An easy lemon pickle, it is made using four everyday kitchen ingredients.

The combination of jaggery, lemon, salt and red chilly make a wonderful sweet, tangy relish spiked with a little spice.

The recipe is Chef Natasha Gandhi's favourite and has a shelf-life of over five years.

The pickle is great alongside Gourmet Dal-Rice, South Indian Lemon Rice or Thayir Sadam.

Chef Gandhi watched cookery shows as a child, even taking notes, and that eventually saw her abandon a career as a CA for food dreams.

Lemon Pickle

Serving: About 500 gm

Ingredients

• ½ kg lemon, cut into fours, remove the seeds to avoid a bitter taste
• ½ kg jaggery powder
• 1 tbsp red chilly powder
• Salt to taste, around 1 tbsp

Method

• In a large saucepan, mix the chopped lemon halves with the jaggery powder.
  The lemon should be well-coated with the jaggery.
  Let the lemon and jaggery mixture sit for 30 minutes.
  Heat the mixture over very low heat for 5-7 minutes or until the jaggery melts and the mixture begins to boil slightly.
  Don't cook the mixture.
  Take off heat and cool.
• Add the salt, red chilly powder.
  Mix well and store in a clean glass jar with a well-fitted lid.
  Store it in a bright, well-lit area, ideally in the sun.
  Mix the pickle daily so the flavours combine better.
  The pickle will be ready in 10-15 days.

Natasha Gandhi is a MasterChef India Season 6 contestant and the founder of House of Millets.

• REDIFF RECIPES