Pickling Lemons

If someone hands you lemons...make lemon pickles! Also known as nimmakaya pachadi, it's a favorite hot relish in our house. Here's one way to do it:

Fry 2 tsp mustard seeds and 1/2 tsp methi seeds separately. Keep a lid handy for the spatter! Grind the spices and set aside. Cut a dozen lemons into small pieces, and salt them. Store the lemons for three days in a container, then sun-dry them for 3 more days. Add the methi and mustard, and 3 tsp red chilis. Add cumin,tumeric, and/or sesame seeds. Add salt. Cool the mixture and store it in a jar. While you wait, here's an entertainment for you--

In her son's American kitchen,
Amma makes nimmakaya pachadi.

She slices the best lemons
with her wedding knife,
crushes chili and roasted methi
in the old mortar and pestle.

Her eyes fill, and she blames
the pan's smoking oil.

When she sets the jarred fruit
in the bright windows to ripen,
her son asks, Why don't you just use the microwave?

He is like his father—
he never wants to wait for anything.
She is the one who knows what it is
to track the sun from east to west,
the sun harsh as a reckoning,
but curved enough for light to follow.