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Chutneys have been an intrinsic part of Indian meals since time immemorial. Not only do chutneys enhance the taste of a particular meal, making it more interesting and flavourful, they are also often used as a primary accompaniment to go with parathas, rice, and rotis.
A meal of simple parathas or dal chawal can taste heavenly when combined with a spicy and tangy chutney. Don’t you agree? Tomato chutney is one of the most delicious chutneys we have in Indian cuisine, and the best part about it is that you can easily store it for a month or two. With the help of a few tips and tricks while making the tomato chutney at home, you can keep it fresh for a long time.
1. Do not forget to boil the tomatoes before making the chutney. The boiling process at the start helps in increasing the shelf life of the dish and improves its overall taste.
2. Using enough oil in the chutney, as it helps in preserving the dish for a long time. This is one reason you find way too much oil in pickles and chutneys, as it helps to increase the shelf life.
3. If you are planning to store the chutney and not consume it immediately when made, avoid adding coriander leaves for garnishing the chutney in the end.
4. Don’t forget to store it in an air-tight container.
How to make instant tomato chutney
Making tomato chutney at home is super easy and hassle-free. All you need are some fresh tomato, oil, chillies, mustard seeds, peppercorns, onions, roasted peanuts, asafoetida, ginger, curry leaves, and a handful of spices.
To start with, wash the tomatoes well. Heat a pan and saute cumin seeds in it. Once they crackle, add peppercorns, cloves and curry leaves followed by onion, roasted peanuts and ginger-garlic paste. Sauté well and add the tomatoes to the mix along with sugar and chilli powder. You can cover the lid and let the tomatoes cook, stirring occasionally. When done, let the mix cool and grind it to a chutney.
Instead of using sugar, you can also add jaggery to it, towards the end. This is to introduce a slightly sweet and sour taste to the recipe, and balance the overall flavour. However, the usage of jaggery is completely optional. If you want your chutney to be spicy, skip jaggery.
Find the full recipe for instant tomato chutney here. You can store this chutney for over two months.
