Pickles can give a face-lift to any meal and Kerala's non-vegetarian versions are often very good at doing the magic. And the star delicacy among them have always been the beef pickle. Not only is it relished as a side dish with rice, chapathi, appam and the like, it is even used as one of the most favourite appetisers with alcohol in Kerala.
Yes, many opine that its not a healthy option, but if made at home with us controlling the quality and quantity of ingredients, it's not that tough to put together a healthy, yet tasty jar of beef pickle.
Here is how to prepare it easily at home.
Ingredients
½ kg beef (cut into half inch pieces)
½ tsp turmeric powder
1 tbsp pepper powder
Salt as required
½ tsp cumin powder
Sesame oil as required
2 tbsp ginger – garlic paste
2 tbsp chili powder
2 green chilies
3 tbsp vinegar
1 tbsp garam masala powder
Preparation
Wash and strain the beef pieces
Marinate the beef with turmeric powder, pepper powder, salt and cumin powder
Fry the marinated beef in sesame oil
Meanwhile, sauté ginger – garlic paste, chili powder and green chilies in hot oil
Add the fried beef when the oil begins to separate
Cook well
Add vinegar (you could add more if you prefer some gravy)
Finally add garam masala powder
Give everything a good mix