Green Chutney – The Versatile Coconut-Cilantro-Mint Combination!

Yes, occasionally, I go back to posting basic recipes for people who are newbies in the kitchen. This is one such recipe. This green chutney works beautifully for sandwiches, for Parsi delicacies like Patra ni Machhi and Patra ni Kolmi and yes, you can also use it as a marinade-gravy base for meats. I usually make a 2-bottle batch and use it as and when I need it. It keeps beautifully in the fridge for a week to ten days and because of the added acidity, the colour remains a beautiful green. Go on, give it a try. 😊

Ingredients:

1 whole (medium-sized) fresh coconut, break, remove from shell and cut into slivers

1 cup (tightly filled) coriander leaves, washed

1 cup (tightly filled) mint leaves, washed

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

15 - 18 large cloves of garlic, peeled and washed (increase the quantity if the garlic cloves are small)

12 to 14 green chilies, break into 1-inch pieces

Juice of 2 to 3 limes, to taste

Salt, to taste

Sugar, to taste

Method:

1.    Combine coconut sliver, coriander leaves, mint leaves, green chilies, garlic cloves and cumin seeds, juice of 1 or 1½ limes (only), salt and sugar in a grinder. Add quarter cup water and give it a good whiz. Grind the chutney to a smooth thick consistency.

2.    Open the grinder to check the consistency of the chutney, add more water only if needed and give it yet another whiz.

3.    Check seasoning and acidity levels and adjust lime juice, salt, and sugar as/if needed. If added, give the chutney one more whiz to ensure the added ingredients are well incorporated into the chutney.

4.    Remove the chutney into clean, sterilized, airtight bottles or any airtight fridge container.

5.    Allow the chutney to cool to room temperature; do not put it in the fridge until cool.

Chef Notes:

1.    The quantity of lime juice, salt and sugar depends entirely on your palate. I do suggest you add these three ingredients a little at a time and keeping adding more, as needed. The thing to always remember when cooking anything is, you can always add more as needed, but once added, reducing the excess is difficult and, in some instances, impossible.

2.    I used 12 to 14 medium sized dark green chilies, the ones that are quite high on the heat quotient. If you choose to use the long, light green, not-so-spicy variety, please adjust the quantity according. Here too, the same rule applies. Add fewer chilies if you are unsure, taste as you grind, add more as/if needed and give the chutney a good whiz.

3.    When raw mangoes are in season feel free to substitute them in place of lime juice.

4.    There’s one more use for this versatile baby (read: chutney). Whisk in some smoothened yogurt to a bowlful of this chutney as serve it as a dip with tandoori chicken and tikkas. Oh yeah, it works!

5.    You may share the direct blog-link of the recipe/s but do NOT publish my recipes, and/or my photographs, on any blogsite or website without my explicit consent or attempt to pass off my recipe/s as your own. You will be held accountable for plagiarism.

Some more photographs: 

Methamba - Raw Mango Jaggery Relish

Remember I mentioned in the Andhra Raw Mango Dal recipe that I’d used the second raw mango for another dish. Well, secret’s out! I made Methamba from Saee Koranne Khandekar’s book, Pangat, a Feast: Food and Lore from Marathi Kitchens. I bought this book on Kindle. This is the first recipe tried by me from the book and I have highlighted so many that I want to try. A major clarification: The recipe belongs to Saee and I have no copy right over it. I merely recreated this fabulous recipe in my kitchen.

As mentioned by Saee in the book, Methamba definitely falls under the relish category rather than the pickle  category. I had it with two things, namely, dal rice (Indrayani rice) and Prawn Khichdee. As Saee recommends in the book, I also gave it a try with some plain hot rice and ghee (clarified butter). That was heaven, sheer heaven! If raw mangoes are still available in your vicinity, give this recipe a try immediately.

Ingredients:

2 cups raw mango, peeled and roughly chopped
¾ cup jaggery, grated

3 tablespoons oil

3 dried red Byadgi chilies, broken into small pieces

1 teaspoon black or brown mustard seeds (I used black mustard seeds)

1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds

¼ teaspoon asafoetida powder

½ teaspoon turmeric powder

½ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder

1¼ teaspoon salt

Method:

1.    Heat oil in a heavy bottomed saucepan. Add the mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, broken red chilies, asafoetida and turmeric powder. Sauté until fragrant.

2.    Add the chopped mango and toss well to mix with the spice-mix.

3.    Add the salt and red chili powder and mix well.

4.    COVER the saucepan and cook for 5 to 6 minutes or until the mango pieces turn translucent.

5.    Add the jaggery and cook UNCOVERED (ON LOW HEAT) until the jaggery melts and the relish comes together in a nice even sticky form.

6.    Remove from fire and allow the relish to cool and then transfer into sterilized glass or ceramic jars.

7.    Can be stored in the fridge for 4-6 weeks.

Chef Notes & The Tiny Changes I Made:

1.    Instead of roughly chopping the mangoes, I preferred to dice then evenly – blame it on my frikkin’ OCD. *sheepish look*

2.    I used nearly 1 cup jaggery as the mango was extremely sour. Please taste as you cook and adjust the jaggery as suits your palate.

3.    While broke one chili into small pieces, I chose to break the remaining two into halves as mum cannot handle very spicy food and breaking the chilies into small pieces would mean she would encounter chilies in each bite. Also, I deseeded the dry red chilies to lessen their spice quotient. Please feel free to do that if you need to. Rest assured; the recipe works just as beautifully when you do so.

