Methumbo - Sweet & Sour Instant Mango Pickle

Know What You Eat: Methumbo is an instant, sweet & sour pickle made by cooking marinated mangoes in spiced up hot oil and jaggery.

Recipe: Methumbo Pickle | Sweet and Sour Instant Mango Pickle from Gujarat, India Ingredients 1 C Raw Green Mango, diced 1 tsp Salt, marinate overnight (optional) 1-1/4 C Jaggery (Raw sugar works good as well) 2 Tbsp Oil 4 Cloves 3 inch piece Cinnamon, cut to pieces 4 Dried Red chili pepper 1 tsp Fenugreek Seeds (Methi) 1 tsp Mustard seeds 1 tsp Cumin seeds 3 tsp Sambhaar Masala ** recipe below 1 tsp Fennel seeds 2 Pinch Asafoetida Directions Wash clean peel raw Mango, cut into square pieces add salt and marinate overnight, this is done to quicken up the cooking process as well as this will soften mango and let it loose the water for pickling process. Heat oil, add mustard seeds, cloves and let it splutter, then add fenugreek seeds, cinnamon, cumin seeds and fennel seeds along with dried red chilies, and hing. Now add mangoes along with the marinated juice, and cook until it gets tender. Add 1 C Jaggery and bring it to boil, then simmer it for another 5-10 mins until the gravy thickens a bit. Add 1 tsp of Red chili powder and set aside to cool. Pour it in sterilized bottle to enjoy for couple of days, refrigerate for later use.  Tip: Make sure, the mangoes you use are sour mangoes and have to be very raw, they should not have the yellowish pulp, but a greenish pulp. The more raw the mangoes, the longer the shelf life. Gujarati Sambhaar /Pickle Masala: Ingredients 2 C Rai Kuriya (coarsely ground mustard seeds) 1 C Methi Kuriya (coarsely ground fenugreek seeds) 2 C Coarse red chilli powder 1 tsp Asafoetida 1 tsp Turmeric powder 2 C Oil 1-1/2 C Coarse Salt Directions Heat Oil in a kadia/wok to the boiling point. Let it cool down Pour the rest of the ingredients in the completely cooled oil. Store in an air-tight container. Note Do not add the ingredients when the oil is hot, else it will turn black and also the steam will be formed. That will spoil the masala completely. You can use the above sambhaar recipe to make annual or instant raw mango pickle or pickle of almost any vegetables like carrots, cauliflowers,turnips, grannysmith apple, cranberries etc.

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Homemade Strawberry Sauce | Topping

Know What You Eat: I always refuse to give store bought Maple syrup (that sweet little lady bottle) when it comes to top pancakes, ice creams, pies..WHY??? Have you ever read the ingredients list..if not here it is..  ...INGREDIENTS: CORN SYRUP, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, WATER, CELLULOSE GUM, CARAMEL COLOR, SALT, SODIUM BENZOATE AND SORBIC ACID (PRESERVATIVES), ARTIFICIAL AND NATURAL FLAVORS, SODIUM HEXAMETAPHOSPHATE. This already sounds like a DANGER to me  Yeah, my thoughts exactly.  So in an effort to not use these easily available fancy sauce/syrups stash .I have decided to stretch a small amount to produce a delightful and healthier syrup for my kids.  I call this a strawberry sauce, because it is not thin and runny like a syrup.  It has a chunkier more organic texture.Many of us do not realize how easy it is to make strawberry sauce at home with minimal, almost available ingredients in our pantry..Of Course you need strawberries...Use fresh when in season, and frozen also tastes equally good..

Recipe: Homemade Strawberry Sauce     (C= Cups, Tbsp= tablespoon, tsp= teaspoon) Prep time: 10 mins  Cook time :  15 mins Ingredients 8 C Strawberries, hulled 1 C Raw Sugar (adjust the quantity depending on sweetness of berries) 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract (optional) 1 C Water A pinch of Salt Method: Combine all the ingredients except vanilla extract (optional) in a saucepan over medium-low heat, stir gently until sugar dissolves and berries gets soft, about 15 mins. Remove from heat, allow to cool down completely and add vanilla extract. Mix it well and bottle it for later use. Where Can You Use Strawberry Sauce: Make a great drizzle for fresh fruit salad Topping for waffles Spoon on top of Cereal Use to make healthy strawberry milkshake Ice cream topping Cheesecake topping Makes a great dip for your favorite fruits as well.

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