Speckled Pineapple Chutney- A fruity condiment to Bengali meals

Traditional Bengali meals have a blend of all tastes- bitter, sour, sweet, pungent and tangy. Bengalis tend to take their chutney or chaatni, very seriously.My signature Pineapple chutney has gained many lovers. This is in response to a request by Jolene Misquitta. I hope you enjoy the recipe, dear.

 

Ingredients:

1. Ripe and juicy pineapple                                                     1 large

Tip: Making sure the pineapple is ripe and juicy leads you to use lesser sugar and curb your calorie intake.

2. Raisins (preferably black)                                                     10-12

3. Sugar (depending on sweetness of pineapple)                 2-4 tbsps

4. Roasted Cumin Powder                                                         1/2 tsp

5. Kala Namak (Rock salt)                                                         1/4 tsp

6. Red Chilli Flakes                                                                     1/4 tsp

7. Mustard Seeds                                                                         1/2 tsp

8. Oil                                                                                              1 tbsp

9. Ginger(grated)                                                                        1 tbsp

10. Salt                                                                                             a pinch

11. Turmeric Powder(Haldi)                                                     a pinch

Procedure:

1. Get the skin and eyes of the pineapple removed by the fruit seller. If the fruit still has eyes left, scoop them out with the help of a very sharp knife. (That sounds creepy but I’m refering to the Pineapple). Cut into rings and remove the solid centre. Now chop it up roughly.
2. Transfer the chopped pineapple into a blender and blend well. Leave a few small chunks to add texture to the chutney.
3. Take oil in a deep wok with a lid. Add the mustard seeds and let them crackle, then simmer the flame.
4. Add the blended pineapple to it. As soon as you do this, cover with a lid so it doesn’t splutter and splash on you.
5. Add a pinch of turmeric powder, salt, grated ginger, sugar and stir. Add the raisins and cover and cook for 5 minutes.
6. Take the lid off and stir to check whether the ingredients have come together or not.
7. Now, add roasted jeera powder (cumin) and kala namak to the chutney. Stir well.
8. Turn the flame off and add red chilli flakes.
9. To check whether the chutney is ready or not, check if the watery part has almost completely evaporated to form a jelly like consistency (not very syrupy or very tough)
10. Let it cool.(The chutney will thicken further as it cools). Store it in a sterilized air- tight container. You can freeze the remaining chutney. To reuse the chutney, thaw it in the microwave or in a wok and it is ready to use.

Note: If you freeze it, it stays good for upto a year! It is ideal for bottling into jars as gifts at Christmas as well

As the Durga Puja inches closer, we find ourselves craving the signature khichdi of the bhog (meal offered to the goddess Durga). So without further dilly- dallying

Coming Up Next Week

Bhoger Khichudi

As always, comments and reviews are appreciated. If you have a request for a recipe, drop in a mail to amukherjee67@gmail.com and I’ll get back to you.

Also Eid Mubarak to all my readers