Maa Inti Vanta - My Home Cooking: Red Chili Pachadi - Mirapalla Pachadi

I was strolling in the farmer's market and noticed these red chilies at a corner in a basket. Never seen this variety before, so enquired how hot or mild they can be. Lady at the counter said "if it was me, I would leave them alone". But, I could not take her advice, Sorry. So, I came home and googled the name for my red chilies. These are cherry hot peppers, quite hot.

Any one interested like me to find the name of the red chilies they are using, please check this website:

http://www.tradewindsfruit.com/hot_peppers.htm

Like to try a spicy pachadi/pickle with rice? Here you go... a treat to the mouth for spicy/karam lovers!

These chilies looked so small and cute but were super hot/karam.

10 Red Cherry Hot Peppers - Any hot variety of Red Chilies can be used
2 tsp Jaggery
Few Curry Leaves
Small Lemon sized Tamarind

For Menthe powder:
1 ½ tsp Fenugreek seeds
2 tsp Mustard seeds
Hing

Take 1 tsp of oil in a skillet and fry fenugreek seeds till they are nicely roasted then add mustard seeds when they splutter remove from flame. The mixture emits a toasty aroma when they are nicely roasted. Let cool. Grind to a powder in a spice mill or blender, this is called menthe powder.

Use immediately or store in a Ziploc bag in the freezer to retain its freshness and aroma for future use.

Cut the red chilies and remove seeds. Rough grind the pieces with salt and tamarind. Keep aside.

Take 1 scoop (about 10 tsps) of oil in a skillet, when oil is hot add a tsp of mustard seeds, curry leaves and hing. Then add ground red chili paste, jaggery and turmeric. Let cook till their natural water is evaporated. When oil starts to float, add 4 – 5 tsp of the previously made menthe powder. Stir well, check for salt and seasonings and add accordingly. Remove from flame and let cool.

This pickle has a good shelf life, store in an air tight container. Do not touch with wet hands.

Any variety red chilies can be used to prepare this pickle. This is Guntur Special "Korivikaram", very hot/karam pickle recipe that used on these cherry red peppers. The karam/hot of the pickle will subside in a week after preparation, it will become milder. Use enough tamarind and jaggery to compensate the karam/hot of the peppers.

Serve it with rice and oil. Enjoy!!