When life gives you lemons, make lemon pickle! Here is an easy lemon pickle recipe to make during the lemon season. When kept away from sunlight, this pickle can last years, if not decades!
Why Lemon Oorgai Is the OG
If there is one pickle recipe that unites all of India, it has to be the humble lemon pickle recipe. The sharp tang you get from just a lick of the lemon pickle is unmistakable. You encounter different variations in every region, but regardless, lemon oorgai remains the OG pickle that deserves the front row and red carpet. Yes, avakaya lovers, you may take the second row!
This recipe comes from the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, where the pickle recipes rely heavily on tons of chili powder and oil to keep the pickles longer. It is not surprising to note that the hot and humid conditions of the South naturally give rise to a ton of fermented, sun-dried, and pickled recipes.
How to make the brine for Lemon Pickle
Like most pickling recipes, this lemon pickle recipe calls for a basic brine. You can make this by mixing salt with the cut lemons. This process allows the salt to naturally draw out the juices of the lemon. This mixture of lemon juice and salt forms the brine. This liquid allows the salt to seep into the thicker rind of the lemon fruit.
A few things to keep in mind –
- I have used Meyer Lemons in this recipe because you do not get the traditional Indian lemons here in the US. The Meyer lemons are not a true lemon variety. They are a hybrid varietal lying somewhere between a lemon and a mandarin orange. The Meyer Lemons are naturally sweeter and not as strictly sour as the regular lemon.
- Keep in mind, this recipe tastes great with lemons that have a thinner, softer rind. That said, this recipe works beautifully despite the Meyer Lemons’ thicker rind, thanks to its pulpy, fleshy interior.
- The pulpy and juicy interior, combined with the thicker rind, can easily be a recipe for moldy disaster if not pickled right. But when done right, the Meyer lemon may be just as good, if not better than a traditional Indian lemon for pickle recipes.
Types of Lemon Pickle
My paternal grandmother, who hailed from the fairly cooler Kerala, never relied on an overload of chili powder to make her pickles as we do in Tamil Nadu. Of course, this recipe starts to get hotter as we go east and up north towards the states of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, where the recipes tend to lean on the hotter chilies, while the western coastal states of Karnataka and Kerala use a much milder, juicier, and fruitier version of the lemon pickle.
And now, like my grandmothers on both sides of the family, I continue this tradition of making sun-dried, fermented, and pickle recipes every summer, making the best use of the season’s fresh produce. The temperatures in summer are also ideal for sun-drying and fermentation.
When done right and stored right, this pickle can be made in large batches to last for years in your pantry, eliminating the need to revisit this process every year. Whether you’re pickling every month or once in a few years, you can never go wrong with lemon oorgai!
How To Make Lemon Pickle/Lemon Oorgai
My recipe calls for a simple brine that is naturally created when you mix the lemons with salt and turmeric. You mix cut lemons, salt, and turmeric in an oorgai jaadi or pickling jar. You need to stir this mixture thoroughly every day for 2-3 days. You will notice that at the end of the 2-3 days, a brine is visible. The juices of the lemon are extracted, and the salt has penetrated every piece of cut lemon.
Now you make the pickle by adding a generous amount of chili powder and gingelly oil. For those new to this oil, Gingelly oil is a lighter, unroasted version of sesame oil. The chili powder and oil are added to preserve the fruit so that you can keep the pickle fresh for a long time without causing it to mold. It is very critical to be generous with the chili powder for this reason.
This recipe is a classic lemon pickle recipe from my maternal grandmother, a native of Kaduganur, a sleepy little hamlet near the city of 1000 temples, Kanchipuram.
Lemon Pickle Recipe
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Lemon Pickle Recipe
A Lemon Pickle recipe from Tamil Nadu that follows a traditional Kanchipuram style. Makes about 1 cup
- Total Time: 168 hours 10 minutes
- Yield: 1 Cup
Ingredients
- 8 Lemons
- 1/4 Cup Red Chili Powder
- 2 Cups Gingelly Oil
- 1 Tsp Turmeric
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Wash and dry lemons Wash and dry the lemons
- Place lemons in a bowl Place the lemons in a bowl.
- Add turmeric and salt to the lemons. Mix Add turmeric and salt. Mix thoroughly. Cover with lid.
- Stir every day for 2-3 days Stir every day for 2-3 days.
- Add red chili powder to the lemons. Add Red Chili Powder.
- Add gingelly oil and combine. Add in the Gingelly oil and combine well.
- Make sure you add this to a pan or kadai and cook for 5-10 mins, if using Meyer Lemons or lemons with thicker rinds. Failure to do so could result in mold.
- Transfer to a pickle jar Transfer to a pickle jar when cooled.
- Store away from sunlight. Store away from sunlight.
- Consume after a week. The pickle is ready to be consumed within a week.
Notes
- You can use regular lemons or Meyer lemons.
- Dry your lemons thoroughly. Not doing so can cause mold to form.
- I prefer Kashmiri Mirch chili powder
- Add salt according to your preference. As a rule, pickle requires more salt and Indian pickles must taste saltier than the ocean. Salt cooks the lemon naturally and prevents mold from forming on the pickle. Doing this allows the lemons to absorb the salt evenly.
- You should stir the pickle every now and then. This redistributes flavor to the entire jar and allows stagnant oil on the top to saturate the drier bottoms.
- Add more gingelly oil as and when it dries up.
- Prep Time: 168 hours 10 minutes
- Category: Pickle, Side Dish
- Cuisine: Indian, South Indian, Tamil Nadu
Lime – The Greener and Bitter Version of the Lemon
Known for its unique flavor that almost tastes like a lemon but not quite, limes claim their own space in the pickle world of India. The bitter taste of limes makes it a longer process to pickIe lime oorgai but the outcome, oh so worth it! The longer it sits, the better! Happy Pickling!