If you are a Chinese food lover, then Khimchi is not a new item.  I was introduced to khimchi when I first dined at Mainland China years ago. Mainland China is one of the most popular Asian Fine Dine restaurant in India that serves many authentic Asian dishes .

For the uninformed, Khimchi is a way of preserving veggies like a pickle and is served alongside the main course meal . Mostly when fresh veggies aren't available either due to weather or any other factor, then this Khimchi comes to the rescue. 

 I had Googled many recipes on how-to make Khimchi at home and had been wanting to try from a long time.  Finally I narrowed down on a recipe from a popular food channel and prepared using that recipe . I was quite happy with the outcome as it was just like the one I have tasted. I made it using cabbage but there are many variants where you can add carrots, daikons etc as well.

This month in our food bloggers' group Shhh cooking secretly Preethi Tandon suggested we explore jams,chutneys ,jellies or preserves from non Indian Cuisine and viola it was the best time to make and enjoy this yummy Khimchi which was a long over due to present itself on the blog.

My partner for this month is the enthusiastic blogger Seema who gave me the versatile ingredients soy sauce and sugar while I gave her  Cumin and lemon as the secret ingredients. with Seema has made a lipsmacking Quince Chutney.. If only I could lay my hands on that chutney now,I would be in the 7th heaven relishing it :-) 

Ingredients 

Method

• In a wide mixing bowl , take the cabbage and mix it with salt and some chilli flakes . Let this rest for 3 to 4 hrs 
• After 3 to 4 hrs the cabbage will appear wilted and soggy.Squeeze out  as much juice you can from the cabbage and transfer it to another bowl.
• In this bowl,now add in all the ingredients except the oil and mix it well.
• Store it in sterilized glass jar,cover it properly and let it ferment for 24hrs .this step is very important to get the perfect taste and texture. 
• Refrigerate after 24hrs and always use a dry spoon while scooping out from the jar.
• Drizzle some sesame  oil over the khimchi just before you serve.

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 Jackfruits are still available in plenty in most places in India and will surely be available for a few weeks more . If you are done with your quota of eating fresh , ripe and juicy jackfruits then I suggest you must make this delicious jackfruit jam /preserve a delicacy from Kerala known as Chakka Varatti or Chakka Varatiyadhu. 

Chakkai in Malayalam means Jackfruit and Varatiyadhu means reduction /simmering process .So basically we make a tasty relish or jam like preserve from jackfruit pulp and jaggery to relish all year long when fresh jackfruits aren't available. 

You can also use fresh ripe jackfruit to make delicious Chakka Pradhaman (Jackfruit Payasam) and Chakka Unniappams . (Fritters) 

I learnt this recipe from Chandra Muthukrishnan aunty, who is an expert in making traditional and complex dishes in a breeze .She guided me  over whatasapp while I was making this and gave a final approval when I shared the video of the finished product . 

Traditionally in olden times, making chakka varatti was a long drawn process and the ladies of the house had to toil a lot to prepare since modern day gadgets like gas stoves, food processors or pressure cookers were not available. 

The jackfruit pods had to be boiled over wooden or charcoal stoves and then using grinding stone the pulp had to me made and then further cooked in huge bronze vessel called Uruli with jaggery and  ghee for hours together to get the perfect taste and texture . Now making chakka varatti is a lot easier and we can prepare it effortlessly at the comfort of our homes .

• Deseed the jackfruit pods and pressure cook it with 1/4 cup water for 2 whistles on medium flame .
• Let the pressure release naturally, strain the excess water and let the jackfruit cool down .
• Blend the cooked jackfruit into a smooth pulpy puree in your blender.
• Measure the pureed jackfruit and take the same quantity of  jaggery powder ..eg if you get 1 cup of puree, using the same cup measure 1 cup of powdered jaggery and 1/2 cup ghee .

• Melt the jaggery in 1/4 cup water and strain it for impurities. 
• In a heavy bottomed pan ,heat the strained jaggery syrup and let it come to a nice bubbling boil .
• At this stage add the jackfruit pulp and mix it nicely till the jaggery and pulp blend in well.
• Keep stirring on low flame and you can see the mixture begins to cook and starts giving out a good aroma . 
• The key is in stirring without a break as there is a chance of the mixture getting burnt easily . 
• The mixture begins to thicken and reduces in quantity after 10 mins,at this stage add some 3 to 4 tbsp of ghee and mix well . The entire ghee gets absorbed by the mixture and you can see a nice glossy look.
• After some time you can see that the entire jam looks glossy and begins to leave the sides of the pan easily and resembles the texture of a jam .
• Now add the balance ghee ,cardamom powder and continue to cook for sometime. When you drop a blob of the chakka varatti using the ladle, it should slide off and fall down easily . This is the correct texture .turn off the stove at this stage and let it cool . The  jam will slightly thicken more after cooling. Donot worry about that. Once cooled, transfer the chakka varatti to a dry container using a dry spoon and refrigerate it. (Check the video below for the consistency)

To have a prolonged shelf life ,never thaw the entire preserve for a long time.  Take out the desired quantity and put it back into the refrigerator.  This way the chakka varatti stays for almost 1 year .