Gajar, Gobi, Shalgam – Khatta Meetha Punjabi Achar – Pickle is an integral part of meals. It adds taste and variety to meals. This Punjabi Achar made from cauliflower, carrots and turnips with lots of spices. Rich in mustard oil is a must have in every Punjabi family during winter season. This mixed vegetable pickle is a staple condiment made at every home in Northern India during the winter season (November – February). Every family has its own mixed vegetable pickle recipe passed on from one generation to another.
We use cauliflower florets, carrot, turnip, ginger, green chili for making this Punjabi mixed vegetable pickle. You may skip radish or turnip if you like. Mustard oil is the key feature of all achars. It gives texture and taste to achar. Also it adds to the shelf life of achar.
Tips:
Vinegar gives a sour taste to the pickle and helps in preservation
You can use beetroot as well in this pickle.
You can cover the jar with a muslin cloth. If putting the lid of the jar, don’t put it tightly. While fermentation of pickles, gases are released and they need some place to escape.
Gajar, Gobi, Shalgam – Khatta-Meetha Punjabi Achar
Ingredients
- 500 grams Cauliflower Gobhi
- 500 grams Carrots Gajar
- 500 grams Turnip Shalgam
- 3 tbsp. Ginger Paste
- 2 tablespoon Garlic Paste
- ¾ cup Mustard Oil
- 2 tablespoon Mustard / Rai – Grounded
- 1 tablespoon Red chilli powder or adjust according to taste
- 1 teaspoon turmeric / haldi powder
- ½ teaspoon Asafetida / Hing
- 1 cup Jaggery / Gur crushed
- ½ cup Vinegar
Instructions
- Wash and cut the cauliflower into florets. Wash, peel and cut carrots and turnips into 3-4 cm pieces.
- Spread vegetables on a piece of clean cloth and keep these in the sun for 2-3 hours. There should not be any moisture left, otherwise the pickle will get spoiled.
- Make a paste of ginger and garlic in a mixie or grate these with a fine grater.
- Take oil in a wok and heat it to its smoking point. Once it heats up, reduce the flame and add ginger garlic paste. Stir it and saute for few minutes on low flame to raw smell of garlic goes away.
- Now add hing and coarsely ground mustards powder and give a quick stir.
- Now add rest of the spices and stir for a minute.
- Add crushed jaggery and mix it well. Let the Jaggery dissolve and add vinegar. Let the whole mixture simmer till it gets thickened to ½ string consistency.
- Add the vegetables and stir these well. Let the mixture simmer for 10-15 minutes on medium flame till the vegetables get a bit softened.
- Gobi, gajar, shalgam ka khatta meetha pickle is ready.
- Store pickle in clean jars.