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Oct

9

Tomato-Date Chutney

October 9, 2007 |

Gardening is an exercise in optimism. Sometimes,
it is a triumph of hope over experience.
- Marina Schinz

The In Season series is a web diary of the gardening successes and mishaps of two eternally hopeful novices. The ladybug above will lead you to previous posts in the series.

We had a huge tomato harvest this year. We made this chutney with a combination of the four varieties we grew - Beefsteak, Husky, Roma (pictured above) and Cherry. (See Green Tomatoes - two ways.)

The tomatoes can either be cooked on the stove top, or roasted for a more intense flavour.
When tomatoes are not in season, we make this with organic canned tomatoes. We cook them down for a long time until they reach the desired consistency.

For concentrated tomato pulp:

Fill a five-litre pressure cooker container or heavy pan three-quarters full with chopped ripe tomatoes. Pressure cook on medium-low without adding water for 30 minutes or cook covered until the tomatoes break down and start releasing their juices. Strain the mixture overnight, keeping a container to trap the liquid. Use the liquid to cook lentils, soups or stews.

Use the pulp to make pasta sauce or chutney.

Or, cut the tomatoes into halves or quarters depending on the size. Line them cut side up on a parchment or silicone covered baking sheet and bake in a 375 C oven until they have shrunk considerably and are slightly charred at the edges.

You can slice the top quarter off a bulb of garlic, put it in foil, and place it alongside the tomatoes to roast.

TOMATO-DATE CHUTNEY

(Makes about 4 cups)

Blend together

3.5 cups of concentrated tomato pulp
1 clove garlic
1/2 inch piece of ginger
10 dates (without seeds)
**or 2 to 3 tablespoons of crushed jaggery
a raspberry-sized piece of tamarind or 1/4 tsp tamarind concentrate

Heat 1 tablespoon oil (preferably clear Indian sesame oil) in a pan, add

a big pinch of asfoetida (hing),
½ tsp kalonji (nigella seeds) and
1 tsp mustard seeds.

Wait for the mustard seeds to pop. Then add

3-4 finely chopped curry leaves,
½ tsp turmeric and
¾ to 1 tsp cayenne (chilli) powder to the mix, stir for ten seconds, add the tomato mixture.

Add salt to taste and bring to a boil on medium heat. Let it cook down to a spreadable consistency.

Meanwhile, toast ¾ tsp fenugreek seeds in a hot pan or for 12-15 seconds in the microwave. Crush it into a fine powder in a spice grinder or mortar and pestle.

Add it to the tomato chutney in the end. Stir, adjust seasonings, take off the flame.

Put it in sterilized jars, close the lids. Let them cool down and freeze/refrigerate.

Since we make a small quantities, we do not follow the procedures for canning.

To sterilise jars, run them through a dishwasher cycle and put them and just before using them, put the glass base in a microwave for a few seconds on HIGH.

Nutrition data for dates HERE.

Canning primer @ Tigers and Strawberries.

Tomato-Date Chutney @ Ahaar.

The lovely Andrea of Andrea’s Recipes hosts a monthly event called Grow Your Own , highlighting dishes made with homegrown ingredients. Tomato-Date Chutney is our entry for this event.

