Pumpkin Achar

1 kg pumpkin flesh in 2 cm chunks

150 g finely chopped onions

1 red chilli deseeded and thinly sliced

2 crushed cloves of garlic

1 tbsp turmeric

1 tsp mustard powder

275 g Demerara sugar

200 ml cider vinegar

2 lemons – juice and zest

1 tsp black peppercorns

salt

This is a River Cottage recipe and goes wonderfully with cooked meats and a great way to use up pumpkins.

Add diced pumpkin to pan of boiling water and boil for 1 minute. Drain and then rinse under cold water.

Put the onions, sliced chilli and garlic into a pan and gently fry in a little olive or rapeseed oil until onion is beginning to go translucent. Then add all the spices and gently fry for another five minutes stirring to avoid it sticking to bottom of pan. Add the sugar, lemon juice, zest and vinegar and simmer until sugar fully dissolved. Season to taste.

Pack pumpkin chunks into large sterilised jars (1/2 litre or 1 litre parfait jars are best – those are the ones with the lever tops and rubber seals) and then spoon over onion and spice mixture until pumpkin covered and seal.

Store for up to 4 months.