Alma Bax Next time you are thinking of buying a bottle of chutney, why not make your own from scratch? Making chutney is quite an easy and simple process, as you will see by the following steps.
This is a recipe for a traditional Indian condiment, a condiment that can be served with any number of dishes, but never is served without a dish. Our chutney is a perfect blend of ginger and mint that will leave your guests wondering how you could make any dish so tasty. The recipe makes enough for a couple of dinners, but you can easily double or triple the ingredients if you are feeding a large crowd.
Blend together the ginger, garlic, peppercorns, and salt in a food processor into a coarse paste. Add the chopped tomatoes and the brown sugar and process until a thick, smooth paste is made. Pour into a jar and cover with the remaining ingredients. The straining process is optional.
The ginger and mint chutney has a unique flavor that pairs nicely with idli and dosa. Not just because of the chilies, but also because of the ginger, this chutney is very spicy. You may create other kinds of ginger chutney by adding onions, dried chilies, and other ingredients, and I’ll share the recipe with you shortly. This chutney, in my opinion, has a very strong flavor. You must first roast all of the ingredients, then create a paste, and then cook for a few minutes.
Ingredients
-
- 2 tsp. oil
- 20 gms ginger
- 25 to 30 gms mint
- 5 gms (1/2 cup) coriander leaves
- 15 curry leaves
- 2 tsp chana dal (Bengal gram)
- 1/4 teaspoon hing (asafoetida)
- 4 dry chillies
- 120 ml water
- a pinch of salt (to taste)
Tadka
- 2 tsp. oil
- 3/4 teaspoon mustard seeds
- a pinch of hing (asafoetida)
- a few curry leaves (around ten)
Method
-
- Preheat the pan/kadai, then add the oil and the hing, chana dal, and dried chilies. Roast for a few seconds, till the color changes.
- Now add all of the other ingredients and roast until the mint leaves are reduced and all of the water has been absorbed, around 5 minutes for all of the ingredients.
- Allow to cool before combining all of the ingredients in a mixer, adding water as needed to get the desired consistency, and grinding to a smooth paste.
Tadka
- Preheat the kadai and add the oil. When the oil is heated, add the mustard seeds, hing curry leaves, and the chutney paste. When the mustard seeds sputter and the curry leaves turn crispy, add the chutney paste and stir thoroughly.
- If it’s too thick, add water and cook until it comes to a boil, then reduce to a low heat and simmer for 5 to 8 minutes before turning off the heat.
- It’s great with idli.
Notes
- If you’re eating hot idlis, a few drops of ghee may be drizzled on top and eaten.
- Add water as needed to get the desired consistency.
To make a chutney, you need to start with something “liquidy”. At least, that’s how I like to make my chutneys. Any fruit, vegetable or spice can be made into a chutney, so if you like pickles, you can make pickle chutney. Not that I have ever made pickle chutney, but I have made other chutneys from all kinds of vegetables and fruits. And I love using all kinds of spices in my chutneys.. Read more about pudina thengai chutney and let us know what you think.
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