Mint Peanut Chutney | Pudina Mungfali Chutney

Call it what you like - Mint and Peanut Chutney or Mint Pesto, there is no doubt you will fall in love with it.

I'm sure by now you are aware of my complete and total obsession with Mint. I simply cannot get over it. While the pot in the balcony keeps spilling over with fresh Mint, I will continue to use it in my kitchen. 

This Mint Peanut Chutney is a hand me down recipe. I got it from my sister Gee and she got it from her Mother-in-Law. I totally hated hand me downs when I was a kid. The books, the clothes, the toys. But I'm always open to hand me down recipes. It only means the recipe is tried, tested and loved. This one is all three and more. It is so simple and so versatile. I eat it as a chutney with Dosa, I use it as a dip for my chips, I use it as a spread on bread. 

I was very excited about this post. Most of all because of my cute little mason jars. Do you see how cute they are? I've always had my eyes open for them, but they are expensive and I never found the size I liked. Finally, last weekend I got the size I wanted at a price I wanted, ain't I lucky? I had to use them in photos and this mint chutney was the perfect recipe to showcase my little jars. 

Back to my Mint Peanut Chutney - because all the ingredients are cooked before grinding into a chutney, this chutney keeps well for almost 10 days in the fridge. But don't worry, it never lasts that long. It will be over in the blink of an eye.

Step by Step Instructions:

1) Wash the mint leaves thoroughly.
2) Heat oil in a pan and add the mint leaves to the pan along with slit green chillies.
3) Fry for 5 minutes.

4) Add chopped tomato, peanuts and salt into the pan and cook for another 3-5 minutes. Keep stirring occasionally.
7) Remove from heat and allow it to cool.
8) Grind with a little water. The chutney should not be very smooth, it should be slightly coarse.

Mint Peanut Chutney | Pudina Mungfali Chutney

Simple cooked chutney made with mint and peanuts.


Recipe Type:  Chutney
Cuisine:            Indian
Prep Time:     15 mins
Cook time:     25 mins
Yield:                200 ml

Ingredients:

5 cups Mint (loosely packed)
1/3 cup Peanuts
1 Tomato 
1-2 Green Chillies
2-3 tsp Oil
Salt to taste
2-3 Tbsp Water

Method:

Wash the mint leaves thoroughly.
Heat oil in a pan and add the mint leaves to the pan along with slit green chillies.
Fry for 5 minutes.
Add chopped tomato and peanuts into the pan and cook for another 3-5 minutes.
Add salt.
Keep stirring occasionally.
Remove from heat and allow it to cool.
Grind with a little water. The chutney should not be very smooth, it should be slightly coarse.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge. It keeps well for 7-10 days.

Send me pics, comment on this post, tweet or share on FB if you've made this Mint Peanut Chutney. I wanna seeee.

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Olive Hummus without Tahini

I LOVE.... HUMMUS!! I really really do. Luckily for me, so does my family.

Creamy hummus and some fresh and warm pita bread... yummmm... makes my mouth water.

I can eat hummus with anything - Bread, Roti, Naan etc. Sometimes, I cheat on the pita bread with Crackers. I spread the hummus on crackers and savor them at tea time.

Until recently, hummus was something you could only have in middle eastern restaurants. And even they were so few. But these days you can buy hummus from your super market. May not be at the really local grocery chain but you can definitely get them at the gourmet grocery chains.

And you get them in so many flavours these days - roasted pepper, sun dried tomatoes, peri peri, rosemary etc. I'm still a fan of the original Hummus. Recently, however, I picked up one with tiny bits of Olives in it and I simply loved it.

This Olive Hummus has a predominant taste of olives , however, it does not overpower the original hummus. The hummus turns out smoother and creamier if you peel the chickpeas before blending it. But if you are a Lazy bug like me, skip it and blend.

Usually Hummus is made with a creamy sesame butter called Tahini. Tahini has a low shelf life and is not available very easily. Don't worry! It can be easily replaced with toasted sesame seed powder. That's what I have done. It adds a nice nuttiness to the Hummus.

