Nellikaayi adike | Dried spicy Indian gooseberries
By Leena Hegde, Puttanamane
Nellikaayi is amla or Indian gooseberries. Nellikaayi or amla is mixed with spices and sundried for about a week to make Nellikaayi adike or Nellikaayi settu. This can also be called as spicy amla candy. You just love the spicy juice it gives when you chew and chew these spicy amla candies.
Prep time
9 days
Cook time
0
Cool off time
0
Total time
9 days
Course
Varied
Diet
Vegetarian
Difficulty level
Easy
Servings
200 g
Ingredients
-
1 kg Indian gooseberries (Bettada Nellikaayi or Amla)
- 1/2 liter butter milk
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (Jeerige or Jeera)
- 1/2 teaspoon carom seeds (Om or Ajwain)
- 1/4 teaspoon asafetida (Ingu or Hing)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 or 2 green chilli
Cookware / Utensils
-
Pressure cooker or pan
- Bowl(s)
- Spoon
- Mortar and pestle
Instructions
Instructions
- Rinse the berries until clean. If bought from market soak them in salt water for some time and rinse.
- Cook the berries in a pressure cooker or in a pan to a soft texture.
- Drain out the berries and take them in a bowl. Let them cool down.
- While the berries are cooling, take 1/2 liter butter milk in a bowl and add 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon asafetida. Mix well.
- Take cumin and carom seeds, rinse them if not already, in a mortar and pestle and crush them to powder.
- Add cumin and carom seeds powder to the butter milk.
- Rinse and take green chillies in a mortar and pestle and crush them.
- Add the crushed chillies to the butter milk.
- Mix well, cover and keep aside.
- Once the berries are cooled down, de-seed them.
- Add the de-seeded berries to the buttermilk mix and stir gently with a spoon to mix them.
- Pour the mix in a plate or wide pan.
- Keep the spiced berries in direct sunlight.
- Cover with a muslin cloth.
- Each morning you have to keep it in sunlight. And in the evening, take it indoors until berries are finely dried.
- Store the dried berries in an airtight container. Keep it in dry place. You can munch couple of them any time.
Step by step guide
How to make Nellikaayi adike
1. Rinse the berries until clean. If bought from market soak them in salt water for some time and rinse.
2. Cook the berries in a pressure cooker or in a pan to a soft texture.
3. Drain out the berries and take them in a bowl. Let them cool down.
4. While the berries are cooling, take 1/2 liter butter milk in a bowl and add 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon asafetida. Mix well.
5. Take cumin and carom seeds, rinse them if not already, in a mortar and pestle and crush them to powder.
6. Add cumin and carom seeds powder to the butter milk.
7. Rinse and take green chillies in a mortar and pestle and crush them.
I have used tiny green chillies, called sanna menasu. You can use any available green chillies.
8. Add the crushed chillies to the butter milk.
9. Mix well, cover and keep aside.
10. Once the berries are cooled down, de-seed them.
11. Add the de-seeded berries to the buttermilk mix and stir gently with a spoon to mix them.
12. Pour the mix in a plate or wide pan.
Use old plate or pan. Keeping the salt and sour mix in Sun may spoil the metals. Do not use any metal that salt degrades. If available, you can use banana leaves to spread on a plate.
13. Keep the spiced berries in direct sunlight.
14. Cover with a muslin cloth.
Each morning you have to keep it in sunlight. And in the evening, take the berries indoors until berries are finely dried.
15. After 2 days.
16. After 5 days.
17. After 9 days berries are finally finely dried.
18. Store the dried berries in an airtight container. Keep it in dry place. You can munch couple of them any time.
Notes
-
Vegan recipe: If you are a vegan, you can use lemon juice instead of butter milk. Mix all the spices and salt with 1/4 to 1/2 cup lemon juice. Then add the berries to lemon juice mix and sundry.
As an alternative, you can mix only salt and spices with berries and sundry them.
- Spices: Ginger can be used instead of green chillies. Crush the ginger to a smooth paste and add it to the butter milk, or lemon juice if you are a vegan. Or you can use both ginger and green chilli in smaller quantity. Rinse all the spices before using.
- Storage: Spicy amla candy or dried spicy Indian gooseberries stays good for about 3 to 4 months at room temperature when stored in an airtight clean and dry container in a cool and dry place. However, the shelf life depends on room and climate temperature condition. It may get spoiled soon in too hot or too humid weather. It may get spoiled earlier than the said period if you have stored in a wet container, or if you have kept the container lid open for a long time, or if you have used wet or unclean spoon or hand to take out the candies. It may also get spoiled shortly if you have not dried the spiced berries properly.
- Drying time: Drying time depends on time length in a day you keep it in sunlight, temperature, and humidity. It may take less than a week or more than a week, but make sure there is no moisture left in the dried berries. I had covered with muslin cloth, so it took 9 days to dry completely. Turn the berries every day before keeping in direct sunlight.