Date, GARDENING, Tomato, tomato-date-chutney, vegan recipes, vegetarian recipes

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32 Comments so far

grihini on October 9, 2007 6:43 pm
delicious looking picture. I love it..
RJ on October 9, 2007 6:54 pm
wow. I love all sorts of chutneys. This looks delicious and I am hungry
Rajitha on October 9, 2007 7:06 pm
wow…you got 3 cans of tomato goodness…how cool
Padma on October 9, 2007 7:10 pm
Loved that loaf of bread and also the T-Date chutney ingredients! hmmmmha
kribha on October 9, 2007 7:15 pm
Just reading thru the ingredients and thinking of the combination of tomato,tamarind and jaggery sounds awesome. Pic looks drool worthy. Nice recipe.Yum Yum.
Laavanya on October 9, 2007 8:42 pm
Wish I had one of those bottles filled with this lovely chutney in my pantry!
Madhu on October 9, 2007 9:23 pm
Prefect, I have both tomatoes and fresh dates. will try this.Thanks.
Roopa (KitchenAromas) on October 9, 2007 9:44 pm
I love the combination of fengreek and tomatoes. Dates is a nice grand addition for the sweetness and earthy falvor. I will try it next time. Here is my version: http://kitchenaromas.wordpress.com/2007/01/03/the-perfect-accompaniment-tomato-chutney/
Pintoo on October 9, 2007 10:06 pm
Hey nice combination. I am sure it will taste good with my Gujarati Khakhara or may be besan puda. Loved the pictures too.
Anh on October 9, 2007 10:22 pm
Tomato and date… An interesting combo and it sounds really good!
Srivalli on October 9, 2007 11:15 pm
wow that looks very tempting..
Jyothsna on October 9, 2007 11:23 pm
I think Dr. Nandita had mentioned a recipe for this in one of her posts. How long will this survive in the fridge, (not freezer)?

Ours has been in the fridge for a month now. - b.
Keerthi on October 9, 2007 11:27 pm
Very creative Combo…Chutney looks bright n colorful..
Suganya on October 9, 2007 11:31 pm
Pressure cooker is a good suggestion. Cooking tomatoes in a pan is very messy. Will try dates instead of sugar next time.
Nabeela on October 10, 2007 12:07 am
I love that picture with bread!
musical on October 10, 2007 12:34 am
Slurp! Now gimme that slice of bread
viji on October 10, 2007 2:01 am
Which one to appreciate Bee first. The photo or the spread! both are awesome. Viji
Nags on October 10, 2007 3:06 am
lovely pics. have never had a sweet tomate chutney before
sunita on October 10, 2007 4:08 am
I’m addicted to dates…the slice of bread with the spread is sooooo tempting.
Andrea on October 10, 2007 4:10 am
I am very envious of your tomato crop! We’re struggling with drought and water shortages in our region, so our garden pretty much fizzled and we barely got anything out of it.

Your chutney sounds delicious and the photo is striking. Thanks for a lovely addition to Grow Your Own #3!
Asha on October 10, 2007 5:47 am
Yeah, that was a great Summer for Tomatoes this year!! Dates with Tomatoes sounds great.I could replace the sugar I add with it!:)
lissie on October 10, 2007 5:51 am
delicious seet and sour chutney! i am sure going to try this.
richa on October 10, 2007 6:07 am
such a multipurpose chutney
hv i seen the date pic here earlier?
Pooja on October 10, 2007 8:10 am
this is so very good looking..yummy !!
Mekhala on October 10, 2007 8:46 am
I love this chutney. The last time I made it, used some sweet black curants that were lying in my pantry for a long time. It turned out pretty good.
Dhana on October 10, 2007 10:47 am
Oh what a g8 way to use up all those amazing tomatoes found in the farmer’s market. Am not lucky enough to be able to grow them, given that the squirrels in my backyard EAT them all :((
Dee on October 10, 2007 4:48 pm
U know.. I just have a similar gujju recipe and K and I were talking abt it just two days ago and I see it on ur site This is a common oriya delicacy too.
neroli on October 10, 2007 7:47 pm
Beautiful.
Kamini on October 10, 2007 11:32 pm
I have been on the lookout for a way to make cocentrated tomato pulp when its in season… Thanks a lot. The pressure cooker method is a fabulous idea.
Gerat great pictures by the way..
Sirisha Kilambi on October 11, 2007 5:10 pm
Delicious Bee……The rich color of the chutney…I am awed :-)
sonali on October 12, 2007 12:45 am
this recipe rocks. i am an avid chutney fan so i tried it out pronto and voila—-yummmmmmmyyyyyy!!!!
Dee on October 20, 2007 10:09 am
Bee , K made it today for us, but sweetened it with splenda and increased the garlic cloves to 10 and also doubled the kalonji content! He used 6 dates instead of 10 and also cherry tomatoes. Its fabulous and we gave some to our friends! Thanks for the wonderful recipe!