Lime Pickle Part Two: Tempering and Ageing
Your limes and other ingredients should have been fermenting for at least four weeks before you move on to the final 2 stages. (See the first post here)
Tempering
Tempering your pickle with spiced oil will add top note flavours and will blend and smooth the flavours. The oil will also help preserve your pickle.
Choose an oil you like the taste of as it will have a large impact on the final flavour. I like the taste of olive oil, so that’s what I use. Sunflower and rapeseed are other possibilities.
The other ingredients are Mustard Seed and Fenugreek Seed. Both are available in supermarkets and in larger cheaper packs.
For every 100g of fermented mix you made you will need:
10g (2 tsp) of brown or black mustard seed.
5g (1 tsp) of fenugreek seed.
20 ml of your favoured oil.
For 1 kilo of fermented mix that scales up to:
100g of mustard seed.
50g of fenugreek seed.
200ml oil
The amounts are approximate. If you are fond of mustard seed or fenugreek, add more.
You will also need containers to hold all your pickle. Old jam or pickle jars with lids are nice and table friendly. Just before you start tempering your pickle, sterilise the jars with boiling water or by washing them in a dishwasher.
To temper your pickle use a pot large enough to hold all the fermented lime mix. If you don’t have a pot big enough, divide it into batches.
In your large pot, fry the mustard seed and fenugreek seed in the oil
When the mustard seed starts popping add the fermented lime mixture. Juice and all. Be careful, it might splatter.
Fry the mixture, stirring gently, until it is bubbling. About 5 minutes.
Once it is bubbling take the pot off the heat and let it cool for about ten minutes. Then fill your your sterilised jars. I like to top up the jars with oil which helps seal them, but if you would rather have a less oily pickle you can omit that step.
Ageing
Ageing is easy. Just leave the pickle in a cupboard for at least three months. The longer the better. It really will make a big difference to the flavour.
OK, waiting is not easy. You want to know what it tastes like. So keep a taster jar in the fridge, and every couple of weeks have a spoonful.
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Old Father Foodie spent over 20 years working as a chef in and around the Glasgow area. He watched the rise of Lambrusco, the demise of the steak house and still remembers life before Mcdonalds.
He then spent many years working on education projects in Europe. Still a keen cook, he has picked up the odd tip or two along the way and now enjoys sharing them on these pages.