Tamarind Chutney

Kitchenware and tools used by Kitchen-e-India:

(1) 1 Big Bowl ( with space more than 500 ml)
(2) 1 Steel Strainer
(3) 1 medium sized Pan
(4) 1 large spoon
(5) 1 medium sized wok/kadahi
(6) 1 spatula
(7) 1 small plate

Ingredients used by Kitchen-e-India:

(1) Dried Tamarind pulp - 2 table spoons
(2) Water - 500 ml ( or as required)
(3) Mustard Oil - 2 tea spoons
(4) Cumin powder - 2 tea spoons
(5) Red chilly powder ( optional ) - 1 tea spoon
(6) Cumin seeds - 1/2 tea spoon
(7) Bay leaf - 1 or 2 in number
(8) Dried dates ( optional ) - 4 to 5 in number
(9) Few coriander leaves ( optional)
(10) Jaggery - 2 table spoons
(11) common salt - 1/2 tea spoon

Preparation Method by Kitchen-e-India:

(1) Boil water in Pan and switch off the stove.
(2) Soak tamarind and dates in boiled water inside Pan for 1-2 hours. Keep the Pan covered with lid at this time.
(3) After 2 hours put a strainer over the bowl and strain the soaked tamarind/dates water.
(4) Once all the water passes to the bowl via strainer, press the tamarind/dates pulp with spoon lightly so that the pulp
 also passes through the strainer in the bowl leaving behind the tamarind/dates seeds/fibers if any.
(5) Put the wok/kadahi on stove and let it heat. Once it gets heated put the cumin and Red chilly powder in it and roast it for 2-5 mins.
Keep stirring the powder with the help of spatula so that it gets roasted uniformly without getting burned.
(6) Take the roasted powder out of Wok and keep it aside on a plate.
(7) Put oil in the same wok and let it heat. Once the oil gets heated put cumin seeds and bay leaf in it.
(8) Once cumin seeds start popping up then add jaggery and after a minute add the tamarind/dates water kept in the bowl.
(9) Keep stirring jaggery in the tamarind dates water with the help of spatula/spoon, keeping your stove knob at medium.
(10) Once all the jaggery gets mixed well in the water add roasted cumin/red chilly powder and common salt.
(11) Keep stirring the mixture with the help of spatula/spoon until the mixture gets little thicken. Add extra water if the mixture gets thicken more.
(12) Once the mixture gets thickened lightly switchoff the stove.
(13) Now your Tamarind Chutney is ready, serve it after it cools down by decorating it with coriander leaves.

Tips by Kitchen-e-India:

(1) You can also keep this chutney in refrigerator for a week and use it at different intervals.
(2) Enjoy Tamarind chutney as a replacement of pickles/ketchup with different snacks or in Dahi bhalla, paani puri and chaats.