Pandu Mirchi Pachadi:(Andhra Style)

Ripe Red Chili Pickle/ Molagha Thokku/ Sivappu Milagha Thokku/Milaga Pazha Thokku/Chili Pickle/Lal Mirchi Ki Achaar.

Wow…..one of the amazing pickle, I enjoyed in Hyderabad. I always bug my best friend kranti’s Mom to prepare this. She makes it really good. Whenever I go home to meet my parents. The previous day……She will make this for me. The cook in me, made me to stand beside her and watch this a big time.

I never had an idea….that pickle could be made without using stove/heating. She prepared this everything off stove. Just seasoning she did briefly and tossed finally! Imagine ‘Raw Red Chili’….hmmmmm makes one go dizzy! But its all until you actually taste it! One good thing about Andhra pickle is…they use raw sesame oil! Unlike Tamil Naadu…as in Tamil Nadu they use warm sesame oil! Both has its own unique flavour!

Ingredients:

Ripe red chilies 1 kilo(fruit)
Whole fresh tamarind 1/4 kilo(without shell)
Garlic 100 grams
Fenugreek powder 100 grams
Salt as per taste(infact as per pickle)

For Sesonning:

Sesame oil 1/4 kilo
Mustard seeds 1 spoon
Cumin seeds 1 spoon
Dry red chilies few
Asafoetida 1-2 spoons
Garlic chushed few
Curry leaves few.

Method:

Chop or slice down your ripe red chilies and add salt to this. And grind it in a blender.

To the above add tamarind and load them in heavy ceramic jar. The neck of the jar can be tied with muslin cloth or kept open. So…..leave this jar under direct sunlight for atleast 2 days. Let the tamarind get well incorporated to the chilies.(let the hot chili fight with sour tamarind and get well blend along with salt…..wow what a great combination, cant hardly wait to hog them)

After 2 days, grind this whole mixture again. It come out like a bloody red paste. Hmmmmm real aroma.

Now to this add, fenugreek powder and freshly grated garlic.

Then, as usual…..prepare the sesonning and run over this.

Heat oil and add mustard, cumin, dry red chilies, few chushed garlic, curry leaves and asafoetida. Take this sesonning and run over the chili paste prepared above.

Did you note one thing, here neither the ripe red chili or tamarind are not cooked over stove top at any point. Though it may sound weird for most of you(esp, non-tasters). Hey, I bet its something great. Never have the wrong notion…that it will be severe in heat(hot recipe). If you guys are so bad in trying hot recipes…..better you can core the chilies then(deseed/remove the seeds).