Red and spicy and awesomely yum ,this is a relish you often see in restaurants that serve an Indian Chinese or Indo-Chinese or a fusion cuisine. This chutney also comes in a bottle that disappears ASAP in my house because the boys adore the tatse. Consequently, I have been able to replace all my spice jars with glass bottles.
With all the brouhaha surrounding Maggi Noodles and other processed stuff ,so we decided to make some at home. And after the first batch lasted only two days ,the time had come to mass produce.
PS ,we bribed one supposed chef in our club to reveal it all.
This chutney is not too spicy ,its just flavor full and extremely versatile. It goes with every thing -Idlis ,toast ,paranthas/Parota ,rice ,noodles ,pasta -Just about anything.
I also reduced the oil content making it lower in fat than the bottled stuff Plus there is no MSG.
for the
Schezwan Chutney-Homemade
you need
100 gms dried red chillies-I used a mix of Kashmiri and regular red chili 1 small bunch celery3 star anise1 onion chopped2 tbsp ginger garlic pastesalt ,sugar to taste1-2 tsp vinegar1/2 cup neutral vegetable oil
Remove the stalk of the chillies. I mixed Kashmiri chillies because they are earthy ,sweet and lend a lovely color. And the regular MP chillies because they are spicy.Place them in a large bowl and pour boiling hot water over them and set them aside to soften.Chop the celery in the meanwhile. Once the water has cooled place the chillies in your blender and throw the water. It also contains the dust etc stuck to the chillies.
Heat oil in a pan. Toss in the ginger and garlic.
Blend the chillies with about a cup of water till most of the seeds are ground.Add the onions and celery and saute.
Toss in the star Anise.
Like so.
Now add the chillies. At this stage add the salt.
Cover and cook over low heat ,stirring often till the mix begins to leave oil at the sides.
I used a steel pan and an induction cook top. Cover and simmer and stir.
Don't say I didn't warn you -cooking chillies splutters and jumps and so you need to be careful. Add the vinegar and the sugar to tatse. When you see the oil separate out... turn off the heat and cover.
Once it has cooled ,check for seasoning. If you add sugar or vinegar ,be sure to bring the chutney to boiling point once more.
Sterilise glass jars and pop the chutney in warm. Close the lid firmly and refrigerate. My second batch was 250 gms of chillies so my chutney was more. I filled the glass jars and topped the chutney with a spoon full of oil to cover to reduce chances of spoilage.On its own...the chutney is Pretty.
And when it has company, it is rocking.
The chutney has 5 tastes...sweet , salt ,spicy ,sour and the star anise and celery give it that umami flavor...
Try it .
You'll never buy a bottle again.
I'm planning to make pizza rolls with this a base.
So what are you baking today???