It’s pickling season in the Telugu states, and while Andhra Pradesh and Telangana are known for quite a few varieties, the avakaya is king. Even today, it remains the biggest food-related event of the year in the region — with Telugu households making large volumes of various types of mango pickles: Magai, Thurumu Magai, Bellam Avakaya, Pachcha avakaya. My grandfather …
To call Avakaya a mere pickle is doing injustice. Well, it didn’t seem too much when my mother bragged, “Those days I used to make it with 35-40 mangoes.” In comparison, a mere 10 seemed doable. This triggered some doubts—”Are the mangoes hard enough?”, “Are the pieces too big?”, “Is the shell too small?” Finally, we returned with a stock …
