Hello dear readers! Last week we made Mum's Special Mango Kuchla! Kuchla or kuchela is beloved side or condiment in Fiji and can accompany any Indian meal. It is made with grated or finely chopped/sliced fruit or veggies, typically mangoes. Mum's mango kuchla is perfectly sour, sweet, slightly crunchy and covered in our special achaar masala and oils! Really reminded me of mango pickles! This is the perfect way to keep enjoying the taste of mangoes all through fall and winter or until the next mango season. Although truth be told, here in California, you can typically find mangoes year-round. Benefits of living in the golden state I suppose. This is a small batch recipe but you can certainly make a bigger batch and enjoy for many months!
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So first we wash, peel and grate the mangoes. After squeezing excess water out, we sun dry the grated mango for about three hours.
In the meantime, a collection of whole spices are toasted and then coarsely ground in a spice grinder. Hopefully, you still have some achaar masala leftover from making Mum's New Apple Pickles! You also need coarsely crushed or minced garlic and some mustard oil*(please see author's note below).
The next steps are super easy. Bring in the sun-dried, grated mango. Check to make sure they are dehydrated enough. Add ground spices, garlic, chili powder, mustard oil and salt. Then mix well to combine and now you have Mum's Special Mango Kuchla!
The mango kuchla can be enjoyed right away. Or you can serve them as a side to any number of Indian style dishes such as Mum's Classic Dhal, Mum's Famous Chicken Curry, Mum's Lamb Curry or Mum's Green Bean Curry! There are so many dishes to explore on Cooking with Mum so please browse away! If you are an adventurous eater, you can certainly try eating kuchla with any type of dish! Keep scrolling for the full recipe with measurements or watch the YouTube video tutorial!
*Author's Note: Recently, I discovered that in the US, mustard oil is not used for cooking purposes and is for external use only. So you can substitute another type of oil in this recipe such as a good olive oil. However, if you want to use mustard oil, please read this well-written article describing the history of mustard oil in the US and where to purchase food-grade mustard oil https://www.seriouseats.com/mustard-oil-guide.
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Watch the video tutorial on You Tube:
Recipe
Prep time 10 minutes
Drying time 3 hours
Mixing time 10 minutes
Serves a crowd
Ingredients
3 green mangoes
1 tbsp salt
1/4 cup mustard oil*
3 tbsp achaar/pickle masala
1 tbsp coriander seeds
1 tsp fenugreek
1 tsp onion seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
2 tbsp Kashmiri chili powder**
6 cloves coarsely crushed garlic
Method
Wash, peel and grate three mangoes. Squeeze out excess water either with clean hand or cheesecloth.
Spread out grated mango on a sheet pan and sun-dry for 3 hours.
In the meantime, collect whole spices and toast them lightly on medium heat. Do not burn/brown the spices. Just lightly toast them.
Grind up toasted spices coarsely in a spice grinder. This is your achaar masala.
Store what masala you don't use for this recipe in an airtight container.
After three hours in the sun, place sun-dried grated mango in a mixing bowl and add the achaar masala, mustard oil, garlic, Kashmiri chili powder (for slight spice and color; please add according to your spice tolerance) and salt.
Mix well so that all the grated mango is coated in the achaar masala oil and spice mix.
Taste and adjust salt if needed at this point.
The mango kuchla is ready to eat and can be served right away as is or as a side dish/ condiment with meals.
The mango kuchla will become tastier the longer it sits in the oil and spices,
Store in an airtight container in the fridge and the mango kuchla will last for several months.
Author's Note:
*Recently, I discovered that in the US, mustard oil is not used for cooking purposes and is for external use only. So you can substitute another type of oil in this recipe such as a good olive oil. However, if you want to use mustard oil, please read this well-written article describing the history of mustard oil in the US and where to purchase food-grade mustard oil https://www.seriouseats.com/mustard-oil-guide.
**Kashmiri Chili Powder is added for spice and color. Please add according to your spice tolerance. This can be omitted altogether.
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