Asaara

Ingredients

Pickle

• 500 ggreen mango, or bilimagu, cut in small pieces
• 2 tbspsalt
• 8dried red chillies, or 3 tbsp chilli powder
• 1 tbspcumin seed
• 1 tspground turmeric
• 6 clovesgarlic, sliced
• 2cm ginger, sliced
• juice of 4 limes

Oil

• 200 mlcoconut or sunflower oil
• 1 tspmustard seed
• 10curry leaves

Directions

1. Cut the fruit into small pieces and dry everything completely — the fruit, the board, the jar. Water is the only thing that reliably spoils a pickle like this.
2. Toss the pieces with the salt and leave for a few hours, then drain off the liquid and pat the fruit dry.
3. Toast the cumin and dried chillies in a dry pan until fragrant, then grind them with the turmeric.
4. Heat the oil, fry the mustard seed until it pops, then add the curry leaves, garlic and ginger and cook a minute. Take it off the heat and let it cool completely — hot oil poured onto ground spice scorches it bitter.
5. Mix the fruit with the ground spices and the lime juice, then stir in the cooled oil with its aromatics.
6. Pack into a clean dry jar, pressing down so the oil rises to cover the fruit.
7. Leave a week at room temperature, shaking daily, then refrigerate. It keeps two months.
8. Serve a small spoonful beside rice and curry, or with mas huni for breakfast.

Technique

• Everything dry, and always a dry spoon. This is the discipline of any oil pickle.
• Keep the fruit under the oil. Anything above the surface darkens and moulds.
• Bilimagu, the sour tree fruit, is the traditional base; green mango is the everyday substitute and needs slightly more lime.

Substitutions

• Green mango for bilimagu, which is what most cooks use.
• Lime or lemon pieces, salted for longer.
• Sunflower oil in place of coconut, though coconut is the Maldivian flavour.

Variations

• A fresh uncooked version eaten within days, made without the oil.
• Made with dried fish alongside the fruit, which is common on the islands.

History

The Maldivian pickle served alongside rice and curry, often made with bilimagu, the sour cucumber-like tree fruit.

Frequently asked questions

What is Asaara?

Asaara is a fermented & pickled from Maldives: chopped mango, chilli and lime cured in oil and salt into a sharp pickle. The Maldivian pickle served alongside rice and curry, often made with bilimagu, the sour cucumber-like tree fruit.

How long does Asaara take to make?

Asaara takes 30 min plus 1 week of preparation and 10 min of cooking. The recipe makes fills a 500 ml jar. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Asaara?

Yes, within limits. Green mango for bilimagu, which is what most cooks use. Lime or lemon pieces, salted for longer. Sunflower oil in place of coconut, though coconut is the Maldivian flavour.

What is the most important thing to get right in Asaara?

Cut the fruit into small pieces and dry everything completely — the fruit, the board, the jar. Water is the only thing that reliably spoils a pickle like this.