Talk to me about Indian pickles..

Coffee and grains aren’t really an equivalent comparison.

@harters I think it’s because most restaurants are North Indian / Punjabi / Mughlai, and those pickles tend to be spicy, not sweet.

For some eastern and western states, sweet flavor weighs in to the balance more heavily.

You should be able to find them quite readily at Indian grocery stores, given the heavy Gujarati and Bengali/Bangladeshi populations in the UK (and in the US).

I’m sure no offence was intended but that word is a racial insult in the UK - on a level with the N-word.

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Yes. I did not know that it was such an awful word. I will try to edit it. Thanks

I asked the moderators to amend it or remove it. :flushed:

Thanks for your consideration.

Long ago some Indian colleagues took me to their favorite restaurant for buffet style lunch. Not having eaten much Indian cuisine I just plated what looked interesting. I thought these lovely braised potatoes reminded me of something my mother used to prepare. So I happily added a mound to my plate.

At the table I placed a reasonable chunk of “potato” in my mouth and about died. It was 99% salt. I choked it down and asked what it was.

My Indians friends laughed and laughed at me. Apparently it was what they call “pickle”. They said I was to lightly touch my bread or a fork of other food to the pickle to add a tiny bit of flavor. They laughed about that lunch for a long time.

I got them back though. They wanted to try A&W root beer. So I took them to the fast food A&W. They absolutely hated the root beer. Their faces turned to a classic Shar-Pei shape (like Gordon Ramsay). Lol!

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There are certainly similar stories from people unfamiliar with ginger ale, who tried it expecting to write home about a specialty of our local brewers. :slight_smile:

PS: I’m convinced that the only way for commercial root beer to taste the way it does is that they use the same flavouring formula as the major American toothpaste brands did 40 years ago. :smile:

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I’ve come across the Priya brand in Asian supermarkets here, but hadnt heard of Ella. Do they export out of India?

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I just got around to reading this and am glad I did. A very good thread and my thanks to all who have contributed their knowledge.

I currently have a green chilli pickle, Ashoka brand, and Ginger Pickle, RaSna brand that I like. I know I’ve had lime pickle and garlic pickle, too. I’ve tried 3 different mango pickle brands and not cared for any of them. I’ve read it’s the variety most commonly served in Indian restaurants here.

My favorite Indian grocer, an hours round trip, had their home made dahi, chutneys and other products in a cooler in the produce department. Chutneys were in one serving sizes - i.e., about a1/4 cup, the dahi was a quart and better than any of the mass produced brands in other coolers in the store.

That was the best way to buy good chutneys.

Their snack bar at the rear turned out some of the best Gujurati food in the whole area.

Unfortunately they closed during the pandemic after the death of the matriarch. They promised to come back but haven’t yet.