Zinobia Schroff is one woman who works out of one kitchen to produce a couple of thousand kilos of the yummiest pickles and preservative-free jams and squashes every month. Tinaz Nooshian got introduced to the one-woman pickle army
Zinobia Schroff is one woman who works out of one kitchen to produce a couple of thousand kilos of the yummiestu00a0 pickles and preservative-free jams and squashes every month. Tinaz Nooshian got introduced to the one-woman pickle armyThe one-bedroom flat that sits on a lazy lane at Dadar Parsi Colony, fragrant with dhania roasting on a tawa, its whitewashed walls holding little else than a few happy paintings and a retro Laxmi Sunlight soap poster balancing precariously on an easel, doesn't quite look like the place that produces a couple of thousand kilos of pickle every month. "But it is," she assures you, adjusting her glasses, before adding in a whisper, "and I have no help". Just as you conjure up an image of a battalion of secret workers much like the oompa loompa army at Willy Wonka's factory, she drags you by the hand into the hotbed of action her kitchen.
A double-door refrigerator holds a host of meats, cleaned and divided into air-tight bins, one of them holding raw material for one of her most sought-after pickles. Garabh-nu-achar (literally translated to mean "pickled womb") is a Parsi speciality that takes an annual trip to her favourite fisherwoman at Colaba Market to stock up on Bhing fish eggs, available only in the month of August. Zinobia Schroff, a one-woman-army behind Schroff's Pickles and Jams says pickle-making "found her" when she was a teenager in Nagpur, wondering what to do with all the extra time morning college left her. An abundance of oranges in the region and a quick preservation course at a goverment polytechnic, got her ready to experiment with making orange squash for friends, that she sold at Rs 3 a bottle. "Pickles came later; that's the tougher task.u00a0 You've got to experiment. Thankfully, I got it right the first time. You see, pickle-making is like making love. You have to share a chemistry with the achaar," she says straight-faced.
Her range of jams, squashes (the Ginger-Jaggery mix is a to-die-for summer pick-me-up), murabbas (the Japanese love these peppered with giant elaichis) and pickles are all preservative-free, and come with a promise of lasting six months. "When it tastes good, it's bound to get wiped out in a month anyway," she chuckles.
The day that kickstarts at 4 am is choc-a-block, most of it spent marketing for ingredients before she gets down to work. The non-veg pickles (prawn, mutton, fish roe, dry Bombay Duck) demand special care, and a straight out of the sea-into-the-bottle philosphy. "Back from a trip to Ferry Wharf, where I usually pick up about 25 kilos of prawn, I give the meat a good scrub and get down to pickling it immediately. You can't wait around with meat," she says, bringing out a giant aluminium kadhai that holds fish roe freshly marinated in vinegar and chillies, in a bed of crimson masala.
The out-of-home hobby that catapulted into a profit-making business in 1997, is one that Zinobia hopes can accomodate underprivileged women. "Learning a simple craft can make sure they earn a living," she says. It worked the last time around with women from Chizami, a tiny village in Nagaland. With nothing at their disposal except an excess crop of fruit that was usually left to rot, they invited Zinobia over to teach jam-making, and ended up learning what Zinobia calls "earning a living from rotting fruit."
Schroff's pickles come packaged in spill-proof double packing. With a minimum order of Rs 500, she home delivers her products in Mumbai.
To receive couriered parcels in other parts of the country, call (022) 24135650 between 10 am and 6 pm
Orange marmalade: Rs 125
Guava jam: Rs 75
Prawn pickle: Rs 200
Lagan-nu-achar: Rs 60
Also available: Oil free lemon-chilli pickle, Jamun and Amla squash
