Recipe - Mango Thokku And Avakkai

Thokku:
Grate mango. Roast methi,  fry solid hing and powder both just as in Puli milagai. 
Fry mustard, red chilli powder,  salt,  haldi powder, add grated mango and keep frying. Add powdered methi and hing. Grated mango has to be fried for about 25 minutes in medium flame. பச்சை வாசனை போக வேண்டும். (Raw smell has to go.)

The ratio of mango (grated, not cut) and chili powder and salt will be about the same as for avakkai pickle (see later). Note that there will be no kadalai or mustard powder nor a 3-4 day soaking period. This one gets done in about an hour. Transfer from frying kadai to a bottle (porcelain or glass only. NO plastic container for any pickle. 

Mustard fried.

Grated Mango - 4 numbers from my mango tree

Roasted Methi and Fried solid hing being ground. Til oil container to the left.

Grated mango being fried in til (gingelly) oil

Chili powder and salt added. Also powdered hing and methi and haldi powder. Add sufficient til oil

Keep Stirring and frying. That's it

Avakkai Pickle:

1. Take cut (and peeled) avakkai
2. Avakkai: chili powder : salt : mustard  powder = 3:2:0.67:1 = 9:6:2:3 by volume. For 3/4 kg mango about 0.5 liter Idhayam gingingelly oil needed. Grind small mustard to create mustard powder, the smell is apparently better than with large mustard.
3. Mix the powders in gingelly oil after adding a little oil until it becomes a paste. Then add mango, add more oil until it becomes like gravy. 
4. Add koththu kadalai (black karuppu konda kadalai) - about a 50-100gms. Add one teaspoon methi also. 
5. Let the mixture soak for 3-5 days. 
6. Stir the mixture everyday during that time while adding til oil each day.

Note:
Store in a cool dark place. Stir every month and add some gingelly oil once in a while. You can buy mustard, red chilies and grind in a mixie to make the respective powders. When you mix on the first day add a little less of the powders than mentioned. Each day when you mix well and add oil, taste the WIP (work in progress) pickle and add extra powder as necessary.

This is how the container has to "packed" to keep it cool and away from light - for 3-5 days. The top is wrapped with a cloth

Avakkai - soaking in yummy கடுகு பொடி (mustard powder) and gingelly oil and salt, chili powder etc. After 3rd day.

After 6 days

Stored in a Glass Bottle - Never in Plastic container.

Stir avakkai once in 2-3 weeks after adding gingelly oil, if necessary.

Additional reading:

• http://vbala99.blogspot.com/2017/02/recipe-puli-milagai.html
• http://vbala99.blogspot.com/2016/08/making-sambar-and-rasam-powder-and.html
• http://vbala99.blogspot.com/2015/08/a-list-of-indian-mostly-tamil-lunch-and.html