This time I made my own whole wheat pita bread to enjoy the hummus if. If you thought it is difficult to make, you are totally mistaken. Check out how to make pita bread here. I replaced the all purpose flour with whole wheat flour and it tasted equally amazing.

DO NOT throw out the water you cooked the chickpeas in, store it in the fridge and wait for my next post, I'll show you how you can make a simple garlicky broth with it that we call "Kattina Saaru". It is a famous accompaniment to rice across Karnataka.

Olive Hummus without Tahini

Hummus made with chickpeas and olives and no Tahini

Recipe Type:  Dip
Cuisine:         Mediterranean
Prep Time:    8 hours (Includes soaking time)
Cook time:     5 minutes
Yield:             2 cups

Ingredients:

1 cup dried Chickpeas or 2 cups cooked Chickpeas
3 Tbsp Sesame seeds
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1-3 pods of Garlic
1-2 Tbsp Lime juice
5-6 Olives
Upto 1/2 cup water
Salt

Method:

Soak the dried chickpeas overnight or for 8 hours in 2 cups of water.
Cook them with salt until they are well done. I pressure cook them, it takes around 10 minutes. Don't worry if you overcook them, that's what we need.
Drain them and allow them to cool. Keep the water aside.
Peel the chickpeas by gently squeezing them for a smoother hummus.
Lightly warm the Sesame seeds in a pan and grind them into a powder.
Blend together the chickpeas, sesame powder, garlic,salt,1 Tbsp of lime juice,2 Tbsp of olive oil and around 2 Tbsp of water.
Blend well until the hummus is smooth. If the mixture is too sticky for your blender, continue to add 1 Tbsp of water at a time to loosen the mixture.
Add the remaining lime juice and Olive oil as per your taste and mix well.
Finely chop the olives and add it to the hummus and mix well.

Notes:

I love garlic. The quantity I added makes it really garlicky. Adjust the garlic according to your love for garlic. The garlic pods in India are really very small, so you may want to start off with 1/2 a pod and then continue to add more. Or you can add garlic powder or paste. Start with 1/2 tsp and increase as per your taste.

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Vegetable Cutlets with Coriander Mint Chutney | Indian Veg Cutlet Recipe [Video]

Vegetable Cutlet Recipe with step by step video instructions. Indian veg cutlet is a shallow or deep fried patty made of potatoes, mixed vegetables and spices. Vegetable cutlet may be coated in semolina or breadcrumbs. This recipe of vegetable cutlet is vegan.

In a hurry? Jump to Video or Jump to Recipe

I’m free I’m free… from those hectic schedules to those late night calls. I’m finally free, for a short while, but I know to appreciate the smaller things in life.

So what did I do? Well, I actually went to the mall on a weekday evening. Really!! With no laptop to burden me, I happily went to the happiness sale at Bangalore Central. And then I went to my sister’s house and had her cook me dinner. I know, could I get any lazier? I like laziness :D. And then I actually started reading my library book. Oh my dear books have been neglected this entire time. I issued booked, renewed them and then returned them. But finally, I’ve started on “Gone Girl” and am liking it till now. I even went out and watched Minions. Acche din (Good days).

I’ve been trying to cram all the good things in these 2-3 weeks I’ll have before the next project and the next grind starts. So Saturday night, I made my childhood favorite – Vegetable Cutlets, to celebrate. It is still my favorite, but I don’t like what I get in Bangalore. I miss my Goan cutlets with little pieces of red beetroot in them. That’s something special to Goa I think, beetroot is added to cutlets and samosa’s there, and believe me, it just makes them extra special. Tasty, yummmm. 

Cutlets are so easy to make. All you need are mashed vegetables and desire to make something of them. For most non vegetarian cutlets, egg is used as a binding agent to bind the breadcrumbs, but this is a Vegetarian blog, so not eggs here mister. Just use a mixture of milk and flour and dip the cutlets in that before dipping it into semolina or bread crumbs. You can use bread crumbs, but cutlets always have semolina or rava coating on them. If you skip this, the rava coating just disintegrates once it is in the pan and you are left with a shapeless cutlet and oil full of rava. I am speaking from experience here.

