“Mitta Ghallele Salla (Brined/ Pickling Raw Jackfruit/ Raw Jackfruit preserved in salt water)” … age old method of preserving (pickling) veggies in prepared salt water that lasts for months or years too … brined veggies always fall in handy in case of emergency especially during monsoon … there are many delicious dishes like dosa, vada, spicy idly, savories etc., that can be prepared using them ... Yummilicious …
** Mitta ghallele/ Brine/ pickling/ salt water preserve is a method of saving veggies for longer lifespan. This method needs to be followed in proper hygienic method to obtain perfect preserves. There are many veggie/ fruits that can be brined some of which has longer shelf life while some have shorter ones, it depends on veggies, the very reason why some are preferred to be dehydrated than brined for better shelf life. In all these are all methods of preserving of veggies/ fruits for using when unavailable.
** Brining raw jackfruits is easy, it is usually referred as salla in GSB/ Konkani Saraswat, while some do refer it as ponsa Sali or mitta ghallele gharo which are all same in different name as per the region. Brined veggies come to use when in emergency when one falls short of veggies eg. during monsoon when it become difficult to get veggies due to heavy rainfall. Pickled/ brine raw jackfruit can be used within 15 days of preparing them and if handled with care can be stored for over 24 months.
** There are many types of dishes that can be prepared using brine raw jackfruit and some of the most famous ones from Konkani Saraswat Cuisine are spiced dosa, khotto, sukke, kismuri, fries etc. many of which I have shared in the blog before. To brine we need the right quality of raw jackfruit the flesh of the pods that are firm and thick without having ripened. Luckily for us in Mumbai we get them all cleaned and sorted ready to be used be it the raw ones or the ripe ones, so frankly 70% of my work is really done.
** For those of you who have to clean them oneself you may watch any You Tube channel for reference where in it is shown in detail. In short you need a firm jackfruit that is just a few days away from getting ripe. You need to cut it with a very sharp knife into two parts horizontally and then cut them vertically again into say 4 pieces and then remove the inner bulbs, remove the rags attached to them, de-seed them.
** You have to apply coconut oil to the knife as well as the jackfruit when cut to cut down the sticky gum oozing out., all these methods you will find it easier if you keenly watch a friendly relative/ neighbor who knows about it as there is no knowledge obtained in best way other then learning from experienced person. The next choice is always a few video that will clear your doubts if any on the cutting method.
** For the method of “Mitta Ghallele Salla (Brined/ Pickling Raw Jackfruit/ Raw Jackfruit preserved in salt water)” ….
** You will need either large clean sterlized glassware bottle or ceramic ones (barni as known in konkani). I always use glass bottles as when stored on top shelves its visible at a glance and I don’t need to search or label them.
** There are two methods of brining/ pickling/ mitta gallche followed by many are both turn out perfect. One is just layering the veggies and rock salt while the other is by preparing salt water. I have somehow always used the salt water method and till date I have got perfect result. Off course the prepared water should be very salty and the sealing of the bottle and the storing all adds to preserving of them well, so one does need to take into consideration these facts too, so be very careful.
** Wash, drain and wipe clean the raw jackfruit/ ponsa ghara/ salla you need to brine. You can let it dry spread on a towel too. They should be wiped clean and there should be no trace of water in them or the brining will not be perfect. Also the raw jackfruit used should be fresh, firm, and blemish free.
** Now in a clean sterilized bottle (very important to use sterilized bottles) add all the completely dried pieces, cover and keep it aside ready while we go ahead with the preparation of salt water for brine/ pickling.
** Bring approximately one liter of water to boiling point and then add about 3 cups full of salt to it and mix well. (You can use more water if needed depending upon the quantity of the raw jackfruit pieces, but then increase the salt quantity too).
** Once the water reaches boiling point again and the salt has mixed in well, remove from fire. If you find traces of dirt /impurities in the water, which sometimes you may due to addition of salt, sieve it immediately on a muslin cloth to remove all impurities. Do not use stainless sieve for straining, as it will not run clean, so use a clean cotton cloth for the same. Allow the salt water to cool and let it come to just hot level.
** Now place a long stainless steel spoon (the handle of which should come out of the bottle) into the glass bottle in which the raw jackfruit pieces are added and then slide in the warm salt water into the bottle till it reaches brim level of the bottle with just a little bit of gap for the lid to be placed and then remove the spoon.
