Spice Up Your Meals: Asian Cuisine’s Hot & Spicy Magic (5/7)

In my New York household I use pickles the way that wealthier households do in India, as a condiment guaranteed to give plain foods taste. In fact, in India it’s considered rude to ask for pickles if they are not on the table; it suggests that the food isn’t savory enough. Indian homes make several signature pickles, recipes that have been passed down through generations of women. Pickles made the season before are served daily. Aged, well-loved pickles are brought out when someone is sick or when the household is hosting a special meal. If you ask an Indian where the best pickles are made, they will name three centers: the Marwari and Baniya trading communities in northern India, the state of Gujerat in western India, and the state of Andhra Bradesh, in southern India. The Marwari and Baniya communities are completely vegetarian and they subsist on pickles and bread. The people of these communities make pickles everyday and their meals include several different types. Pickles that are spiced with fenugreek and fennel and pickled in mustard oil, are likely to be from northern India, as are pickled cauliflower, carrots, turnips and radishes, the so called “winter vegetables” that are grown on the northern plains. Celebrity Chef and Cookbook author Suvir Saran has shared his special pickle recipe with the readers of Asian Restaurant News MIXED VEGETABLE PICKLE Yield: 2 quarts Unlike some of the more intense-flavored or fiery hot Indian pickles, you can eat this pickle almost like a vegetable, in good-sized portions. It’s very quick to put together, needs only a few days to mature and tastes best eaten between the third and fifth days after it is made. After that, the vegetables begin to lose their crunch and the spices lose their edge. Don’t inhale the mustard oil as it heat; it burns nose and eyes something like an onion does. You might also substitute canola oil for half of the mustard oil if you prefer a milder tasting pickle. The chilies are slit rather than cut in half or chopped in order to give flavor to the pickle without adding a lot of heat. Ingredients 2 pounds peeled, trimmed mixed vegetables such as cauliflower, turnips, radishes and carrots 6 tablespoons mustard oil 2 teaspoons turmeric 1 teaspoon asafetida 1/4 cup black mustard seeds, ground to a powder in a spice grinder 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper 12 Anaheim or serrano chilies, trimmed and slit lengthwise 6 tablespoons rice wine vinegar Juice of 2 lemons Directions 1. Cut the vegetables into bite-sized pieces: cauliflower into florets; radishes in halves or quarters, depending on size; carrots in half lengthwise and then crosswise into 1- to 1 1/2 inch sections; turnips into bite-sized wedges. Combine the vegetables in a large, non-aluminum bowl. 2. Heat the oil to smoking in small saucepan over medium heat. Remove from the heat and let cool for a few minutes. 3. Then add the turmeric and asafetida, swirl the pan to mix and let cool. 4. Add the ground mustard seeds, salt, cayenne and fresh chilies to each vegetable mixture and pour the cooled oil over. Stir with a wooden spoon to coat the vegetables with the oil and spices. 5. Add the vinegar and lemon and stir well. 6. Spoon the vegetables into two sterilized 1-quart jars and set on a sunny windowsill for 2 to 3 days. 7. Then refrigerate and eat within 3 days. A Different Way of Interpreting Chinese Cuisine Susanna Foo was born in Inner Mongolia, China and raised in Taipei, Taiwan where she educated herself on the spices, grains, and produce indigenous to the region. Susanna's Special Style