TOK JHAL MISTI TOMATO CHUTNEY

Tomato chutney in Bengali style is a flavorful chutney which is the specialty of an eastern state of India - West Bengal. This tomato chutney is also known as Tok-Jhal-Misti Chutney and very famous as a side dish in most of the Bengali families.

Traditionally its served with Khichuri during Saraswati puja, Durga puja or any other Bengali festivals, however you can also serve it with normal meal, as a side dish. It is very easy to make and gets ready in 15-20 minutes. Some people also add raisins or jaggery to this chutney, I have added very little sugar and 2-3 dates to it. You can increase or decrease the quantity of these ingredients depending upon your taste. 

Ingredients:

1. Tomatoes - 4-5 medium sized (roughly chopped)
2. A pinch of salt
3. Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
4. Dry red chilli - 1-2
5. Seedless Dates - 2-3 chopped (you can add more dates also, if you like)
6. Mustard oil - 1 tsp
7. Sugar - 2 tsp
8. Turmeric powder - 1/4 tea spoon
9. Red chilli powder - 1/2 tea spoon

Process:   

  

1. Heat mustard oil in a pan and add mustard seeds and red chilli, saute for a few seconds till they become fragrant.

2. Add chopped tomatoes, salt, turmeric powder and red chilli powder to the pan. Mix well and cover the pan, let it cook for 4-5 minutes till tomatoes become soft. 

3. Add the chopped dates and sugar, mix very well and allow it to cook for another 5 minutes. And your Tok-Jhal-Misti chutney is ready. 

GREEN CHUTNEY

Green chutney - fresh, sweet and spicy and goes so well with pakodas, kebabs, samosas, cutlets, fritters or even as a spread on sandwiches. This is one of the healthiest chutney which is used as a side with Indian cuisine. Its a very staple chutney you might have seen in restaurants or you might have tried at home. There are so may variations to this chutney. Here is the simple and easy version of my recipe. 

Ingredients:

1. Coriander leaves / Dhania - 2 cup (chopped)

2. Mint leaves / Pudina - 1 cup (chopped)

3. Green chilli - adjust as per your taste

4. Ginger - 1 inch 

5. Lemon Juice - 1 tsp 

6. Salt to taste

7. Sugar - 1/2 tsp

Process:

1. Add all the ingredients to a blender jar. 

2. Make a thick paste by adding 1 tsp water and blending until smooth. 

3. Adjust salt, lemon juice and chilli to suit your taste.

4. Store in a clean dry airtight glass jar.

Note : you can keep this green chutney in refrigerator and use for about a week.

TAMARIND CHUTNEY

I have very fond memories of smuggling tamarind with rock salt and eating them alone in my childhood days. Remembering those days of childhood, today I have tried to cook tamarind chutney which we can have with any snacks or dahi vada or any pakodas. If tangy is your thing, you can use this with any snacks of your choice. These quarantine days really helped us to cook a lot of things, which we actually used to buy from outside due to lack of time in our hand to cook them at home. Here is the simple recipe you can follow to this sweet and tangy chutney at home.

Ingredients:

1. Tamarind - 1/2 cup
2. Jaggery - 1/2 cup (finely chopped)
3. Salt
4. Jeera powder - 1/4 tsp
5. Rock salt - 1/4 tsp
6. Red chilli powder - 1/2 tsp

Process:

1. Deseed tamarind and boil it in a cup of water over low flame for 10 minutes. If you do not want to boil, you can just soak them in a cup of hot water for 30 minutes..
2. Let it cool at room temperature, when it cools, mash tamarind in water and strain through a metal colander and discard fibers. Press mashed tamarind with spoon while straining to get more pulp out.
3. Transfer tamarind pulp to pan and add jaggery in it. Bring it to boil and cook on medium flame until jaggery dissolves completely.
4. Add red chilli powder, cumin powder, black salt and salt. Mix well and taster for sweetness and add more jaggery if you want to make sweeter chutney. Turn off the flame and let it cool at room temperature.
5. Transfer prepared chutney to airtight container and store in refrigerator for up to one month for anytime use.