Kotgarh, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh
Kotgarh Orchard Kitchen
Jams, honey and pickles from our apple orchard, cooked in season and dated with the month.
Da ₹260 4.8 · 9 reviews
The pantry
On the shelf this season
-
Breakfast
Wild apricot preserve
GIU '26 · BATCH 6 OF 6
All gone for now
Next batchJune 2027, when the apricots are in
The family
Vikram's family has grown apples on this slope above the Sutlej for three generations. The fruit that is too small or too marked for the mandi used to go to the cows; in 2017 Nisha started cooking it instead, in her mother-in-law's copper pan, and the neighbours started asking for jars.
We still cook only in season and only what the orchard and the hives give us: apples from August, apricots in June, honey in October, the lemon pickle all winter. Every jar carries the month it was cooked, and if a jar runs out, it runs out until next year.
— Nisha and Vikram Negi
How we make it
In season, in copper, in small batches
We cook what the orchard gives us in the month it gives it, a pan at a time, so a batch is never more than forty jars.
-
June to October
1
Picked in season
Apricots in June, apples from August, honey in October.
-
Two hours a pan
2Cooked in copper
Forty jars at a time, stirred by hand so nothing catches.
-
The same day
3Jarred and dated
Hot into clean jars, sealed, and the month written on the lid.
The kitchen
Three generations on one slope
-
Nisha Negi
Cooks every batch · Kotgarh
Started with the windfalls in 2017 and her mother-in-law's copper pan.
-
Vikram Negi
The orchard and the hives · Kotgarh
Third generation on the slope; keeps twelve hives among the trees.
-
Kamla Negi
The pickle recipes · Kotgarh
Forty winters of lemon pickle, and the final word on salt.
On the label
What every jar promises
-
FSSAI-registered kitchen
Registration number on every jar
-
No preservatives
Sugar, salt, lemon, vinegar and oil only
-
Cooked in season
Every lid dated with its month
From the people who eat it
What they wrote back
4.8 / 5 · 9 reviews
-
★★★★★
“The apple jam tastes of apples, which I had forgotten jam could do. The lid has the month written on it.”
Meenakshi A. · Delhi -
★★★★★
“The honey set solid in December and their note said it would. Warm water, back to honey.”
Rahul K. · Gurugram -
★★★★★
“Sent the orchard box to my parents in Shimla; they now order it themselves.”
Fatima S. · Mumbai -
★★★★
“The lemon pickle is sharp and properly hot. The apricot was out until June, as they said.”
Arvind P. · Chandigarh -
★★★★★
“Stayed nearby and bought from the kitchen door. The best jam I have carried home in hand luggage.”
Claire B. · London -
★★★★★
“Thick, not too sweet, and you can taste the cinnamon. The 500 g jar went in two weeks.”
Sunanda R. · Kolkata
Also at
- Narkanda farmers' market Sundays
- Kotgarh Apple Growers Member
Questions
Why has my honey gone solid?
Raw honey crystallises in the cold; it is a sign nothing has been done to it. Stand the jar in warm, not hot, water and it comes back.
Why is the cooking month on the lid so long ago?
We cook only in season: apples in autumn, apricots in June. A jar of apricot preserve in December was cooked in June, and keeps eighteen months from then.
Do you add preservatives?
No. Sugar, salt, lemon, vinegar and oil are what keep our jars, and the label lists everything in each one.
How does paying work?
You pay by UPI when you order and send us the screenshot. We confirm the same day and post within two days, packed in straw, or three days for the orchard box.
What if a jar arrives broken?
Send a photograph within two days and we send another, or refund it.
Ask us
A bulk order for a wedding or an office, a jar that is out, a visit to the orchard — write and we answer the same day. Scrivici su WhatsApp.
The kitchen door
Kotgarh, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh
This browser cannot show the map here. The directions link opens it in your maps app.