Avakkai Apple Thokku

Ingredients

• 10 Raw Apples, preferably the very sour kind
• 1 cup Mustard Seeds
• 1.5 - 2 cups Spice Red Chili Powder
• 3/4 - 1 cup Salt
• 1/4 cup Turmeric Powder
• 1/4 tablespoon Asafoetida
• 3 tablespoon Fenugreek(Methi) Seeds
• 2 cups Sesame Oil
• 1/3 cup of Whole Garlic Cloves, Optional
• 1/2 cup Lemon Juice, needed if apple is not sour enough

Method

1. Adjust number of apples depending on size. Grate the apples, roughly, with the skin. Use a grater with bigger holes and not the fine ones.
2. Lightly toast the mustard seeds along with the fenugreek seeds for a few minutes in low heat and grind to a fine powder. This powder can be stored for later use if there some left after making the pickle.
3. Bring Oil to Medium Heat in a thick and deep pot.
4. Add the Garlic
5. A minute later add Asafoetida, add the grated apples, powder that was ground above, chili powder and 3/4 of a cup first of salt.
6. Let it fry for 5 minutes
7. Taste. 
• It should be spicy. 
• Check for salt, very mildly salty is good, but then salt is always a personal preference. 
• It will have a bitter bite from the mustard/fenugreek powder, but the bitterness will fade as the pickle ages in the fridge.
• Check for sourness
8. If salt is not sufficient, add as needed.
9. If sourness does not come through, add some lemon juice as needed.
10. Cook for an additional 15-20 minutes
11. Reduce heat to low-medium and slowly cook until all of the below happens.  
• The mixture reduces down in volume and thickness reaches Thokku consistence i.e a lightly thick paste
• The oil must separate out
• The water in the mixture is almost completely gone. Specially if you don't plan on refrigerating the pickle
12. Turn off heat, cover and let it cool down naturally.
13. Stores in glass jam jars, preferably refrigerated.  

The key to taste is aging it for a few days so the bitterness wears out.

The key to longer life when stored is 

• acidity from the sourness
• saltiness
• more oil, there should be a layer of the oil on top of the Pickle/Thokku when stored
• Making sure as much of the water has been cooked out. I tend do reduce it in the oven for a few hours, occasional stirring, for longer shelf life. 

This goes well with 

• just plain white rice
• curd rice
• as an accompaniment for dosa, idli
• as a spicy spread with mayo on sandwiches