Tomato Chutney

Tomato Chutney is one of the most common chutney that we used to prepare at home and all the time available in Indian restaurants. This recipe obviously I got from my mother. But today I just add one extra ingredient to make the taste slightly different from the original. If you have tendency to modify your recipes,then this recipe is definitely for you. For me innovation always welcomed in cooking. He he he....

Last week I bought a packet of ready -made Rice Idli from an Indian grocery shop. Working women hardly have time to prepare everything from the scratch. There's a lot of ready-made products available in the market nowadays which gives us opportunity to have our easily prepared Indian breakfast at home. Million thanks to the growth of Food Technology!

So now you know the long history behind this super tasty Tomato Chutney! I prepared Idli for my breakfast this morning accompanied by my own new version Tomato Chutney. Ehem ehem... Just kidding! The taste was really good...yeah, finger licking good! That's why I took the time to snap the pictures and post this recipe.

Things that you need :

• 1 big red onion (use 2 if the onions is smaller size)
• 1 red  tomato
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 2 tbsp Cashews
• 1 tsp Mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp Fennel seeds
• 1 sprig of curry leaves
• 2 tsp of Asafoetida powder
• 3 dry red chili
• 1 tsp of red chili powder (optional and adjust according to your taste)
• salt

Preparation Method:

• Chopped Onions, Tomato, garlic and keep aside.
• Heat oil in a pan. Approximately 2 tbsp of oil is enough. 
• Add mustard seeds followed by fennel seeds. I love to add fennel seeds in most of my cooking. Its optional. Let the mustard splutter in the hot oil.
• Now add the dry chillies and curry leaves and don't forget the Asafoetida powder too. . After a quick stir then add chopped onions and garlic.
• Saute the onions till translucent. When the raw smell goes off, then add chopped tomatoes. The amount of tomatoes and the onions should be same. Otherwise the taste will be different. Saute the Tomatoes and onions till the tomatoes gets mushy. 
• Now its the time to add cashews for nutty flavour. If you ask me whether can add other nuts like peanuts or almonds. I'm not so sure of the outcome. I like the milky taste of the cashews. That's why I choose cashew nuts. 
• Add a tsp of chilli powder since I prefer hot and spicy chutney. Sprinkle little bit of water if the pan too dry. Stir for 1 minute to eliminate the chilli odour. Ohh, don't forget to add some salt. 
• Turn off the heat. Wait till the Chutney mix cool down. Then grind altogether without any additional water. You may sprinkle some if get right consistency.
• Taste your chutney for the salt. If everything perfect then its ready to serve with Hot Idlis!

Now its time to rush to the work...See you all. Happy Cooking!