4.    The relish lasts for 4 to 6 weeks in the fridge, says the recipe. You can forget about it lasting that long coz if you are anything like me, you will polish this off within a week, max! *greedy-evil grin*

5.    As Saee rightly recommends, please, please do, give the Methamba a try with soft steamed rice and a dollop of clarified butter (ghee). In her exact words, I quote, “But once you try mixing it into some hot rice with a spoonful of ghee, we’ll talk.” As I said earlier... sheer heaven!

6.    As most food groups at Facebook have a ‘no link’ policy, I haven’t posted a link to Saee book, Pangat, at the FB groups. If you wish to access the link, please do so directly from my blog, Kenzy’s Kitchen Korner. It’s a book you will not regret picking up.

7.    As mentioned at the onset, the original recipe belongs solely to Saee Koranne Khandekar and her book, Pangat, a Feast: Food and Lore from Marathi Kitchens. This version of the recipe and the photographs, though, belong to my blog, Kenzy’s Kitchen Korner. You may share the direct blog-link of the recipe/s but do NOT publish my recipes, and/or my photographs, on any blogsite or website without my explicit consent or attempt to pass off my recipe/s as your own. You will be held accountable for plagiarism.

(Book photograph courtesy Amazon India)

Link for Pangat, a Feast: Food and Lore from Marathi Kitchens
Click HERE for the PAPERBACK EDITION

Link for Pangat, a Feast: Food and Lore from Marathi Kitchens
Click HERE for the KINDLE EDITION

Some more photographs:

Orange-Ginger Chutney spiked with Ghost Pepper

Orange-Ginger Chutney spiked with Ghost Pepper

I made this chutney some time last year and being the big procrastinator that I am, I’ve finally found the inclination to post it. I had Ghost Peppers in my pantry which is why when Manini posted this recipe at ‘Kenzy’s Kitchen Korner’, a Facebook food forum, I was sure I would recreate it. I asked Grumpy and Anu whether they would prefer this preparation sweet (like jam) or tangy, sweet and spicy (like chutney). They, in unison, said, ‘chutney’, so chutney it was! The three main elements of the recipe (orange, ginger and ghost pepper) blend beautifully and the fragrance of the cinnamon gently hits your olfactory receptors every time you eat the chutney. Do give this superb recipe a try, you won’t regret it. I know I didn’t! This one’s a keeper! 

Ingredients:

2 cups fresh orange juice, strained

1 cup orange segments

1 teaspoon red chili flakes

1 dry, smoked Ghost pepper / Bhut Jolakia chili, very finely chopped (I discarded the seeds)

25 grams ginger, very finely chopped

100 grams sugar

1 teaspoon salt

½ inch piece cinnamon

Method:

1. In a non-stick pan add orange juice, orange segments, salt and sugar.
   
   
   
   
2. When it comes to a boil, add cinnamon, ginger, red chili flakes and continue simmering till it begins to turn slightly thick.
   
   
   
   
3. Add the finely chopped Ghost pepper chili and simmer.
   
   
   
   
4. Allow the chutney to get thicker. (Please keep in mind not to thicken it too much as it will further thicken when it cools down.)
   
   
   
   
5. When desired consistency is achieved, remove from fire. Discard the cinnamon stick and empty the chutney into a bowl or a sterilized glass jar and allow it to cool down. Do NOT cover it with a lid until it cools.
   
   

-- This quantity yields approximately 250 grams of chutney. 

-- This can be stored in the fridge for a minimum of 10 - 15 days.

Chef Notes:

1. IMPORTANT WARNING: When you handle Ghost Peppers do NOT handle them with the naked hand. Please don a pair of gloves to handle them. 
2. Instead of a knife I used a pair of sharp scissors and snipped the Ghost Pepper into teeny-weeny bits. Because I had to hold the chili for a while to chop it very fine, I could feel the heat of the chili penetrate even through the gloves. No, it did not burn my fingers at all but if you hold the chili long enough to snip it and you will feel the heat through the gloves. I kid you not! Felt so weird.
3. I only used one Ghost Pepper and I found the spice factor perfect but if you want spicier chutney use ½ or 1 more Ghost Pepper. 
4. Please do not thicken the chutney too much at the end of the simmering process as it will further thicken once it cools down If it is too thick it will be quite difficult to empty out into the bowl or glass jar. 
5. Please do not cover the hot chutney with a lid as you don’t want moisture from under the lid falling into the chutney. The chutney won’t keep for long if that happens. 
6. Please strain the juice to ensure there are no pips in it. Also ensure that the orange segments do not have any pips. 
7. I haven’t seen the original recipe but I’m told it belongs to Farah Pasha. It was recreated by Manini Lalbhai Badlani, whose post at my Facebook forum inspired me to try this. :-) Thank you gals, this one was awesome! 
8. I have made changes to the original recipe in regard to proportions of certain ingredients. I have added cinnamon as I felt it would give the chutney a warm, woody aroma. I've added just a wee bit because I did not want the aroma to be too overpowering.  
9. If you wish to turn this recipe into a jam instead of chutney, increase the sugar quotient and decrease the chili quotient to your liking. 
10. If you wish to see full sized photographs of the small photographs shown at the blog (of the ingredients and process), please click on the photographs to enlarge them.
11. You may share the direct blog-link of the recipe/s but do NOT publish my recipes and my photographs on any blog-site or website without my explicit consent or attempt to pass off my recipe/s as your own. You will be held accountable for plagiarism.