Indian cooking
Indian cooking / Dishes / Lacchewalle Pyaz
Lacchewalle Pyaz (Pickled Onions with Chaat Masala, Black Salt and Lemon)

Lacchewalle Pyaz

Pickled Onions with Chaat Masala, Black Salt and Lemon
Vegetarian

A sharp, lemony onion pickle with softened onion slices, salty-savoury chaat masala and a mild chilli kick. It is fresh and crunchy-soft, with coriander adding a green herbal note.

Dressing spices

2.1 gStirred into the lemon juice dressing (step 1)
01
0.8 g¼ teaspoon
spice blend
Stir into the lemon juice until evenly mixed.

Everything else

01
2.6 g½ teaspoon
salt
02
4.2 g1 teaspoon
sweetener
03
50 g1 lemon
fruit
04
~30 g1 handful
herb
05
Red onion · Pyazthinly sliced
200 g
vegetable

Method

  1. In a small bowl, stir the dressing spices with 2.6 g black salt, 4.2 g granulated sugar and 50 g lemon juice until the sugar dissolves.
  2. Stir 30 g coriander leaf into the dressing.
  3. Put 200 g red onion in a large bowl, pour over the dressing and toss well.
  4. Cover and leave for 2–3 hours, until the onion slices have softened.

Don't have something?

Chaat masala
  • Tandoori snack spice mix

    Use the same weight; taste first as it can be smokier and saltier. Add lime or amchoor if the dish needs more tang.

  • Dried mango powder

    Use about half the weight, mixed with black salt and a pinch of ground cumin. It gives tang and saltiness but lacks the minty, asafoetida notes.

  • Black salt

    Use about half the weight and add lime juice to taste. It gives the salty, sulphurous edge but not the full tangy blend.

Kashmiri chilli powder
  • Dried kashmiri chilli

    Grind deseeded dried pods to an equal weight of powder; gives identical vivid red colour and gentle warmth.

  • Red chilli powder

    Use 25% of the weight mixed with sweet paprika for colour; straight red chilli powder is substantially hotter and will make the dish fiery.

  • Chilli powder

    Use one-third of the weight; the sauce will be less intensely red and notably sharper in heat.

Granulated sugar
  • Jaggery

    Use equal weight; grate or shave finely so it dissolves rapidly, giving a warm, caramel-like sweetness and slightly darker sauce.

Lemon
  • Lime

    Use the same weight or juice amount; sharper, so taste before adding all the juice.

  • Lemon juice

    Use about 45–50 ml for 1 lemon; add off the heat to keep the freshness.

  • Dried mango powder

    Use 1 tsp for the juice of 1 lemon; add early. Sourness is flatter and less fresh.

Coriander leaf
  • Coriander

    Use equal weight finely chopped; this is the exact same fresh herb.

  • Mint

    Use half the weight finely chopped; provides vibrant green freshness, though the flavour profile becomes noticeably cooler and sharper.

Red onion
  • Onion

    Use the same weight; cook a little longer. Milder and less sweet when raw.

  • Shallot

    Use the same weight; sweeter and softer, so reduce cooking time slightly.

  • Spring onion

    Use only the white parts, weight for weight, for raw or quick-cooked dishes; green parts are too grassy for long cooking.

Similar dishes

Sirkewalla Pyaz
Spiced Pickled Red Onions
Sirkewalla Pyaz tastes more sharply lemony and cumin-forward with a plain salt edge, while this dish is saltier-savoury from black salt and chaat masala and has a sweet note from sugar plus much more coriander.
  • Same: Sirkewalla Pyaz shares red onion, lemon juice, Kashmiri chilli powder and coriander with this dish.
  • Different: Sirkewalla Pyaz uses 300 g red onion, regular salt and cumin seed, and it omits chaat masala, black salt and sugar; it also has only 1 g coriander against this dish’s 30 g.
Sirkewala Achar
Mixed Vegetable Pickle
Sirkewala Achar tastes sharply vinegary and lightly sweet with a savoury olive-oil note, while this dish tastes lemony, salty-savoury from chaat masala and black salt, with a mild chilli kick and fresh coriander.
  • Same: Sirkewala Achar and this dish are both tangy pickles that contain onion, sugar and salt.
  • Different: Sirkewala Achar uses white malt vinegar as its souring agent and adds olive oil, garlic, carrot, cucumber and cauliflower, while this dish uses lemon, chaat masala, black salt, Kashmiri chilli powder and coriander with red onion only.
Onion Bhajiya
Onion Bhaji
Onion Bhajiya is deeply savoury and crispy from frying, whereas this dish is sharp, lemony and salty-savoury with a fresh coriander note.
  • Same: Onion Bhajiya and this dish both use onion as their main ingredient and include salt.
  • Different: Onion Bhajiya coats onion in gram flour with ajwain and bicarbonate of soda and fries it in vegetable oil, while this dish tosses onion with lemon, chaat masala, black salt, sugar and coriander and is not fried.
Awadh Imliwali Pyaz
Red Onion, Tomato & Tamarind Chutney
Awadh Imliwali Pyaz tastes tangy and sweet-sour from tamarind with a garlicky curry-leaf tempering and mild heat, while this dish is sharply lemony, salty-savoury and fresh with crunchy-soft onion.
  • Same: Awadh Imliwali Pyaz shares red onion, Kashmiri chilli powder and coriander leaves with this dish.
  • Different: Awadh Imliwali Pyaz adds tomato, tamarind paste, garlic, curry leaf, cumin seed, black peppercorn, dried red chilli, vegetable oil and sugar and is a cooked chutney, while this dish lacks those and uses lemon, chaat masala and black salt as a fresh pickle.