Raw Tomato Chutney - Tangy and tongue tingling

FIL: .... I have got a kilo of fresh raw tomatoes.... Will you make that chutney again?

Me : Oh yes, appa, I will

After a week,

MIL : I saw fresh raw-tomatoes on the way. Thought you’d make that chutney again....

Me : Ok! I’ll make it

After another week,

FIL : That chutney was very nice...... first time spicy and second time tangy... But it got over soon... So I bought another kilo of raw tomatoes....

Me : Ya ya... I’ll make it again!

Well, the story goes like this..... Mom had invited our family for dinner and she had made this spicy tangy raw tomato chutney, for akki rotti. Well, my FIL, who craves for spicy stuff, literally fell in love with this chutney. He kept on praising it even after we were home! Though mom was making it before, I, who am not an ardent fan of tomatoes, had never actually realized that it was that tasty!

Then once there were a few green ones lying among the freshly bought heap of tomatoes. And I decided to impress my FIL, by making them. Asked mom for the recipe, and tried it out. I usually make things a little less spicy, as I like it that way. But this time I decided I will not restrict myself to the number of chilies I add! And it did turn out the same way as mom had done, and sure was my FIL impressed with this spicy thing. He even openly praised me for it!! And the rest is history....

We’re getting tomatoes for a very cheap price and every week, there would be a pile of raw green tomatoes, and a request for that chutney! I too make it happily every time, and think I’ve made more quantity this time, so that it will last longer, but well, it just vanishes in a couple of days!

The best thing is that it has a shelf life of about a week..... so comes handy when in hurry..... And since tomatoes are available at throw-away price this season, you can make lots of it!

Raw Tomato Chutney

Preparation time : 10 min Cooking time : 20 min Makes : a bowl full of chutney Ingredients: Raw tomatoes - 8-10 Coconut - ½ Cup Green chilies - 10-12, depending on taste Jaggery - 2 marble sized balls Salt - 1 tsp, depending on taste Asafetida - 2 big pinches Mustard seeds - 1 tsp Curry leaves - 2 sticks Cooking Oil - 2 tbsp Method: • Chop raw tomatoes into big pieces • In a pan, add 2 tsp of oil and sauté green chilies, a pinch of asafetida and the chopped tomato pieces for 3-4 minutes, till the raw smell of tomatoes disappear • Let it cool for 5 min, and then transfer the contents to a mixer jar • Add coconut, jaggery and salt to it • Grind the mixture to a medium coarse paste, without adding any water • In a fresh pan, heat the remaining oil, add mustard seeds and allow to sputter • Then add remaining powdered asafetida, and curry leaves • Once the curry leaves are crisp, add the ground chutney • Sauté well, for 5-10 minutes, stirring frequently, not allowing the chutney to stick to the pan • Put off the flame once the color of the chutney uniformly darkens • Let it stand for sometime, till it cools • Store it in an air-tight jar, in refrigerator and it stays fresh for about a week • Tastes good with rice and as a side dish for rotti, dosa, etc Tips n Tricks: • Use only raw tomatoes, better if sour • Hing in the mentioned quantity or more adds a special flavor and taste

P.S: Between the time I got this write-up ready and posted, there was one more batch of tomatoes ready in the kitchen, waiting for me to make this chutney! I’ve got bored of making I, but folks at home are still not bored of having it!!