
Pumpkin Pickle
A sweet-sour, chilli-hot pumpkin pickle, with whole onion seeds and dried chillies perfuming the oil. It keeps for a few weeks in a clean jar.
Whole spices for the oil
12 gAdded to the hot oil at the start (step 2)Ground spices for the pumpkin
11 gStirred into the pumpkin after it has softened (step 4)Everything else
Method
- Warm 91.3 g vegetable oil in a heavy pan over a medium flame.
- Add the whole spices for the oil (7 g onion seed and 6 g dried kashmiri chilli) and let them sizzle in the oil.
- Add 1500 g pumpkin and cook gently for 10–15 minutes, until it is just tender.
- Stir in the ground spices for the pumpkin (7.8 g kashmiri chilli powder and 3 g ground turmeric) and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add 203 g white distilled vinegar and 100 g jaggery or caster sugar and stir.
- Cook for about 5 minutes, until the vinegar has cooked away.
- Take off the heat and leave to cool.
- Pack into a clean jar and keep for up to 2–3 weeks.
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Vegetable oil

Peanut oilUse 1:1 by weight. Handles high-heat frying identically and introduces a very subtle, pleasant nuttiness.
GheeUse 1:1 by weight. Yields a much richer, authentic aroma and a glossy, heavier mouthfeel.
Mustard oilUse 1:1 by weight. Heat until smoking, then cool slightly before cooking to temper its intensely pungent, sharp mustard kick.

Nigella seeds

Black cumin seedsUse equal weight. Imparts an earthy, slightly bitter note in temperings, though it lacks nigella's oniony sharpness.
Black sesame seedsUse equal weight. Gives a similar speckled appearance and light crunch on breads, but provides a nutty rather than herbaceous, onion-like flavour.

Dried kashmiri chilli

Kashmiri chilli powderUse 1 g powder for every 1.5 g whole dried chilli; whisk with a spoonful of warm water and stir into the masala to provide identical ruby colour and mild heat.
Dried red chilliUse 35% to 40% of the weight; discard seeds before tearing into oil to temper. Delivers a much fiercer heat, with significantly less red colouring.

Pumpkin

Ash gourdUse the same weight; peel and cube. Firmer and less sweet, so cook 5–10 minutes longer and taste for sugar.
Sweet potatoUse the same weight; peel and cube. Sweeter and starchier; reduce added sugar and cook until just tender.
CourgetteUse the same weight; cut larger chunks. Watery and soft, so cook 5 minutes less and reduce liquid.

Kashmiri chilli powder

Dried kashmiri chilliGrind deseeded dried pods to an equal weight of powder; gives identical vivid red colour and gentle warmth.
Red chilli powderUse 25% of the weight mixed with sweet paprika for colour; straight red chilli powder is substantially hotter and will make the dish fiery.
Chilli powderUse one-third of the weight; the sauce will be less intensely red and notably sharper in heat.

Ground turmeric

Ground gingerUse 50% of the weight. Mimics turmeric's warm, earthy, rhizome background, but provides none of the golden-yellow colour.
SaffronSteep a tiny pinch (0.1 g per 2 g turmeric) in 2 tbsp warm water; use to match the rich golden hue. Contributes an aristocratic, honeyed floral flavour rather than earthy bitterness.

White vinegar

White malt vinegarUse 100% of the weight. Imparts a very similar clean acidity with a faintly softer, grain-based finish.
VinegarUse 100% of the weight as a direct 1:1 replacement.
Lime juiceUse 100% of the weight. Stir into the sauce at the end of cooking; adds vibrant fruity acidity rather than acetic punch.

Jaggery or caster sugar

Light brown soft sugarUse the same weight. It has mild molasses and is close to caster sugar with a little colour; taste and adjust.
Dark brown sugarUse 90% of the weight. It has stronger molasses, which suits dishes where jaggery was intended; dissolve fully.
HoneyUse 75% of the weight. Reduce other liquid by about 20% and add off the heat; it brings its own floral flavour.
Similar dishes

- Same: Pumpkin Chutney shares pumpkin, vegetable oil, ground turmeric, Kashmiri chilli powder and dried Kashmiri chilli with this dish.
- Different: It uses only 300 g pumpkin and adds cumin, black mustard seed, curry leaf, cumin seed and sea salt, while it lacks this dish's onion seed, white distilled vinegar and jaggery or sugar and is a smooth roasted chutney with a mustard-seed tempering rather than an oil-preserved pickle.

- Same: Sitaphal ki Subzi shares pumpkin, turmeric, vegetable oil, dried chilli and jaggery with this dish.
- Different: Sitaphal ki Subzi is a curry with mustard seeds, urad dal, fresh coconut, rice flour and salt, and it lacks onion seeds, vinegar and kashmiri chilli powder; this dish is a vinegar-soured pickle.

- Same: Kumro Chenchki shares with this dish a base of pumpkin or squash cooked in vegetable oil with turmeric, Kashmiri chilli powder, dried red chilli and jaggery or sugar.
- Different: Kumro Chenchki uses panch phoron, ginger, ground coriander, water and fresh coriander and lacks the vinegar, onion seeds and pickle-style preservation of this dish.

- Same: Kumhare ki Subzi shares pumpkin, vegetable oil or ghee, turmeric and chilli powder with this dish, and both add some sugar or jaggery.
- Different: Kumhare ki Subzi uses fenugreek, cumin, coriander, amchoor and green chilli and is simmered dry then mashed, while this dish is a pickle with onion seeds, dried Kashmiri chillies, a lot more oil and distilled vinegar.

















