Achar for a rainy day

In the fishloving Pathare Prabhu home where Kalpana Talpade grew up monsoon was when the kitchen would drown in the smells of hot oil and fried garlic With fish markets abandoned and the only other options for seafood being nivtyamdasha black slithering macchi found in the swampy mangrovesmdashor crabs Kalpanas mum Sulabha Krishnarao Talpade had found an ingenious way to tide through this lean periodIn those days we didnt have a refrigerator and so if my mum found fresh prawns or bombils Bombay ducks in the market shed buy them in bulk and make pickles out of them1 To make the Pathare Prabhu prawn pickle kolambi che lonche wash prawns and pat them dry with a cloth marinate it with haldi and saltThe fish pickle that found a pride of place on their dining table would last them at least four to five days and was relished with everything from varan bhaath to rotis A new batch would be made after another fresh lot of fish arrived at the market Talpades fascination for fish achars began somewhere at that time as she went on to experiment using the same masalas to pickle ghol pomfret and gaboli fish roeAt the many homes in Mumbai where seafood is a staple monsoon means that fish varieties are in scarce This is the time when some of the citys biggest fish markets Bhaucha Dhakka Ferry Wharf and Sassoon Dock shut shop because of the states fishing banmdashJuneJuly is breeding season and fishing activity is halted to allow babies to hatch2 Deep fry the prawns Remove them In the same oil add crushed garlic green chillies whole and asafoetida Let the oil coolEven local fishermen who have to contend with unruly seas avoid taking their boats out or pitch themselves in the creeks instead Seafood lovers thus mostly have to makedo with the avoidable and unhealthy frozen fish or imports from Gujarat As fishermen only set sail after Narali Purnima August 15 this year writer and food chronicler Saee KoranneKhandekar says that many coastal communities traditionally developed the art of pickling seafood even fresh varieties so that they can dig into fish during rainStarting earlyMumbaibased Chinmaya Kamat a Goan home chef with Authenticook says that at their home preparation for the poor catch season begins early on in summer itself Kamat makes a piquant bangdyache lonche mackerel pickle influenced by GoanPortuguese cooking which lasts her at least six months3 Add two to three spoons of methkut powder prepared with methi danas fenugreek seeds rye asafoetida and sea salt Add red chilli powder to the marinade But to ensure that the pickle doesnt go bad you have to get hold of fresh fish The mackerel has to be stiff If its soft the pickle wont last long says Kamat Because its next to impossible to get fresh mackerel at markets during monsoon Kamat picks a good variety in MayI dispose the head cut the body into medium pieces and immediately marinate it with turmeric for 15 minutes I then prepare a paste of Kashmiri and Goan chillies with vinegar adding spices such as pepper and cumin to it The mackerel pieces are shallow fried in lots of oil cooled for around two hours and added to the heated paste The salt is added later says Kamat4 Coat the powder well Pour the oil in the marinadeThis is then stored in ceramic jars where its good to be consumed for another six months The home chef also makes another variety of mackerel pickle which is traditionally cooked at her home but wont hold beyond five daysGoan Hindus dont like vinegar in their pickle Vinegar is a good preserve and increases the shelflife of the food We instead make our pickle using tamarind to get the tangy flavour We also marinate the mackerel with salt which again means that it wont stay long as saltreleases water Garlic is used for tempering5 Home chef Pooja Rane suggests squeezing a lime over the pickle Store it in a jar PicsAshish RajeParsi caterer Zinobia Schroff known for her delicious homemade pickles says that while her fish specialties are popular through the year the demand shoots up during the monsoon Influenced heavily by Parsi cuisine Schroff uses vinegar oil and spices to pickle her fishWhile she makes pickles with everything from prawn bombil rawas to salmon its her garab achar made from the eggs of fish fishroemdashpopularly known as gaboli in Mumbaimdashthat she says is the big winner People ask for my garab achar even before the garab comes into my hand she jokesAs its the breeding season gaboli is in surplus during this season and hence also a favourite among fish eaters The gaboli of the bhing hilsa is utterly delicious In fact Parsis will eat roe only from this fishmdashits the king of roe she adds But one has to be careful while making it Before the pickle masala is added to it the steamed gaboli is sauteacuteed in oil Thats when it begins to splatter You need to cover your eyes to prevent any injury adds SchroffEast Indian home chef Sharon Barretto who is also part of the culinary team at Authenticook says dried fish pickles are most savoured in the rain East Indians are fond of fish and if we dont get a good catch on any particular day we turn to the dried varieties bombils bangda and pomfrets In the earlier days we didnt have a refrigerator to store fish made from fresh pickles so dried fish was preferred and continues to be a favourite The pickle is prepared with ground Kashmiri chillies jeera garlic and vinegarSharon Barretto learnt the art of pickling dried bombils and bangda from her mum Helen They use a special East Indian pickle masala for the preparation PicNimesh DaveHow long can the pickle lastUnlike other coastal communities the Pathare Prabhus dont like dried fish at all says home chef Pooja Rane We buy fresh prawns in bulk two weeks before the rain and prepare the pickle kolambi che lonche to last us the entire monsoon season nearly four months The key is to keep the pickle in the fridge and add a lot of oil The way it is stored is also important A good idea is to store it in ceramic jars says Rane who is a Punjabi but married to a Pathare Prabhu We make a methkut powder prepared with methi danas fenugreek seeds rye hing and sea salt which is added to the pickle This particular masala helps preserve it longerShe also suggests deepfrying the prawns You need to know how to fry it though It has to lose all the water because if there is water in the prawns it wont last but the flesh should not be very chewySchroff never makes pickles from frozen fish I make it straight after I buy it from the market stored fish tends to lose its taste and content She also dries her fish in a kitchen cloth to remove any excess water Kamat offers another tip Once your pickle is ready store it in tiny glass jars and keep it in the refrigerator After you have removed your jar from the fridge finish it whole instead of keeping it back in the fridge That way you can enjoy fresh pickle fish and wont miss it in the rain at allAlso read Dancing in the kitchenCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates