Sweet lemon pickle with jaggery is my favorite. This is a no oil pickle. Neebu ka achaar has always been my favorite. Indian lemon pickle can be made of both varieties, sweet or hot spicy lemon pickle. Sweet lime pickle recipe is tangy and sweet at the same time a.k.a khatta meetha. It tastes great with Indian flat breads. Perfectly goes with dosa , or paratha, even rice dishes. This easy Indian lemon pickle made many train journeys memorable.
If you are vegan, dal chawal and achar is a perfect meal. Just make your dal in instant pot or pressure cooker and eat it with some plain rice. Pickle elevates this simple meal to a flavorsome paradise. Simple and soulful. It tastes great with brown rice khichdi too if you want to avoid white rice. These tidbits of flavor can make any meal heavenly.
Lemon is a versatile ingredient in cooking. Make a slice of cake or lemon rice. No Tandoori starter can do without lemon rub. Nor can any Indian curry. Lemon mojito works perfectly with a pizza slice. Limes are a great way to add sourness to your palate. Lemon pepper rasam works wonders with flu while lemon chicken woos you left right and center.
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Why are commercial pickles harmful?
Pickles today are a big industry. Commercially packed pickles have high salt, preservatives and oil in it. Apart from that, citric acid and vinegar to keep it fresh for longer. This ensures long shelf life. It is said the pickles stored in plastic bottles come with more preservatives to avoid spoilage. Stuff in glass bottles gets sterilized overtime as it absorbs heat. Plastic does not. However ,they are not good for health in the long run. Also, you cannot control the chili,salt and oil. This no oil lemon pickle is a good alternative.
We use jaggery in this achar recipe, so it helps avoid the chemical sugar.Sugar is used in commercial pickles in the market. Jaggery makes it rich in iron too.It is also gluten-free and vegan.
Ingredients
- Lemons/lime
- Jaggery
Spices:
- Black salt or sea salt
- Cumin seeds
- Carom seeds
- Black pepper
- Asafoetida optional, avoid if gluten-free
- Cinnamon small piece
- Cloves
- Red chili powder
how to make sweet lemon pickle with jaggery?
- De-seed the lemons before juicing. Juice them and keep the juice aside
2. Cut remaining lemon flesh into smaller pieces,add salt.
3. Add lemon juice along with lemon pieces & salt to the jar before placing out in the sun.
For the next 7-10 days, once a day, turn the lemons in the juice with a dry spoon or shake the bottle so that juice is mixed.
4. Powder all the spices and keep it aside.
5. Heat jaggery in a large heavy-bottomed pan till it melts. 
6. Add the spice mix to jaggery. 
7. Add the preserved lemon pieces and juice, cook until the mixture starts boiling. 
7. Stir with a spatula, turn off after 10 minutes or once the lemon pieces are soft. Allow it cool. Store in a clean bottle or air tight container . Keep it in sun for 10 days. 
Read the sweet lemon pickle recipe below:
Sweet lemon pickle recipe
Ingredients
- 500 gms lemons/limes around 10 lemons/limes
- 125 grams jaggery 1 cups
Spices:
- 2 tbsp. black salt or plain salt
- ½ tsp. cumin seeds
- ½ tsp. carom seeds
- ½ tsp. black pepper
- ⅛ tsp. asafoetida optional,avoid if gluten-free
- 1 piece cinnamon small piece
- 2-3 pieces cloves
- ½ tbsp. red chilli powder
Instructions
- De-seed the lemons before juicing.
- Cut remaining lemon flesh into smaller pieces to store in a fresh sterilized air-tight glass jar.
- Toss the lemon pieces with salt,add lemon juice with lemon pieces to the jar before placing out in the sun.
- For the next 7-10 days, once a day, turn the lemons in the juice with a dry spoon or shake the bottle so that the lemon juice is mixed with the lemon pieces.
- Once the lemon pieces have turned pale,Powder all the spices,keep it aside
- Heat jaggery in a large heavy-bottomed pan till it melts,add the spice mix
- Add the preserved lemon and juice,cook until the mixture starts boiling.
- Stir with a spatula,turn off after 10 minutes.Allow it cool.
- Store in the same/clean bottle and keep it in sun for 10 days.
- once it is ready to be consumed,store in a cook dry place.
Notes
Nutrition
Variations
You may avoid asafoetida or heeng when making your lemon pickle, if you are gluten free. You can also make sweet lemon pickle with sugar. However, taste might differ. It also has no iron like jaggery does so the health benefits decrease. Add few drops of vinegar if you feel lemons are less juicy. You may add some fenugreek seeds or mustard seeds if you like.
How do you pickle lemons?
Best way to make this easy pickle is to reuse waste. Start storing lemon peels in a dry jar. Keep this in the refrigerator until jar gets filled. Once full, prepare the nimbu ka achar.This saves both the peels and the money. Also, you save time on cutting lemons whenever you decide. No waste recipe literally! So much food gets wasted in kitchens. We can always start fighting food waste today at our own pace!
Storage
Home made pickles need only one careful skill. We need to store this in a dry bottle. Avoid touching the pickle with bare hands so that no moisture sneaks in. Always use a clean dry spoon while handling pickles, to avoid spoilage.
Different types of pickle recipes
We make lots of achar and different types of chutney in India.
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