Cranberry Achar Recipe (Bengali Style Sweet & Sour Pickle) | Easy Homemade Cranberry Pickle

Ever since I moved abroad, I have either been buying ready-made pickles (achar) from UK Indian grocery online stores or carrying them from my hometown during our India trips. Finally, I decided to make pickles myself, and that too with a foreign fruit, cranberry! It tastes almost similar to our Indian plums (topa kul/boroi), a fruit that is hardly available in the UK. So, without any further delay, let’s make this Bengali-style cranberry achar (pickle recipe) at home! 

Why You’ll Love This Cranberry Achar Recipe?

One of the most wonderful things about making this achar/pickle is that you can make and enjoy it anytime, in any season. Usually, in India, Indian plums are available only during a certain season (Jan–March). So many of us make a huge variety of plum pickles and store them for the whole year.

Since I am using the dried version of cranberries in this recipe, you can easily find them in any supermarket, especially Holland & Barrett or M&S, throughout the year. Fresh cranberries are harder to find, at least where I live, so I haven’t tried this recipe with fresh ones yet. If I do in the future, I’ll definitely update this post! 

Oh, and by the way, cranberries have health benefits for women too, especially for UTIs. Last year, I was experiencing acute pain in that V-part, and that’s when I started researching natural remedies. My husband brought kefir (yogurt) and cranberries from a local supermarket. My goodness, by the very next day, the pain was gone! Since then, this fruit has earned a permanent spot in my kitchen.

Of course, fresh cranberries are healthier than dried ones, as dried versions contain added sugar. But honestly, something is better than nothing, right?

By the way, I’m a Bengali Sylheti girl, and in my hometown in Assam, India, we call Indian plums boroi (the smaller ones) or kul boroi (the larger green ones). What do you call this fruit in your city or country?

A Quick Note for Beginners:

Dear foreign friends, if you’re new to Indian pickles, don’t feel intimidated by the ingredients or steps. Once you try this easy cranberry achar recipe, you’ll realise it’s actually quite simple.

You’ll find all the ingredients in any Indian grocery store, whether online or offline. Plus, you can easily adjust the spice level, making this sweet and sour cranberry pickle perfect even for kids!

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The ingredients you need for making Cranberry Pickles (Bengali style Achar) Recipe: 

👉🏻Cranberries (Dried) -100g

👉🏻Jaggery (Anker Gur)- 70g

👉🏻Homemade Roasted Spice (Bhaja Masala) - 2 tbsps

👉🏻Mango leather/candy (Aam Satto/papad) - 4 small pieces (optional)

👉🏻Paanch foron (whole-seed spice blend) - 1 tsp

👉🏻Bay leaf - 2 (optional)

👉🏻Salt - As per taste

👉🏻Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp

👉🏻Black Salt  (BitNun) - As per taste 

👉🏻Dried Red Chilli (Shukno Lonka) - 2 pcs

👉🏻Mustard Oil - 1 tbsp 

👉🏻Citric Acid Powder/Lemon juice - 1 tsp

Cranberry Achar Step-by-step recipe Guide:

Step 1: Prepare Bhaja Masala (Roasted Spice Blend)

Take a dry non-stick pan and heat it slightly. Add:

• Cumin seeds (2 tbsp)
• Fennel seeds (2 tbsp)
• Dry red chillies (2 pcs)
• Fenugreek seeds (1 tsp)

Roast until fragrant, then grind into a slightly coarse powder. Set aside. You’ll need only 2–3 tbsp of it; the rest can be used in other salad or pickle recipes. 

Step 2: Start Cooking the Cranberry Pickle

1) First, take a non-stick pan or kadai and heat it.

2) Then add 1 tbsp mustard oil to it.

3) Once it’s slightly hot, add dried red chilli, bay leaves, and panch phoron. Stir well.

Step 3: Add Cranberries and Spices

4) Next, add the cranberries and mix well. 

5) Then add salt and turmeric powder. If you like spicy pickles, add red chilli powder (2 tsp) as well! Give it a good stir. 

Step 4: Add Sweetness (Jaggery Method)

6) Once everything is mixed, add jaggery and a little water.

Tip:
If you want to store the pickle for longer, skip adding water.

Alternative method:

 

You can do this step in the beginning: in a non-stick pan, add 1/4 cup of water and jaggery. Once the jaggery melts, strain it into a bowl and keep it aside. Then in step 5, you can directly use this jaggery syrup with the cranberries. Since I make this pickle weekly in small batches, I add jaggery directly with water. 

Step 5: Add Aamsotto and Cook

7) Next, add aamsotto (mango leather). Cover with a lid and let it simmer for at least 5 minutes.

Step 6: Final Flavour Boost

8) After 5 minutes, you’ll notice the cranberries and aamsotto have become soft and slightly mushy. Now add the roasted spice powder and black salt, and mix well. 

Step 7: Add Tanginess

9) In the final step, add citric acid powder or lemon juice to enhance tanginess and help preserve it longer.

That’s it! 

Step 8: Store the Pickle

Now transfer it into a clean, airtight glass container and keep it aside. Once it cools down, store it in the fridge. This recipe will last up to 3 weeks, and if you skip adding water entirely, it will last even longer. 

ALSO READ: How to make Saffron Milk for glowing skin (Beauty Drink Recipe)

Final Thoughts on This Easy Cranberry Pickle Recipe:

So tell me, isn’t this an easy-peasy cranberry pickle/achar recipe? Those who are pickle experts, I’m sure you can make this effortlessly. Even if you can’t find Indian plums (kul boroi) abroad, cranberries do a pretty good job as a substitute. You might not even notice the difference!

I’m not entirely sure if cranberries are widely available in India, especially in smaller cities, but the rest of the ingredients should already be in your pantry.

My foreign friends might need to grab a few things from a store though!

I’ll also be sharing this recipe on my social media. In case you prefer watching recipe videos over reading blog posts, like me sometimes. So stay tuned, fam!

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I hope you enjoyed reading this Cranberry Pickle (Bengali-style Achar) recipe. Don’t forget to share it with your friends and famil, because sharing is caring!