Easy Mango Achar and a me-me tag :) !!

Summers are fast approaching and the only thing that makes me happy and excited during those sultry hot days are Mangoes. As a signal for summer days I saw nice young and tender green mangoes last day on the vegetables aisle of a supermarket. I could smell the freshness, that tangy smell all around the place. With in no time I had 4 of them in my basket. And my hubby was like - "what are you going to do with all those Pacha Mangas(Raw mangoes) ??" The only answer I had was - "Baby, you wait and watch".

The first day I cut one mango and put into my yummy Ayila (Indian Mackerel) curry. And the second day I went on to make this easy manga achar for the first time in my life. I immediately called up my 911 for cooking - my mom!! Here goes the recipe.. Enjoy


Ingredients:

• 2 - Raw Mangoes, washed and diced (prefer mangoes which are still tender and the seeds haven't hardened yet)
• Salt to taste
• 1.5 tsp - Red Chilly powder
• A pinch of Turmeric powder
• 1/4 tsp - Fenugreek seed powder (simply dry roast the seeds and powder it using a mortar and pestle)
  
• 1/2 tsp - Asafoetida powder
• 2 tbsp - Gingelly oil (nellenna) or if not available use olive or groundnut or sunflower oil
• 1/4 tsp - Mustard seeds
  
• A sprig of curry leaf
  

Method:

• Mix the diced mango pieces with red chilly powder, turmeric, fenugreek powder, asafoetida powder and salt using a clean and dry spoon. Let it stand for 10-15 minutes
  
• Heat a kadhai with the gingelly oil and splutter the mustard seeds and curry leaves on medium heat. Simmer the heat and put the marinated mango into the kadhai and mix well for just 2 minutes. Do check the salt content at this point of time. Turn off the gas and empty it into a clean, dry bowl and let it cool and later transfer it into a glass jar.
  

Note: If planning to finish it off soon (i.e with 2-3 days) then you may place it on your kitchen shelf itself else refrigerate. You may increase the amount of chilly powder and asafoetida according to your taste buds. This is how we like at home :)


Varsha had tagged me to 25 random facts (can u believe that, 25!!!) about me!! I have been racking my brain on this task for the past few days and have finally penned them down.

1. My favorite pass time is sleeping. And these days when not sleeping, I would be either cooking, eating or blogging!!

2. I am extremely emotional - quite obvious, I am a cancerian. Can you guess how much I cry!! I cry when happy, I cry when sad and I cry even when there is nothing to cry about!!

3. I love cats and had two pet cats, named Pussycat and Lola, during my childhood!!

4. I am a cleanliness freak and always want a clean kitchen countertop, bathrooms and desktop(I mean of my laptop)

5. I used to be crazy about Aftab Shivdasani and Viveik Oberoi during my school days. Now I wonder was I nuts??

6. I love the smell of old books, freshly spread bed spreads, first rain on the soil and the smell of fresh baked cake!!

7. I do not go gaga over Pizza and Pasta.

8. I love to collect boxes, greeting cards, gift wrapping papers, interesting pictures, patterns, old magazines, liquor bottles etc. to recycle them into interesting stuff.

9. I can't go to bed in the night without brushing my teeth and washing my feet.

10. When in any tense situation, I think about all possibilities and the result is - I worry more!! To reduce my burden I share it with somebody and end result is - the listener turns out to be even more tensed than I am. I hate this habit of mine!! I call myself a logical thinker at those times but people refer to this as pessimism!! :(

11. I love romantic English movies and my favorite movie is "Message in a Bottle". I would suggest this for any die hard romantic like me..

12. I hate being late and don't like anyone who comes in late too!!

13. I can never get tired looking at photographs - be it mine, my family and friends or of total strangers.

14. The most recent entry into my (already so long) wishlist is a Digital SLR camera.. So now you know what to gift me!!

15. I have a major sweet tooth!! And when I feel like eating something sweet I just go wild.. Needless to say I am chocoholic too. And when there is no sweet left at home, I drink Hershey's chocolate sauce.

16. I used to hate maths and still struggle with numbers and measurements in my kitchen.

17. I started this blog with a thought that it would just be passing fancy. Quite surprisingly I am going to reach the 1-year mark in couple of month and now its hard to stay away from the blogosphere even for a day!!

18. I am not at all a party animal and feel claustrophobic in dark and smoky places. I would any day prefer an evening with my loved ones in a serene and green place with good food.

19. I have started collecting books with an aim to build a huge library at home by the time I turn 50.

20. In the past two weeks, I broke 2 plates, a soup bowl and lovely stemware glass. Of course I am not proud of myself.. And the only point I am trying to make is that I simply can't learn from my mistakes - "Handle glass with care"

21. I do not talk to strangers while traveling!! I have, somehow, programmed myself towards this after a handful of bad experiences.

22. After a jaundice attack in 2003, I stopped drinking water served in restaurants and eating pani puri for good.

23. Its not easy for me to forgive and forget. I may forgive but never forget!! I cling onto them.

24. I am shopaholic. I can roam around for a whole day to get what I want!! I love accompanying others if they want my company to shop. All my friends know that I shall never say NO to them. And most of the times I end up spending more than the other person!!

25. Phew....I got tired thinking about myself...phew... I cannot concentrate on a particular thing for too long!!

Soon after I penned down those 25 facts (still can't believe that I did that, u know 25 facts) it was time for me to pass it on. Revenge time...ha ha ha (do u see that wicked smile on my face) !! So guys get on to racking your brains now. Do take as much as time as I took but do try posting it because I would love to read it!! So I would love to pass it on to:
Lubna, Tina, Veena, Mathew, Shn, Ann, Maria, Hema, Swapna, Vibaas, Mahimaa, Malar, Anudivya, Shaheen, Viki, Soma, Asha, Nags, Sig, Mona, Superchef, Srilekha, Reshma, Rachel and Bharathy.