I decided to go an extra step and I made this nice green chutney to go along with the cutlet. It tastes just as delicious with ketchup or just like that. But then, I am a chutney girl. Always been one. So I made this chutney, bought some Pao, stuffed some sliced onions and tomatoes and made my local burger. Skip all this and enjoy it just as it is, or go full gourmet and add sliced avocado, cheese or anything else you fancy. It  is all upto you and your family’s taste buds.

If you made this recipe, let me know! Leave a comment here or on Facebook,  tag your tweet with @oneteaspoonlife on Twitter and don't forget to tag your photo @oneteaspoonoflife on Instagram. You can also email me at onetspoflife@gmail.com I'd love to see what you are up to.

If you like this recipe, do not forget to share it with your friends and family! 

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Video Recipe

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Vegetable Cutlets with Coriander Mint Chutney

Indian veg cutlet is a shallow or deep fried patty made of potatoes, mixed vegetables and spices. Vegetable cutlet may be coated in semolina or breadcrumbs. This recipe of vegetable cutlet is vegan.

Recipe Type:  Snacks
Cuisine:          Indian
Prep Time:     30 minutes
Cook time:     30 minutes
Yield:              8-10 Cutlets

Author:                Anupama

Ingredients:

For the cutlet:

3 to 4 Potatoes, medium sized
0.5 cup mixed vegetables (carrot, green beans, green peas)
0.5 Beetroot
2 Tbsp Coriander leaves
1 tsp Red chilli powder
0.5 tsp Turmeric powder
1 tsp Garam masala
2 Tbsp Flour (maida)
3-4 Tbsp Fine semolina (Chiroti rava)
Oil to fry
Salt to taste
Water as required

For the chutney:

0.5 cup Fresh coriander leaves 
0.5 cup Fresh mint leaves
1 Green chilli
1 clove Garlic
Salt
Water

Method:

To make the Cutlet:

1. Boil the potato until done. Peel and mash them.
2. Chop carrot and beans finely. Boil them along with the peas until done.
3. Peel and chop the beetroot and boil until cooked.
4. Drain and add the vegetables along with chopped coriander leaves to the potato.
5. Add all the spices and salt to the potato and mix well. If the cutlet mixture feels wet, add either bread crumbs or dip a slice of bread in water and immediately remove it out, squeeze out the water and crumble the bread into the mixture.
6. Divide the mixture into 10 equal parts and roll them into balls. Gently flatten the balls to make a patty. You can be creative and make fancy shapes too with a cookie cutter.
7. Heat oil in a pan. You can either shallow fry or deep fry the cutlets.
8. Take the flour in a shallow plate and add 0.25 to 0.5 tsp salt to it. Add water by the spoonfuls and whisk until you have a smooth slurry.
9. Dip the cutlet in the slurry and dip in semolina and place it in the pan.
10. Cook on each side until it is golden brown. Remove from heat once both sides are cooked.
11. Serve hot with Ketchup or Chutney

To make the Coriander Mint Chutney:

1. Grind everything in the mixer/blender with 1 tbsp of water

If you liked this, you may also like:

Broccoli Zucchini Fritters

Sweet Potato Kebab

Brown Rice Fritters

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Ranjaka (Red chilli chutney)

This fiery fresh red chilli chutney is a favourite in north Karnataka. Only the brave hearted can take it on. I had a few red chillies that were old and were going to go bad soon, so I decided to make this and store it. It can be eaten with rottis, chapatti or rice. It can also be added to dals and gravies to spice them up.

Ranjaka

Chutney made from fresh red chillies

Recipe Type:  Chutney
Cuisine:          South Indian
Prep Time:     10 minutes
Cook time:     30 minutes
Yield:              200 gms

Ingredients:

1.25 cups fresh Red Chillies
10-12 cloves of Garlic
1 tsp of Tamarind pulp
1/4 cup of Water
1 tsp Mustard seeds
1-2 Tbsp Jaggery or Sugar
1/2 cup Oil
Salt

Method:

• Soak tamarind in half cup water for 10 mins
• Heat 1 tbsp. oil in a kadhai and fry together the whole red chillies and the garlic for 2-3 mins on low flame. Do not slit or cut the red chillies.
• Let it cool. Grind together the red chillies, garlic, tamarind, jaggery and salt. Add a little of the tamarind water to obtain smooth consistency.
• Heat 1 tbsp. oil in a kadhai and add the mustard seeds. Once they splutter, add the tempering to the chutney.
• Add more oil to the chutney as needed. It needs a lot of oil to cut down on the spiciness. Add as per your taste.
• I used extra virgin olive oil. You may use regular refined oil.

