Khajur-Imli Chutney
(A sweet and tangy Indian dip made from dates and tamarind)
Chaat is an indispensable part of Indian cuisine. It dominates street food in India. The chutneys are the dips that complete any chaat dish. They are the soul of any chaat! Thus, it is mandatory to have chutney recipes on an Indian food blog! I am sharing a lovely chutney recipe today that adds a sweet and tangy note to almost all chaats. This chutney can be made ahead of time and stored in the deep fridge compartment of your refrigerator for 3-4 months! The next time you wish to make some chaat at home, this chutney will be waiting in your refrigerator to create its magic!
Use this chutney with bhel, panipuri, sev-puri, ragda patties, chole-chat, or almost any chaat item. You can use this chutney while serving dahi-wada too. I often use it in small quantities as a substitute for tamarind pulp while making recipes.
RECIPE VIDEO
Ingredients
1 cup tamarind (इमली)
1 cup seedless dates (खजूर)
1.5 cups jaggery powder/ chunks (गुड)
0.5 lit water roughly (पानी)
1 tsp cumin powder (जीरा पाउडर)
1tsp coriander powder (धनिया पाउडर)
1 tsp red chili powder (लालमिर्चपाउडर)
salt as per taste (नमक)
Method
De-seed the tamarind and set it aside.
In a large pot, add dates, tamarind, and jaggery. Add enough water (roughly 1/2 liter). Mix well and start heating the mixture.
Let the mixture boil for 4-5 minutes.
Add red chili, coriander, cumin powders, and salt.
Turn off the heat and allow this mixture to cool completely.
Transfer the mixture to a blender jar and blend it into a smooth puree.
Strain the puree through a large strainer. Press a little hard so that all the pulp is collected in the vessel below the strainer.
Fill the chutney in an air-tight glass container, and store it in the refrigerator (in the ice compartment).
KHAJUR-IMLI CHUTNEY IS READY TO SERVE !!
Notes -
This chutney can be made without dates in it. You could make a chutney from tamarind pulp and jaggery. However, the proportion would change a little. Add 1.5 cups of jaggery for 1 cup of tamarind. Follow the same process otherwise.
This chutney turns out to be thick. If you want to use it for chaats, just add a little water to it just before serving, and give it a nice stir.
The amount of tamarind and jaggery can be altered as per your taste. If you want a sweeter chutney, add more dates. If you like the chutney a little sour (khatta), add more tamarind.
If you are using seeded dates, you will have to deseed them first. This is a time-consuming process and thus using deseeded variety is the best option.
If you don’t have jaggery powder, heat the jaggery block in a microwave oven for 30-40 seconds. Then cut it into small pieces. Add these pieces to the chutney and boil. The jaggery will melt when you boil it. Check whether all the jaggery has melted before turning off the heat.
DID YOU KNOW?
The ready-made chutney packets available in stores are full of additives? It is better to make this simple chutney at home and store it in the refrigerator than consume artifical additives.
Khajur-Imli Chutney
Ingredients
- 1 cup tamarind (इमली)
- 1 cup seedless dates (खजूर)
- 1.5 cups jaggery powder/ chunks (गुड)
- 0.5 lit water roughly (पानी)
- 1 tsp cumin powder (जीरा पाउडर)
- 1tsp coriander powder (धनिया पाउडर)
- 1 tsp red chili powder (लालमिर्चपाउडर)
- salt as per taste (नमक)
Method
- De-seed the tamarind and set it aside.
- In a large pot, add dates, tamarind, and jaggery. Add enough water (roughly 1/2 liter). Mix well and start heating the mixture.
- Let the mixture boil for 4-5 minutes.
- Add red chili, coriander, cumin powders, and salt.
- Turn off the heat and allow this mixture to cool completely.
- Transfer the mixture to a blender jar and blend it into a smooth puree.
- Strain the puree through a large strainer. Press a little hard so that all the pulp is collected in the vessel below the strainer.
- Fill the chutney in an air-tight glass container, and store it in the refrigerator (in the ice compartment).
Notes
- This chutney can be made without dates in it. You could make a chutney from tamarind pulp and jaggery. However, the proportion would change a little. Add 1.5 cups of jaggery for 1 cup of tamarind. Follow the same process otherwise.
- This chutney turns out to be thick. If you want to use it for chaats, just add a little water to it just before serving, and give it a nice stir.
- The amount of tamarind and jaggery can be altered as per your taste. If you want a sweeter chutney, add more dates. If you like the chutney a little sour (khatta), add more tamarind.
- If you are using seeded dates, you will have to deseed them first. This is a time-consuming process and thus using deseeded variety is the best option.
- If you don’t have jaggery powder, heat the jaggery block in a microwave oven for 30-40 seconds. Then cut it into small pieces. Add these pieces to the chutney and boil. The jaggery will melt when you boil it. Check whether all the jaggery has melted before turning off the heat.
Did you make this recipe?
Kindly let me know in the comments section below and tag @bitesandbokeh on INSTAGRAM.