

2 tbsp jeera

Putting it together

Cut the chillies, salt them & leave for 1-2 hours.

Grind all the spices in vinegar.

Heat a little oil in a pan and fry the masala on medium heat, stirring often so that it does not burn.

Add the jaggery / sugar and vinegar.

Lower the heat and add the chillies. Cook on low heat for 15 mins depending on the chillies. They should not get mushy, but just cooked in the spices.

Cool well & bottle. Enjoy with roti or with a simple meal of dal and rice.