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Heerekai Sippe Chutney | Ridgegourd Chutney | Toorai Chutney

Heerekai Sippe Chutney is a flavorful chutney made from Ridge gourd peel, coconut, red chillies and cumin seeds.

What's your pick with that hot Dosa on a Sunday morning? Chutney or Sambar?

If you just chose Chutney, you are gonna love this new flavorful fibre filled Heerekai Sippe Chutney.

If you chose Sambar, may be it is time you tried this flavorful fibre filled Heerekai Sippe Chutney.

See what I did there? *wink*

Heerekai means Ridge gourd or Toorai or Tori. It a long green vegetable with ridges running through its sides. Heerekai is one of the healthiest vegetable around. It isn't starchy like the potato or slimy like the okra or juicy like the cucumber. It is somewhere in the middle there, totally forgotten by many. You may also know it as Luffa and this is what a natural Luffah is made of. Heerekai is eaten when it is still green and not yet ripened. It is full of fiber and super low in calories. Win-win!!!

Sippe means Peel in Kannada. This chutney is made using the peel of the Heerekai and fresh Coconut. While the Heerekai flesh has a very neutral taste, it's peel is very Earthy in taste. To make this chutney, we first need to lightly peel the Heerekai and discard the "ridges". Once all the ridges are discarded, peel again to remove the dark green peel. This is what we will use in our chutney.

This peel is then cooked until it is slightly soft and blended together with cumin seeds, dried red chillies and fresh coconut to give an earthy fiber filled chutney.

I added a tempering of mustard seeds, urad dal and curry leaves because I am a big fan of tempered chutneys. You can skip this.

If you liked this, you may also like:

• Mint Coriander Chutney - A tangy chutney made using mint and coriander. Goes well with snacks such as Samosa and Pakoda or Chats.
• Red Chilli Chutney or Ranjaka - A super spicy chutney made from fresh red chillies. Goes well with Joladda Rotti or as a marinade.
• Heerekai Tove or Ridge Gourd Dal - A simple Dal or Lentil curry made using Ridge gourd.

Heerekai Sippe Chutney | Ridgegourd Chutney | Toorai Chutney

Heerekai Sippe Chutney is a flavorful chutney made from Ridge gourd peel, coconut, red chillies and cumin seeds.

Recipe Type:  Side
Cuisine:            South Indian
Prep Time:     10 minutes
Cook time:     20 minutes
Yield:                1 cup

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Ridge Gourd Peel or Heerekai Sippe
1/3 cup fresh Coconut
1/2 tsp Tamarind pulp
2-3 dry Red Chilli
1/4 tsp Cumin seeds or Jeera
3 tsp Oil (Optional)
1/2 tsp Mustard seeds(Optional)
1/2 tsp Urad Dal (Optional)
6-8 Curry leaves (Optional)
3-4 Tbsp Water
Salt to taste

Method:

Peel the heerekai/ ridge gourd. Do not use the ridges in the chutney, they are very hard and will not grind properly. Use the remaining part of the peel.
Heat 1 tsp of Oil in a pan and add the chopped peel. Fry for 1-2 minutes. Add 2 Tbsp of water and cover and cook for 4-5 minutes.
Allow the peel to cool.
Grind together the coconut, peel, cumin seeds, tamarind, red chillies, and using 2 tbsp water into a fine consistency.
Heat oil in a pan.
Once hot add the mustard seeds and let them splutter. Add the urad dal and curry leaves and immediately pour the oil on the chutney.
This tempering is optional. Chutney tastes good even without it.

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