Varakala

Enjoyed as a staple condiment to every meal in E'rathia, Varakala can be found on every table and stored in every cellar around the country. While the basics of the recipe is the same for all batches, everyone will swear that the best Varakala is made by their city, village, grandmother, etc.

Varakala is made by fermenting the needles and sap from the Black Pine Trees native to E'rathia, traditionally combined with carrots and onions in tightly sealed clay jars. The sour taste of the needles is combined with the sweetness of the sap to create a dish that E'rathians usually describe as stingy and refreshing. Those who have not been raised on the condiment often find it an acquired taste as the fermenting process creates a heavily pine flavored result.

Throughout E'rathia the dish is so common that it is often included as a free side-dish when ordering meals at a restaurant or tavern. Outside of the country, Varakala is exceedingly uncommon, as the dish can only be made from the native flora and the demand for exported jars is low.

Recipes

Traditional Varakala

Taken from the "Customs and Culture in E´rathia" guide, written by Voilathell "Fartreader" Silverspear, renowned traveler and cultural researcher. Almost exclusively the form of Varakala found outside of E'rathian borders, considered by E'rathians to be a pretty bland and taste-less version of the dish.

5 fists-fulls of Blackwood Pine Needles (about 1kg)

3 spoonfuls of Blackwood Pine-sap

1 spoonful of pepper corns

2 carrots

2 onions

2 spoonfuls of salt

3 cups of water + excess water for rinsing and marinating

Step 1: Thoroughly rinse the needles to remove any dirt or grime. It is important to take your time with this step as anything left can heavily effect the taste of the final product.
Step 2: Put the needles in a large bowl and fill with water so that all needles are fully covered.

Step 3: Add the salt and the pepper corns to the bowl and stir to get an even spread.

Step 4: Cover the bowl with a linen cloth and let rest overnight.

Step 5: In the morning, cut carrots and onions into thin strips.

Step 6: Drain the needles and put them in a sealable clay-pot. Add the sliced vegetables, pine-sap and water to the pot and then seal it tight.

Step 7: Place the sealed jar in a cool area and let ferment for 1-3 days before opening.

Varakala: The Frostlog Family Recipe

Penned in a thick, leather-bound, tome that rests in a cupboard next to the stove of the Frostlog homestead in Abrynth. The tome is filled with recipes for food, tinctures, and everything else one might need to cook up to keep the house running. It has been passed down through the family for generations.

Pine needles

Sap

Pepper corns

Carrots

Onions

Garlic

Salt

Preparation:

Gather the pine needles in early winter, after the first day of heavy snowfall. You have about three weeks until the cold seeps into the roots and trunks.

Clean the cellar thoroughly.

Fill the Varakala pot to half full with water from the well, add salt. Three measures.

Rinse the needles in clear water from the well. Once properly cleaned, add directly into the Varakala pot. Between batches of needles, put your hand at the bottom of your rinsing bin. Exchange the water when you cannot clearly see your own hand.

Fill the Varakala pot until needles reach the first ring. Then cover the opening with a fresh, linen cloth and plug with the stopper.

Let rest for three days, the open the stopper and pour in forty pepper corns. Re-plug the pot and let rest for two more days.

On the fourth day, travel to Eastbrook spring and collect water for each jar that you aim to prepare. Water from the well will sadly have to do.

On day five, begin by preparing each jar with the following steps:

• Dip a cloth in pine tar and rub a thin coat across the entire inside. Do not leave any blotches.
• Cut two fresh carrots into slices, thin as a nail and long as a hand. Drop into the jar. Try to get carrots from Stonebridge farm, they're the best.
• Peel an onion and cut into eights. Drop into the jar.
• Peel two three cloves of garlic. Drop into the jar.
• Fill halfway with spring water.

Open the Varakala pot and gently scoop out the needles from the top into the prepared jar. Be careful not to stir the pot as you collect the needles. Do not use any of the needles that have sunk to the bottom of the pot.

Fill the jar to full without pressing down on the needles.

Repeat until all jars are full, or you run out of marinated needles.

Plug each jar and cover the top in a linen cloth. Dip cords of rope into water before using them to tie a calamon-knot to seal the jars.

Move the jars into the cellar. Make sure that they will not be struck by sunlight when the door is opened. Perform the warding ritual of Lagreth any time you close the cellar, especially important for the first time.

Return to the Varakala pot and scrape and undo the bottom plug to empty out as much water as possible.

Scrape the remaining needles into a wooden barrel.

Thoroughly clean the Varakala pot. If this is the last batch you are making for the season, make sure to scrub it in oil to keep it from cracking until next year.

Finish by placing the wooden barrel in a good spot near the Millquers homestead. This will attract flies and pest to their cellar and hopefully ruin their batches. Don't do any of that. Place it by the forest edge with the rest of the village.

The first jar should be opened ten days after being sealed, the first serving enjoyed with coal-charred bass and beet-roots.