Uppilitta Nellikka| Uppu Nellikka | Nellikka Uppilittathu | Gooseberries in Brine | Brined Gooseberry

Visit to Deepak's hometown Calicut is never complete without a visit to the kozhikode beach and the visit to Kozhikode beach is never complete without having the uppilitta maanga and uppilitta nelikka. Now some may argue that it's not hygienic to have them from the street side vendors but... I myself think about it every time I buy from them, but the sight of it just makes you crave them so much that you will be able to forgo the hygienic thought for a minute ;) It's not just gooseberries and raw mangoes that are brined there. Almost any possible veggie and fruit is brined in those big jars.. Gauva, Pineapple, Cucumber and so on.. Maybe next time I will take a pic and upload here ;)

So what do you do when you do not have the luxury of having them as often as you would like them to? You re-create them at home ! This is very easy to make. Just make sure that you take care of some things like using a glass container to store them and never to use your hands and instead take the brined gooseberries out from the container using spoon or fork. You can also use up the brine once the gooseberries are over. Take about half glass of the brine, add some lemon juice and another half a glass of soda. Mix well and tada, as Deeps says, it's divine :) Can quench you in an instant after that long run or heavy workout.. 

And you know what? I had kept this in the fridge and forgot to click the pics. Was thinking that I will click them after a few days once they swell up. After a few days Deeps and Dhruv ate one and warned me 'Take the pics fast and don't blame us if they get over'. Two days later, i found the bottle half empty. It was almost in the evening and light was low. I was thinking should i click now? Will I get decent pics? Then I thought it's better to get at least pics with half the bottle of gooseberries than to get none at all. So went ahead and clicked them ;) So what you waiting for? Go brine those gooseberries that are in season now :)

Makes: A 500 gm bottle with 8 gooseberries 

I Took: 

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

I Used:

Gooseberry	-	7-8 nos
Green Chilly	-	2 nos
Salt	-	As needed
Water	-	1 ½ cup

The Way:

1. Rinse the gooseberries well and allow them to dry. you can pat them dry using a kitchen towel

2. Then using a fork make small prick marks all over the gooseberry. This is for the salt to sink in well in the gooseberry

3. Rub salt all over the gooseberry

4. Heat water in a saucepan. Allow it to come to boil and then cool it to room temperature

5. Now take the prepped gooseberries in a glass bottle or container. Add slit green chillies and salt. Then pour the water into it. The water level should be above the gooseberries. Check for salt. The water should be salty (slightly more than normal salty taste). If not sufficient add accordingly

6. Rest it for a day or two and then you can refrigerate it. Leave it for at least a week before having it

Notes:

• Some use vinegar or lime juice also. But we do not prefer it to be too sour, so we skip it. If you want to add, remove 1/4 part water and add vinegar instead or juice of 1 lime
• I allowed the gooseberries to rest for a day in room temperature and then refrigerated it for a month and then used it
• Avoid using plastic containers to preserve this. I did once and also did not refrigerate them and they developed mold and had to discard them
• You can also use up the brine once the gooseberries are over. Take about half glass of the brine, add some lemon juice and another half a glass of soda. Mix well and serve

Cheers,

Chitz