Sweet lemon pickle

Sweet lemon pickle

₹367 · Moms Tree, Kamola. Cash on delivery across India. मीठा नींबू अचार — sweet lemon pickle in a 500 g jar from Moms Tree, whose listing records it as…

About this product

मीठा नींबू अचार — sweet lemon pickle in a 500 g jar from Moms Tree, whose listing records it as coming from Nainital, at about 1,400 metres.

Sweet lemon pickle is the gentler cousin of the sour one: lemon pieces matured with sugar or jaggery and spices until the peel softens and the syrup turns thick and glossy. It is sweet, tangy and mildly spiced, and children often like it first. Serve it with parathas, puri, khichdi or curd rice.

Keep the jar closed and in a cool place out of direct sun, and use a dry spoon so the syrup does not ferment.

What you are buying

Before you order

Can I pay when it arrives?

Yes. Moms Tree takes cash on delivery, so nothing is paid up front and nothing is charged until the parcel is in your hands.

When will it reach me?

Arrives by Mon, 16 Nov for most addresses. It is packed and sent by Moms Tree in kamola — not from a warehouse — so it leaves the hills the same week you order it.

Who am I buying from?

Moms Tree, in kamola. Basket of Pahad does not hold stock or pack parcels — the shop does both. We take the payment and hold it until the order reaches you.

Can I send it back?

Food that has been opened cannot be returned. Anything that arrives damaged, leaking, short, or not what the page said is refunded in full — tell us within 48 hours.

About pahadi achaar

What it tastes like

Hill achaar is sour, salty and pungent from mustard oil, and usually less sweet than bottled brands. Galgal and lemon pickles are sharp and bitter-edged, lingda keeps a green crunch, and chutneys such as bhang ki chutney are nutty and tangy.

How it is used

A small spoon goes on the side of every plate: with dal and rice, with parathas and madua roti, with aloo ke gutke and with khichdi. Chutneys are also stirred into raita or eaten with roasted bhatt as a snack.

Keeping it

Keep the pieces under the oil and the lid tightly closed, out of direct sun. Always use a dry, clean spoon. Fresh chutneys go in the fridge once opened, and in very humid weather the fridge is a safe place for an opened pickle jar too.

How long it keeps

Oil-and-salt pickles usually keep for months sealed; fresh chutneys keep for much less once opened. The jar's label gives the shop's own best-before date.

Pahadi achaar: common questions

The jar has leaked a little oil. Is it still good?

Mustard oil can seep past a lid on a warm journey, especially if the jar is filled to the top. Wipe the jar, check the pieces are still under oil, and top up with a little mustard oil if needed.

Why does it taste so strong?

Hill pickles are made with raw mustard oil, more salt and less sugar than most bottled brands, and are sunned rather than cooked. The sharpness mellows a little after a week or two once opened.

There is a white layer on top. What is it?

If it is fuzzy or smells off, it is mould, usually from a wet spoon or a piece above the oil, and the jar should be thrown away. Clouding in the oil itself in cold weather is just the oil thickening and clears when it warms.

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