1. Mango thokku

 Mango thokku is very simple to make but delicious. It has lesser shelf life compared to mavadu and avakkai. But we can eat by mixing it with rice and a tsp of gingely oil.

Ingredients:

Mango  (Benglura mango or kili muku mango or any other mango variety) - 1

Turmeric powder - 1tsp

Salt - as required (1tbs)

Hinge -1/4 tsp

Methi seeds 1tbs

Mustard seeds - 1tsp

Chili powder - 1tbs 

Oil (gingely) - 3tbs

Method :

1. Grate mango in a grater or cut into pieces and whip in mixie. Do not grind too soft.
   

   

   
   
   
   
2. Add salt and turmeric powder  and mix well. Leave it for 10mins.
   
   
   
3. Dry roast meth seeds and dry grind it.
4. Heat oil in a pan add mustard seeds.
   
   
   
5. Add the mango, turmeric powder and salt mixer into the pan after the mustard seeds splutters.
6. Add methi powder and chili powder.
   
   
   
7. Stir well. Keep stirring till the ingredients get mixed well and come out without touching the sides of the pan.
   

   

   
   
   
   
8. Your mango thokku is ready. Cool it. Store it in a clean dry glass bottle with air tight lid.

Tips:

You can add a 1/2 tsp of jaggery at the last if you like the slight sweet taste.

If the mango is very sour you may have to add extra chili powder and salt.

Bengalura mango is sweeter when raw so it requires no jaggery and less chili powder.

Urgai maavadu

Mavadu is the easiest and tastiest urugai. Thayir sadam with vadu mangai is the tastiest. Even the charu without vadu mangai will be tasty for curd rice. It is healthy too because no oil is used as in other pickles.

 It has long shelf life.

Ingredients

Baby mangoes with stem -1kg

Crystal Salt - 1cup

 Castor oil/ gingely oil - 1tbp

Mustard seeds - 50 GM's / 1/4 cup

Round red chilli - 20

Hinge - 1/2 tsp

Method

1. Wash the mangoes thoroughly and wipe well with a cloth. 
2. Spread on a white (veshti) cloth and dry it under fan for 2hrs.

3. Add castor or gingely oil and shake well so that it forms coating over the mangoes.

 4. Take the mustard oil and sundry if possible or you can straight away grind it to a fine powder.

5. To that add crystal Salt, red chilli and hinge and dry grind. Let it be a fine powder.

6. Add it to mangoes and mix thoroughly.

 Leave it closing it air tight. Use a broad vessel. It can be plastic container or even steel vessel. Later you can store it in glass bottle or ceramic jadi.

7. Daily morning mix thoroughly with a dry hand and dry ladle. It should be done for 3days.  You can see the water comes and fills the whole mangoes. You can see the wrinkles over the mangoes.

Now it is ready to use.  But it is advisable to leave for a week for the raw smell to go.

Tips: 

• No need to add any water.
• No prior soaking in brine solution or in salt is necessary.
• Buy round vadus with reddish stem.
• While cutting the stem leave a bit which will give you longer shelf life. 
• Also wash the mangoes after cutting the stem because the milk from the stem may come out.
• I used to add two three stems which will preserve the mangoes.
• Adding slightly dry roasted crystal Salt will also increase shelf life. Because the salt might have absorbed water from the air.
• Store it in air tight container. 
• Occasionally you can stir. If you are storing in ceramic jadi, cover the mouth with a white cloth and tie the neck tightly. Then place the lid.
• If all the above are followed it will last for an year. 

5. Avakkai urugai

 Avakkai is one of the best pickle that has long shelf life.

Prepraration:

For 6 fist sized mango. 

1. Better to choose a sour variety of raw mangoes.
2. Cut the mangoes into 8 pieces or more than that. Try to retain the hard shell.Through away the seed.
3. Use two white clothes. 
4. Have clean water in a bowl and dip one of the cloth, squeeze and wipe few pieces so that you clean all the dirt.
5.  Immediately wipe them with dry cloth and keep it on a newspaper or plate so that the skin portion touches the ground.
6.  Leave them to  dry. 
7. Repeat the process for the rest of the pieces. Allow them to dry under fan.

Powder to grind 

Ingredients

1. Red chilli powder -200 gms

2. Mustard seeds -200gms

3. Methi seeds - 200 gms

4. Salt

5. Idayam gingely oil - 1/2 kg

 Preparing the powder: 

1. Dry mustard seeds and methi seeds in the hot sun at least for 3 to 4 hrs. So that it can be powdered well and also keeps the pickle for long shelf life.
2. First add mustard seeds in a mixie jar and powder it well.
3. Now measure the powder in a cup  and add equal quantity of chilli powder and salt.
4. Just whip it to mix well in the jar itself.

Method:

1. Take a big container(can be glass/ stailess steal or plastic) But storage should be done preferably in glass or good quality of plastic.
2. Keep the dried mangoes, chilli mustarda salt powder mixer, methi seeds and oil.
3. First add few pieces of mango over which sprinkle the powder using a laddle or spoon so the that it falls on all the pieces.
4. Now sprinkle some methy seeds using a spoon.
5. Now using a laddle pour oil uniformly all over the mangoes. This is the first layer.
6. Repeat the process. Add mangoes then powder then methi seeds and then oil. This will be second layer.
7. Repeat till you complete all the mangoes. 
8. If some powder or oil is left behind, add the powder completely and then add the oil over that.
9. Close the vessel tightly. Leave it aside.
10. After 3 days check if the oil is floating on the top. If not, pour more oil. 
11. Mix thoroughly. Care should be taken that your hands or the laddle you use to mix the pickle are completely dry.
12. Check the next day. Oil should be floating. If not add some more and mix.
13. Keep mixing once daily for 3 days and store it in a air tight container. 
14. Take little in a small container for daily use. 
15. No need to refrigerate.

Yummy avakkai is ready to use. 

9. parupilla araitha kuzhambu/ mangotai kuzhambu

Parupu illa kuzhambu      

Any vegetable that are used for making sambar like drumstick raddish etc can be used for this kuzhambu. Sour mangoes that are cut and dried in hot sun can be used instead of the vegetable. Even the mango seed (kottai) can also be used.

Ingredients:

Tamraind - 1 lemon size

Salt - 1tb

Turmeric powder - a pinch

For grinding:

Channa dal - 2tsb

Daniya seed - 2tbs

Red chilli - 8/9

Methi sedd- 1/4 tsp

Coconut (grated) - 2tbs

Hinge - a pinch

Oil - 1tsp

Seasoning:

Mustard seed - 1/2 tsp

Hinge - a pinch

curry leaves

Method:

1. Soak tamarind in hot water. Extract 4 cups of juice.
2. Cook the vegetable in tamrind extract adding salt and turmuric powder.
3. Heat the pan add the oil and roast all the ingredients mentioned for grinding except coconut till the dal turns brown
4. Grind roasted items and coconut into fine paste.
5. Mix with tamarind extract and allow it to boil for a minute.
6. Season the kzuhambu.

Note: If dried sour mangoes and thier seeds are used, size of the tamrind should be as that of a small lemon. Use more mango pieces. The seed coat can be broken to eat the seed inside. But the seed will be different taste like that of a betal nut.