Curiously, Bombay Market in Union Square hasn’t been owned by Indians any time recently.  A few years ago, Hari Prasad Lamichhane (at left), who hails from Katmandu, Nepal, bought New Bombay from its previous owners, natives of Bangladesh. Hari has kept the store’s name and continues to carry many items you’d find at most Indian stores—papadam, many types of dal and an extensive spice collection. Yet he also stocks exotic, hard-to-find ingredients imported from Nepal. One such item is timur! The spice looks a bit like a clove but is citrusy and mildly peppery. Although they look like seeds, timur are dried berries from a prickly variety of ash (Zanthoxylum alatum) that grows in the Himalayas. Timur is also used in Chinese cuisine and called Szechuan pepper.

When Hari  gave us some timur, we were beguiled by its aroma and eager to test it out. So we asked our friend Bimala Thapa, a Katmandu native, to teach us how to use it. She shared her recipe for Timur achar (or pickle); it’s served as an appetizer with chapati or as an accompaniment to a meal. It’s quite delicious – and tongue tingling!