** Now take a clean new plain plastic sheet slightly larger than the side of the lid and apply coconut oil (or any edible oil) on one side of the sheet and then place it over the bottle. Remember the oiled side should be downward covering the bottle properly. Now tighten the lid properly and wipe bottle all over with a clean cloth.
** Note : A stainless spoon is inserted into the bottle just as a precautionary measure. If the water is hot, it cuts down the heat and does not pass it on to the glassware. Some glass bottles cannot absorb much heat and tend to crack on excess heat, this method when used helps in prevention of breaking or cracking of glassware. You can use the same method even when pouring something hot into glasses if you are not sure of its heat absorption capacity, if using ceramic too you can follow this method.
** Now the brining/ pickling procedure is done, but the same needs to be rested for about 2 weeks before it is ready for use. In between everyday you can just tilt/ or make the bottle upside down and let the salt water get mixed well though it is not necessary. Store the bottle in corner of a cupboard where there is not heat or warmth. In olden days there were store rooms where these were prepared and stored in large barni/ ceramic wares along with other food items and used as and when needed.
** In case you do not want to use the plastic method for covering of the lid, you can use the age old traditional method of securing the lid too. Just tightly close the lid and then wrap the top with clean cloth and then tie in a thread to secure the lid so that air does not filter in. The purpose here is to avoid air entering the bottle and fermenting excessively the brined products, which lead to formation of fungus.
** Note : Ensure that the salt water is about an inch minimum above the salla/ raw jackfruit pieces level in the bottle. Always use glass/ ceramic bottle for storing of brined items and avoid plastic bottles. The recent trend I observed is of using plastic bottle, which is not good health wise. Ban using of plastics or their products as much as possible wherever possible in your kitchen, including in life. I have been doing so for over 5 years now, though I still have a lot of plates, bottles etc. which also I intend to use a little bit and then dispose of within a few years as and when I am able to.
** You have now completed the task of Brine/ pickling/ salt water preserve of the “Salla/ Raw Jackfruit/ Ponsa Ghara/ salla” and it can now be stored away and used as and when necessary after a few weeks. As I mentioned above these are ready to be used in 2-3 weeks of time, however as I am preparing for the first time, as I used to buy them from stores before, do check out before using them. Do give brining a try, a few times you may goof up but ones you learn the ropes of brining it is breeze work and sure to fall useful many a times churning delicacies at unexpected times.
** Method of using of Brine/ pickled/ salt water preserved “Salla/ Raw Jackfruit/ Ponsa Ghara/ salla” : A few points have to be taken care of while using the brined veggies, I have mentioned them in every recipe, however I am share them here so that in case you know more recipes and want to prepare them, you may do so.
** Rinse well the brined jackfruit pieces and then soak them in water overnight changing it once or twice in between if possible. This will dissolve excess salt and you can dispose of the same as brined items tend to be too salt and the process has to be carried out.
** Again, in case you have forgotten to soak them overnight or if it was not possible to change water few times, do not worry, keep soaking and changing water mixing well every 20-30 minutes a few times and a lot of salt will get washed away. Then cut them also into ½ inch pieces and once again soak in water for 20 minutes.
** Above all just before using put a small piece of the same and check the amount of salt in it, this will help in addition of salt to the dishes if necessary only. Many a times despite curing it with plenty of water, it still retains saltiness, in which case you should be careful of adding salt to the curry, as when the same is cooked with others it will impart salt to the curry and balance the same in which case addition of salt will be disastrous. So make it a point to check the curry after done and add in only if found necessary.
** Note : When stored in glass bottles the color varies at times giving slight tinge of yellow or brownish especially while clicking picture, not sure why, however when washed for using in plenty of water it always retains its white color.
** As mentioned already above there are many tasty dishes prepared using these mitta ghallele saala/ brine raw jackfruit in GSB/ Konkani Saraswat Cuisine. Some of them are salla upkari- a simple stir fry, gashi a gravy based curry with inclusion of coconut, salla sanna polo- a spicy dosa served during lunchtime, salla tandla polo that is served during breakfast or as a snack, salla sukke a dry curry with coconut with addition of other veggies, salla bajo ie fritters or fries, Khotto again similar to dosa but prepared as idly etc. many of these are already posted in my Blog which you can browse through the common link shared below, while the rest will be added on soon as and when prepared.
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Thanks.