Cauliflower and Carrot Pickle

Hurray !! This is the first pickle, which I made on my own. All these years, I had just been watching my mother and mother-in-law making yummy and mouthwatering pickles with different ingredients. And after much hesitation,I finally decided to to try some easy pickle at home.So, I started with this easy, crunchy and mouthwatering pickle with some easily available vegetables- carrot and cauliflower. And I loved the crunchiness of the veggies in this pickle. And, it was really yummy, though it was on a very spicy side :) So, without much ado, lets see the ingredients we need for this pickle.

CAULIFLOWER AND CARROT PICKLE
(adapted from vahrevah.com)

Ingredients:
1 cup florets- cut into bite size pieces,
1 cup carrots- cut into small cubes,
1/2 cup of red chilli powder,
1/4 cup mustard seed powder,
1/4 tsp fenugreek/ methi powder,
1/4 tsp turmeric powder,
1 tbsp of crushed garlic,
Juice of 1 lime and1 tbsp of salt.

For tempering:
1/2 tsp mustard seeds.
1/2 tsp cumin seeds,
a pinch of asafoetida/ hing,
2-3 whole red chillies,
6-7 pieces of garlic cloves- chopped,
few curry leaves and1/2 cup of oil.

Method:
In a dry bowl, mix all the dry spices- chilli powder, mustard powder, methi powder, turmeric powder and salt. Add the garlic paste and lime juice and mix well again. to this add the Cauliflower and carrot and mix well, keep aside.
heat the oil in a pan and add cumin and mustard seeds, add the whole red chillies- cut into small pieces, asafoetida and the chopped garlic to the oil. saute for 1-2 minutes and switch off the flame. Now add the curry leaves to the oil. Let this tempering cool completely before adding it to the vegetables. When, the tempering cools down to room temperature, add this to the vegetables and mix well . Store in sterilized glass bottle and consume within 1-2 weeks.

Note:
cool the tempering completely before adding to the vegetables, because adding it to the vegetables, while the oil is still will make the veggies saft and they will loose their crunchy texture.
The quantity of the oil can be reduced, bit it will reduce the shelf life of the pickle.