Quick Anbu Asaara

Anbu asaara or Maldivian-style mango pickle is a well-loved pickle that can be enjoyed with various dishes, especially with rice and garudhiya (Maldivian fish soup). Traditionally, anbu asaara is made after sun-drying cut, young mangoes for around 2-3 days. Then, it is mixed with spices and herbs and left to ferment in a jar, under sunlight for another couple of weeks.

As this is a long process which is quite difficult to execute in modern days, here we have a simple, quick anbu asaara that you can make at home.

The young, unripe Maldivian mangoes that we have used for this recipe were provided to us by one of our partners, Daily Groceries. Maldivian mangoes when young are very sour and crunchy, making them ideal for these kinds of pickle recipes. They also have a really soft seed, one that you can cut straight into, hence the name ‘oh felhey anbu’ in the local language Dhivehi.

You can get young Maldivian mangoes from Daily Groceries, Dhathuruveringe Market, Boduthakurufaanu Magu, Male’ or get in touch with them via 7998272.

Serving Size: 1 medium sized jar

Ingredients:

• 5 small unripe/young mangoes (oh felhey anbu)
• 1 large onion
• 1 cup vinegar
• 3 green chillies (sliced in half, lengthwise)
• ½-inch ginger (minced)
• 4 thinly sliced garlic cloves
• 5-7 curry leaves
• 3-inch piece of pandan (cut in half)
• ½ tsp cumin powder
• ½ tsp ground coriander seeds
• ¼ tsp ground fennel seeds
• ¼ tsp chilli powder
• 1/8 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp salt

Instructions:

1. First, cut 5 small unripe/young Maldivian mangoes and 1 large onion into 1-inch chunks.
2. Then, add 1 cup vinegar to a pot, along with the cut mangoes, onions, 3 green chillies (sliced in half, lengthwise), ½ inch ginger (minced), 4 thinly sliced garlic cloves, 5-7 curry leaves, and 3-icnh piece of pandan leaf (cut in half).
3. Cook everything together on medium high heat for 7 minutes or until the mangoes are soft and viscous (you can check if the mangoes are soft by poking it with a fork; if it falls apart easily, it is cooked). The colour of the green mangoes will turn yellow, and the onions will soften and become pink at this point. Stir occasionally.
4. Next, add in ½ tsp cumin powder, ½ tsp ground coriander seeds, ¼ tsp ground fennel seeds, ¼ tsp chilli powder, 1/8 tsp turmeric powder, and 1 tsp salt.
5. Continue cooking for another 10 minutes on medium heat to let the flavours settle into the mangoes. The asaara should be thicker like a sauce and dark yellowish-brown colour when it is done cooking.
6. Let the mixture cool down and then transfer it to a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Store the anbu asaara in the fridge for 1-2 months.