Gooseberry Sweet Pickle

I am going to share recipe of gooseberry sweet pickle (amla murraba, gooseberry jam). This is my mother’s signature recipe. It is authentic, delicious, and healthy, boosting immunity and controlling cholesterol levels. Gooseberry is rich with iron and vitamin C, which are good for the body. One piece of gooseberry murraba consumed during summers gives us the strength to bear the heat throughout the day.

Cooking Time: 1 hour Serves: 7

Ingredients

1kg gooseberries 2 tsp slaked lime 1 ½ kg sugar/jaggery water

Method

1. 2.

3. 4.

5. Wash the gooseberries and let dry completely. Prick gooseberries with a fork. Dissolve slaked lime (limewater) in water and soak gooseberries overnight. Remove and wash well. Drain thoroughly. Squeeze and rinse to eliminate lime remains and let dry completely. Boil water then add gooseberries and cook for 7–8 minutes with covered lid.

6.

7. 8.

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Add gooseberries, bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. 10. Let it cool, then store in a clean airtight jar.

Once gooseberries are transparent, drain the water and keep aside. Let dry completely. Make sugar syrup with 5 cups of water. Maintain one thread consistency, skimming off any scum that keeps forming.

About Ritu

“I have a lot of things to pen down here about me and my country. I was born and brought up in the middle state of India (Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh).”

I made friends from all parts of India during my engineering degree and got a job through the campus selection. While working as Application Support Engineer in Gurgon (Haryana), I got to know the diversity of India. I also won a prize at the national level for a paper I presented.

I used to play table tennis and carrom, and I won many prizes during my time at school and college. In particular, I received a silver trophy in carrom at my job. I used to go for morning walks in my childhood and now I love swimming and yoga. I do yoga daily. My papa taught me the exercises, such as sheershaaasan, a headstand.

I got married to a true gentleman and we like to spend time listening to light music. I have an eight-year-old son called Kiyaan. I feel blessed to be surrounded by a lovely family and diverse friends.

I moved to Belfast with my husband and son in late 2019 and felt lucky to get involved with ImageNation NI. Through it, I got to know people, not only from India but from all over the world. I really love to share my food and thoughts with people. I look for every single opportunity to get involved in activities with lots of people. I joined Sustrans activities to increase my confidence in cycling and love the rides.

After losing my father due to the coronavirus recently, I have a loving maa, my sister and her cute son Atharv, and younger brothers. I was the favorite and pampered child of my father. He loved me a lot. Love you and miss you so much, Papa. I know Papa will never come back, but his blessings and encouragement will always be with me. He has given me the strength and always said: 'Do the new things and roam around the world. You’ll get the knowledge and you'll learn a lot.’ I always keep these golden words in my mind.

>> Cooking playlist

My husband and I love to listen to music while cooking.

‘Yeh Raaten Yeh Mausam‘ by Sanam featuring Simran Sehgal ‘Tujh Mein Rab Dikhta Hai‘ by Roop Kumar Rathod ‘Tere Liye’ by Lata Mangeshkar, Roop Kumar Rathod ‘Main Yahaan Hoon’ by Udit Narayan ‘Tumhi Ho Bandhu’ by Saif Ai Khan, Deepika Padukone & Diana Penty (from the movie Cocktail) ‘Mere Rashke Qamar Tu Ne Pehli Nazar’ by Junaid Asghar ‘Dil To Bachcha Hai’ Ji by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan (from the movie Ishqiya) ‘Kabira’ by Ranbir kapoor, Deepika Padukone (from the movie Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani) ‘Bulleya’ by Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Ranbir Kapoor & Anushka Sharma (from the movie Ae Dil Hai Mushkil)