As we all know, pickling is one of the oldest methods to preserve food for a long time. But in India, it is being followed more like a tradition than a process. I still remember how my grandparents used to pickle fruits, vegetables and a variety of chillies after harvesting them from the backyard to preserve it for a long time. We would relish it whenever we used to visit them during our winter or summer vacations. Today I am going to share one such pickle recipe and my favourite too. This chilli pickle is easy to prepare and a savoury selection coated with handpicked spices and drenched in vinegar and mustard oil. Check out this hot and tangy chilli pickle to spice up your meals!

Ingredients:
Red Chillies: 400 gms (wash and cut in small pieces)
White mustard seeds: Half a cup
Vinegar: 1 cup
Homemade dry spice: 2 tablespoons
Lemon juice: 2 (lemons)
Salt: As per taste (Approx 4-5 teaspoons)
Mustard oil: 1 cup

Precooking process:
1) Soak white mustard seeds in one cup of vinegar overnight. Strain the vinegar in a separate bowl and add the mustard seeds into a grinder to make a coarse paste. You can add some of the vinegar while making the paste.

2) Homemade dry spice:The dry spice for the pickle is a mixture of 6 different seeds that contains an equal amount of Fenugreek, Nigella, Cumin, Black Mustard, Carom and Fennel, roasted and rough-ground in a mortar.

3) Keep the cut chillies in direct sunlight for a day to evaporate the water completely. Squeeze juice of two lemons on the chillies, mix it well and keep it aside before one hour of preparing the pickle.

Step 1: Once all ingredients are ready in front of you, heat the kadhai or pan and add mustard oil in it. Add the mustard seeds paste into it and fry for one minutes in medium heat. Now turn the gas off and add the marinated chillies and mix it well.

Step 2: Mix salt with the spice powder and sprinkle the spice over it. Stir the pickle and let it cool down. Once the pickle comes to room temperature, put it in an air-tight glass or ceramic jar. Keep the jar in direct sunlight for 7-10 days before consuming.

Serve this fiery mouthwatering pickle along with your meals to add additional flavour to your food.