Tomato chutney for idli and dosas

Chutney and dips have a special place in Indian cuisine, different types of chutneys are made to serve along with snacks and meals.
 When ever we make south Indian snacks we usually make coconut chutney, but tomato chutney is also a  popular tangy and easy accompaniment to serve with soft idlis and dosas. It is easy to make and stays well for a fortnight if kept refrigerated. The roasted lentils give a nice nutty flavour and texture to this tomato chutney.

INGREDIENTS-
Tomato,chopped -400 gms (4 medium)
Bengal gram/chana daal - 3 tbsp
White lentil/urad daal -1 tbsp
Red kashmiri chilies -2
Curry leaves -10
Turmeric /haldi - 1/3 tsp
Tamarind/imli ,dried - 1tsp (optional, i did not add it)
Salt - to taste
Asafoetida /hing- 1/4 tsp
Cooking oil -2 tsp
Grated Coconut -  tbsp
For Tempering:
Cooking oil -1 tsp
Mustard seeds/rai - 1/2 tsp
Whole red chilies -2
Curry leaves-6
PROCEDURE-
Wash and chop tomatoes into small pieces. Heat oil in a pan and bengal gram and white lentil.Saute on low heat till they become golden in colour.Add dried red chilies and curry leaves and saute till chili gets a nice colour,but do not overcook otherwise the lentil may get burnt.Add turmeric, asafoetida, salt  and chopped tomatoes.Cook on medium flame till tomatoes become soft.Remove the mixture in a bowl and let it cool down completely.Add the tomato mixture, tamarind (if using), grated coconut in the mixer jar.Grind the mixture to make a smooth paste.Take out the chutney in a bowl.Heat oil in a small pan and add mustard seeds.When seeds start crackling add whole red chilies and few curry leaves and  add in the chutney. Mix and serve with dosa and idlis. Keep refrigerated the left over chutney.

 

Lets check out what my fellow marathoners have cooked today for BM# 58.

Aam Ki Launji | Raw Mango Relish

Ingredients:

Raw mangoes -500 gms  *

Sugar -500 gms

Refined oil -2 tbsp

Chilli powder -1.5 tsp

Mustard seeds -1 tsp

Fenugreek seeds -1 tsp

Fennel seeds(saunf) - 1.5 tsp

Cardamom powder-a pinch of (optional)

Saffron-a pinch (optional)

Turmeric -1/2 tsp

Salt-1 tsp

Method:

Wash and peel raw mangoes and slice into long pieces.then weigh it  ( amount of sugar should be equal to the weight of peeled mango slices,but you can reduce the amount of sugar if you want to make it little sour)

Heat oil in a pan, add fenugreek ,mustard and fennel seeds.

When become golden add mango slices, turmeric and salt.mix well.

Cover and cook on low heat for approx 5-7 minutes or till cooked.(don't overcook and don't add water)

Add sugar and chili powder ,mix and cook on low heat (without lid) for approx. 10 minutes.

When gravy thickens then add a pinch of cardamom powder and saffron and mix.

Store in a jar ,when cool down completely.

NOTE- 

1-you can also use slightly ripen yellow mangoes  for making this chutney ,then add little less sugar .

2-Can also use jaggery/gur instead of sugar .

3-If you don't want to make it chunky and want a smooth chutney then cook it till it become soft at step 4 ,then mash it with the laddle and then follow the recipe.

4-If cooked properly stay fresh at room temperature for about 4 months.

serve with any snack,starter or as a side dish with any meal..

Almond Chutney/spread

Hi Friends,
Recently I tasted this chutney/spread at a friends place and fell in love with it! It is a yummy side dish with all healthy ingredients. This chutney is also very good for kids and acts as another option to feed them almond (main reason why I got attracted towards this dish!)
It taste somewhat like the peanut-coconut chutney but more richer and healthier.

Ingredients:

To Grind:
10 - 15 almond (soak in warm water for 5-10 mins)
1 tbsp daaliya (roasted chana daal)
1/2 tbsp jaggery
1-2 pods of garlic
small piece of ginger
2 tsp jeera seeds
handfull of coriander leaves
2 tbsp coconut powder (u can use fresh also)
1/2 tbsp tamarind paste
2 roasted green chillies
salt

For tempring:
1 tbsp ghee/oil
2 tsp mustad seeds
hing
1 tsp red chilli powder (optional)

Method
In a frying pan take 1 tsp of oil and roast the green chillies. Grind the ingredients mentioned under to grind along with the chillies into a paste. You can increase or decrease the green chillies depending on how hot you want it. Temper with the ingredients mentioned for tempering. Enjoy this yummy and healthy chutney with fried snacks or any of the south indian dishes like dosa, uttapam, idli.


Note: Daaliya (chana daal/bengal gram daal) here, I am referring to the one we put in chiwda and coconut chutney. The roasted chana daal or phutane. Not the broken wheat daliya.

You can adjust the amount of jaggery if you dont want it to be sweet.

Sending this to Pari's event 

http://cooking-goodfood.blogspot.com.au/2014/01/only-event-announcement-for-february.html#more

hosted by shruti at

http://shrutisrasoi.blogspot.in/2014/01/event-announcement-only-food-for.html

Amle ka achaar - gooseberry pickle

I love amla for all its health benefits and lovely sweet tangy taste. Amla or gooseberry is rich in Iron and vitamin C.

This pickle is quiet new to me. It tastes simply amazing!! Learnt it from my SIL recently when she and the rest of my SIL's visited us along with kids.

It was fun...full house..lots of masti..action...drama :)

This piquant amla delicacy is spiced with chilli, fenugreek, fennel and mustard. Instead of boiling the amlas, we cooked (lightly roasted) in a frying pan with little oil. This increases the shelf life of the pickle, sine no water is included in the making.

Ingredients

10 (250 grams) amla (indian gooseberries)

3 tsp fenugreek seeds (dana methi)

3 tsp fennel seeds (saunf)

1 tbsp yellow mustard

1 tsp black mustard (rai)

1/4 tsp asafoetida (hing)

3 tsp chilli powder

2 tsp turmeric powder (haldi)

100 gram groundnut/mustard oil

4 tsp salt

Method:

Grind the fenugreek and fennel seeds into a powder. Take 1 tbsp oil in a pan. Roast the amlas on medium for around 5-10 mins (till they appear lightly cooked). Cool the amla. Now they can be easily broken with hands. Separate out the slices and remove the seeds. Let the amla dry for 15 - 30 mins.

In the frying pan take the remaining oil. Heat it and add black mustard(rai), asafoetida. Turn off the gas. Add turmeric powder salt, ground fennel and fenugreek, yellow mustard. After the oil cools down, add the chilli powder ( to avoid the chilli powder getting burnt)

Now mix the amla with this and store it in a glass container.

Mix the pickle with a spoon for 3-4 days, so that all the spices and oil gel well. For preserving this pickle for long time, the amla should be immersed in oil.

The best part of the pickle is that it is healthy, tastes yummy and it is ready to be consumed immediately.

Sending it to Kavis Healthy cooking challenge