Everyone loves a good chutney, especially if it's made using seasonal, local produce. We asked Chetna Makan to share one of her favourite tomato chutney recipes with us, that's super-simple to make yourself at home.
Chutneys, whether sweet, sour, spicy, creamy or smooth, are such a great accompaniment to snacks and meals. There are some lovely chutney recipes in my first book The Cardamom Trail, which is all about my culinary journey so far. It’s full of cakes and sweet bakes, yet also has a great range of savoury bakes such as flatbreads, breads with curries, pies with spicy fillings and little bites to eat. These little bites need amazingly refreshing chutneys to keep them company.
THE BEAUTY OF TOMATOES
I enjoy using fresh, seasonal ingredients in my chutneys and one of my favourites is the humble tomato. You can find such a large variety of tomatoes, each one with its own unique qualities, that add a wonderful different array of flavours to homemade chutneys.
Here, I’ve used green tomatoes as they are a bit more sour and firm, but feel free to use red ones if you like – it will still taste amazing. The sour goes really well with spicy hint of garlic, ginger and chilli and there’s a great crunch from the cumin, mustard and lentils. I love serving this chutney on toasted bread, with some cheese, burgers, naan or any curry and rice.
CHETNA’S GREEN TOMATO CHUTNEY
Makes one jar
8-10 cloves of garlic
2.5cm piece of ginger
2 fresh green chillies
500g ripe green or red tomatoes
sesame seed oil
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 tablespoon urad daal
1 teaspoon caster sugar
- Peel and finely chop the garlic and ginger, then finely chop the chillies.
- In a pestle and mortar, bash the garlic, ginger and chilli together to form a paste.
- Make a cut along the top of each tomato, then lower them into a large saucepan of freshly boiled water and leave to soak for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes, remove from the water, peel away their skin, then chop the tomatoes into fine pieces.
- Cook the tomato pieces in a pan over a low heat for 10 to 12 minutes to get rid of the moisture. Once cooked, transfer the tomatoes to a bowl and keep to one side.
- Heat 4 tablespoons of oil in the same pan and, once hot, tip in the mustard, cumin and daal. Once they start to sizzle, add the paste.
- Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, then add the tomato mix. Cook for a further 5 to 10 minutes, then add 1 teaspoon of sea salt followed by the sugar and mix well.
This chutney can be served hot or cold and will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for 4 to 5 days.
To help you out, here’s Akis Petretzikis with his 1 minute tip for how to skin tomatoes:
For more inspiration check out these trusty chutney recipes and you can find out more about tasty tomatoes at the Vegepedia.
