LEMON CHUTNEY
Lemon Chutney is a versatile, easy to make, flavourful, spicy Indian style chutney. What I like about this recipe is that if you add enough oil, it stays fresh in the fridge for months. It is actually a much quicker version of the Gujarati lemon pickle or limbu nu athanu.
Ingredients
- 2 large lemons or 5 small Indian Lemons
- ¼ - ⅓ cup sugar
- 1 tbsp Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder
- 1 tbsp red chilli powder hot
- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tbsp coriander powder
- 1 tsp fennel seed powder
- ½ - ¾ tsp salt
- ¼ - ⅓ cup oil
- 2-3 cups water
Instructions
- Wash the lemons properly. Put them in a saucepan with enough water.
- Cover the pan and put it on medium heat.
- Let the whole lemons simmer in the water till soft and done. This takes about 10 -15 minutes.
- Remove the lemons from the water and let them cool down a bit. Don't throw away the water. Read the tip below on how to use this aromatic water.
- Cut the lemon into wedges and remove the seeds. Cut off the thick white pith at the top. Sometimes it is easier to snip off the white pith with a pair of scissors.
- Put the chopped lemon along with the sugar in a food processor and process to a coarse paste.
- Heat oil on a pan over low heat. Make sure the oil is not too hot. It will burn the spices.
- Add red chilli powders and turmeric powder.
- Immediately add the pureed lemon.
- Mix well. Take the pan off the heat.
- Add salt, coriander and fennel powders.
- Mix well.
- Serve the chutney with parathas, dosa, cheela, as a sandwich spread or with any snack.
- Store the chutney in an airtight jar and in the fridge.
Notes
- I put the water in which the lemons were boiled into a spray bottle and sprayed the house with it. Had the lemon scent at least for a couple of hours.
- Add hot chilli powder according to your taste.
- Roast coriander and fennel seeds before you powder it.
- Store leftover chutney in the fridge in an airtight container.
- Add more hot oil to the chutney so that it lasts longer. Drizzle the spicy oil over dhokla, khichu, muthiya, etc.