Chutneys are yummy accompaniments that usually negate any lack of taste that might be there in a main dish. If the salt in your dal is less you make up for it my adding more chutney, if your food happens to be bland you can compensate for it by adding a spicy chutney into it, etc;

I am particularly fascinated by fruit chutneys . Fruits that are naturally sweet n sour like grapes, pineapples and mangoes are excellent ingredients for chutneys. Here is the recipe of a mango chutney I tried a few months ago. I was waiting for a good day to write about it. So sorry that the day has come when the season has gone. Today I made a pineapple chutney which was made following pretty much the same procedure as the mango one. I visited the majestic area (Bangalore) yesterday and pineapple vendors were dishing out chaat every 100 mts. The season is back  so friends who have been waiting to make Gojjus, rasams and other pineapple delicacies, this is the time.

Ginger Pineapple Chutney

Ingredients:

• Pineapple pieces 1 cup
• Grated Ginger 2 teaspoons
• Jaggery 1 tablespoon
• few red chillies (ramnad gundu chilly)
• curry leaves (few)
• hing – a pinch
• Turmeric powder – a pinch
• Dhania / Coriander powder  1 teaspoon
• Oil 2 teaspoons
• water 1 cup

Procedure:

1. Marinate pineapple pieces in jaggery overnight in refrigerator.
2. heat oil. Splutter mustard seeds, add curry leaves and hing.
3. Add ginger, rasam powder and red chillies (ramnad gundu chilly)
4. To this mix add pineapple pieces, salt, turmeric powder, dhania powder, water and cook for 10 mins.

You can follow the same procedure as above with other sweet n sour fruits like mango.

Mango Chutney

Ingredients:

• Use 1 cup of mango pieces. The mango should be partially ripe for best taste
• Use 6-7 Garlic pods
• Jaggery 1 tablespoon
• few red chillies (ramnad gundu chilly)
• curry leaves (few)
• hing – a pinch
• Turmeric powder – a pinch
• Dhania / Coriander powder  1 teaspoon
• Oil 2 teaspoons
• water 1 cup

Procedure:

1. Heat oil. Splutter mustard seeds, add curry leaves and hing.
2. Add pounded garlic and red chillies
3. To this mix add mango pieces, jaggery, salt, turmeric powder, dhania powder, water and cook for 10 mins.

I am also giving you a Chutney Pudi recipe that I particularly like. My friend and neighbor Cecilia gave me this recipe. Its simple to make and is actually quite tasty. I am sending these Chutneys to the Pickles and Chutney’s Event hosted by Mom’s Recipies.

Ingredients:

• curry leaves 5-6
• 1 cup urad dal
• white til seeds – 1/4 cup
• Byadige red chilly 4
• Pinch of Hing/asafetida and Turmeric powder

Procedure:

1. Dry roast each of the above ingredients individually
2. let it come to normal temp and grind into a coarse powder with salt
3. mix with gingelly oil while serving

I made asankhana’s Grilled Tomato chutney last night. Being a great fan of pickles and chutneys I couldnt resist the temptation of trying this delicious red dip. This recipe has a striking similarity to the original recipe of Baigan Ka Bharta.

I made small incisions in the tomato and pricked the garlic pods into the tomato. Then I grilled the tomatoes using skewers and peeled off the black portion of the skin. This chutney is fairly easy to make and has that mildly burnt taste that gives any vegetable a complete twist in taste. Thats what I like so much about grilling.

Thanks notyet100 for introducing me to this easy and tasty chutney. Also, thanks SIG for organizing the Grill-It event that inspired all of us to Grill. This is my entry to the FIC – Red event hosted by Sunshinemom.

Srivalli of ‘Cooking for all Seasons’ is hosting a fundraiser. A family member of her house help is suffering from a serious illness to cure which she needs support and some financial help. You are requested to make a generous contribution and help save a life.

Every part of India has its own version of the tomato chutney. Some savor it as a pickle and others use it as a replacement for sabzis. Here is the tomato chutney we eat at home with a variety of parathas, usually for breakfast.

This chutney needs to be kept as simple as possible so that the natural flavor of tomatoes stands out. Moreover, we dont want the side dish to fight with the main dish.

Ingredients :

• 1 Onion
• 1 teaspoon of Ginger – Garlic paste (freshly prepared)
• Few springs of Coriander leaves
• 3 Big ripe Tomatoes
• 1 Green Chilly
• Pinch of haldi powder
• Pinch of hing
• 1/2 teaspoon jeera
• 1 teaspoon dhania powder
• Curry leaves (Optional)

Procedure :

1. Heat oil. Add hing, jeera and let it splutter.
2. Now add green chilly, onions and let them soften a bit.
3. Mix in the Ginger- Garlic paste and cook for a minute more. Add haldi powder and dhania powder.
4. Finally add chopped tomatoes, salt and continue to cook till the tomatoes soften.
5. Garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves and serve hot.

Variation

If the chutney is to be eaten with a South-Indian snack, you can add some white urad dal and curry leaves to the tempering as well.

This is a minty spicy chutney which goes well with all chaats and snacks. Fresh Mint and coriander leaves can give this chutney a taste to remember. A Chutney being uncooked, is the healthiest way to consume our green leafy vegetables.

Ingredients :

• 1 cup fresh Pudina or Mint leaves
• 1/2 cup coriander leaves
• 1 green chillie
• A small piece of ginger
• Pinch of White and black salt
• 1/2 teaspoon of amchur powder
• Few drops of fresh lime juice

Procedure :

Grind the above ingredients in a blender and your Mint chutney is ready to be eaten.

Please NOTE :

To get a fine consistency you might need to add a few teaspoons of water. However, care needs to be taken as Mint and Coriander leaves have a high natural water content and the chutney should not eventually get watery.

This chutney is very unique in taste as compared to its other Green Chutney counterparts. Spring onions are not as pungent as the regular onions. Besides being very nutritive in the raw form, they also taste better than when cooked in any form. Thats why, whenever I have fresh spring onions at home the first choice is a chutney.

Ingredients :

• 7-8 springs of Spring onions (bulbs included)
• 1 green chillie
• 1/2 cup of tamarind juice
• small piece of ginger
• Pinch of white and black salt
• Juice of 1/2 a fresh lime

Procedure :

Mix in all the above ingredients in a mixie jar.

Serve with snacks or meals.

This is a sweet and sour chutney made out of tamarind pulp usually served with chaats, pakodas and other short eats. This chutney has a long shelf life and is handy when you suddenly want a dip to go with a snack.

Ingredients :

• 1 cup Tamarind juice
• 1/2 cup jaggery (or more depending on your taste)
• Few saunf or fennel seeds
• Jeera powder
• A Pinch of white and black salt
• A Pinch of red chillie powder
• One teaspoon sugar

Procedure :

1. Bring the tamarind juice to a boil.
2. Add jaggey, sugar, white and black salt, jeera powder, red chillie powder and boil till the mixture thickens.
3. Add saunf seeds and continue to boil for few more minutes.
4. Cool and serve with chaats or snacks.

Please NOTE :

In case you are short of time you can use tamarind paste readily available in the market. However, one thing needs to be kept in mind. These pastes are usually very concentrated. Hence, start with mixing 1/2 teaspoon of tamarind paste in one cup of water and increase the quantity of tamarind juice later, if required.