Jhatpat Achari Gajar: Pickled Carrots in Minutes!
18 Sep
Achari gajar (instant carrot pickle) takes its inspiration from the taste of traditional Indian pickles. A side dish to spruce up any Indian meal, this recipe’s USP is its express approach. This recipe does not involve the long process of making conventional pickles; achari gajar is ready in minutes.
The trick lies in using the key pickle ingredients – mustard and fenugreek – in abundance, and letting high heat substitute for slow pickling.
You Need:
- Carrots – 3 small (~200 grams)
- Mustard seeds – 1 teaspoon
- Fenugreek powder – 1/2 teaspoon
- Red chili powder – 1 teaspoon
- Salt – to taste
- Freshly squeezed lime juice – 1 tablespoon
- Mustard oil – 1 tablespoon
How To Make Achari Gajar:
Cut the carrots into thick matchsticks.
Heat mustard oil in a non-stick pan. When the oil is hot, add the mustard seeds and let them splutter.
Then slide in the carrot sticks and sprinkle fenugreek powder.
Cook on medium-high flame for 4 minutes. I prefer the semi-cooked taste of carrots – not raw but still retaining the crunch. You can cook them longer if you wish.
Sprinkle red chili powder and salt, cook for another minute.
In the end, just as you take the pan off the heat, squeeze the juice of a lemon over the carrots and mix well.
Jhatpat achari gajar (quick pickled carrots) is ready.
Note: Achari gajar does taste better the day after it is made :-)
To Serve:
As an accompaniment with any Indian meal, as an add-on to sandwiches…I added these pickled carrots to cheese cucumber sandwiches and loved the result.
Notes:
Try a couple of quick pickle recipes using tomatoes: tomato pickle in mustard oil and vinegar, tomato pickle with garlic and curry leaves.
For a more classical pickle recipe which uses the sun-drying method, see green chili pickle.
Old pic from the time when I first posted this recipe in 2011:
Meal below: chana dal with greens, dahi bhindi, achari gajar, chapatis.
looks tempting and colorful.
Thanks deeksha.
Loved your blog! Nicely laid out and easy to follow recipes. How long can these Achari carrots be stored for? Can I use sesame or vegetable oil instead of mustard?
Thanks for your generous praise Shital.
Achari gajar stays good for 4-5 days in the fridge for sure. It might stay good longer but I’ve never got a chance to find out – I always finish it off within that time.
As a true blue Bihari I swear by mustard oil, but yes sesame oil can be used in its place. It will alter the result somewhat but should taste fine.
Wonderful new recipes that i have not seen in other sites. Thanks a lot.
Hi Meera. Really nice to see your kind feedback. Thank you :)