Pickle is a daily-meal essential in most Indian households, and East Indian tables are no exception. There’s almost always a jar of something sour, salty, and spiced sitting next to the rice and dal. Some of ours are proudly East Indian, tied to weddings and family recipes passed down for generations. Others have wandered in from other regions and just stuck around because they’re too good to leave out.
Here are eight pickles worth keeping in your fridge.
1. East Indian Wedding Pickle (Carrot and Raw Papaya)
This one that shows up at every East Indian wedding. It’s sweet, sour, salty, and spicy pickle made from raw papaya, carrots, ginger, and dried dates, left to mature in a ceramic jar for a week or more.
👉 Get the recipe: East Indian Wedding Pickle
2. East Indian Mango Pickle (Aamcha Achar)
Made from raw green mangoes cooked down with garlic, ginger, and a sweet-tangy vinegar syrup, this traditional East Indian mango pickle comes together quickly and keeps for months — a staple next to dal-chawal or fried fish.
👉 Get the recipe: Mango Pickle
3. The Other East Indian Mango Pickle (Chunda or Murabba)
When we don’t want the mango cut in chunks, we grate it and turn it into another yummilicious mango pickle and call it a mango chutney. Yes, we East Indians are quite strange. This mango chutney is dare-I-say delicious and similar to the Gujarati chunda and murabba, with a few additions of our own.
👉 See the recipe: Mango Pickle
4. East Indian Tomato Kusondi
A zingier, spicier cousin of the everyday Maharashtrian tomato pickle, this East Indian version has travelled with family as far as the UK, Spain, and Canada in carry-on suitcases. Great with rice, pav, or just toast.
👉 Get the recipe: Tomato Kusondi
5. East Indian Bombay Duck Pickle (Sukha Bomblache Lonche)
A dried-fish pickle made from bombil (Bombay duck), ground with Kashmiri chillies, garlic, and toddy vinegar. Pungent, distinctive, and a true East Indian pantry staple — not for the faint of nose, but worth it.
👉 Get the recipe: Bombay Duck Pickle
6. Pickled Onions (Sirke Wala Pyaaz)
A general Indian favourite rather than an East Indian one, these are the crunchy pickled onions served at Indian restaurants everywhere. They’re made simply with onions, chillies, vinegar, sugar, and salt. Adding a slice of beetroot turns them a pretty pink.
👉 Get the recipe: Pickled Onions
7. Pickled Garlic (Lasoon Sirka)
Another everyday pickle rather than an East Indian one — whole garlic cloves pickled in vinegar, sugar, and salt. This post also covers the science of why pickled garlic sometimes turns green or blue, and how to stop it.
👉 Get the recipe: Pickled Garlic
8. Spicy Love Apple Pickle (Jamrul/Chambakka)
The outlier on this list — there’s no East Indian version of this one. It’s closer to a South Indian-style chambakka pickle, made from love apples (also called water apples or wax jambu), which have a high water content and a pear-like taste that holds up surprisingly well to spice.
👉 Get the recipe: Spicy Love Apple Pickle
Want more? Browse the full Chutneys & Pickles category for everything else in the jar.
FAQs
What’s the difference between an East Indian pickle and a regular Indian pickle?
East Indian pickles come specifically from Mumbai’s East Indian Catholic community and often use ingredients like toddy vinegar and specific spice blends tied to that cuisine. Many other Indian pickles, like pickled onions or pickled garlic, are common across Indian households generally and aren’t tied to any one community.
How long do homemade pickles last?
It depends on the pickle, but most vinegar-based pickles on this list last several months to a year or more when stored properly in an airtight jar in a cool, dry place.
Can I make these pickles less spicy?
Yes, most of these recipes let you adjust the chilli quantity to taste. The pickled onions recipe is a naturally milder option if you want something gentler.
