I was a horrible cook (not that I am any good now) and at my wits end.
I compared myself to Amma and I envied her ease at cooking. I wondered if she had the Midas touch. Anything she made tasted wonderful not only to me but all of us appreciated her cooking.
For example
She once make chutney at my place and Girish, her son-in-law, and my better half told her it was very tasty and to show me how to make it. She just smiled at him you know the smile that you give when you know something and the other person does not…. Yes a smug smile.
Now suspiciously he wanted to know the ingredients she told him… cucumber peels!!
Now that had me giggling and Girish accepted that there are no rigid rules in cooking.
the trip down the memory lane is because I made this chutney the other day because my younger kid insisted on peeling the cucumbers for salad. I generally do not peel my veggies as I believe that most of the nutrients are just below the peel.
Let’s get down straight to the recipe
Ingredients:
Peels of 1 washed cucumber, say a cup full
1 tblsp Oil
½ teaspoon Mustard
½ teaspoon Hing/asafoetida
1 teaspoon Urid daal
1 teaspoon Til/sesame seeds (optional)
2-3 Green chillies (adjust as per taste)
2 springs Curry leaves
Coriander
1 cup Coconut
Pea sized ball of Tamarind
Salt
Method:
1. Heat the oil and splutter the mustard seeds.
2. Add the hing, then the urid daal. Wait till the daal turns reddish add the til, curry leaves and red chillies in quick succession, here these will splutter and splash so be careful. Generally I switch off the gas and cover the pan with a lid to stops the UFOs whizzing around.
3. Add the peels and stir till the peels wilt a bit. (In case you have switched off the gas please re-light it). I generally do so after wondering what happened to the peelsJ!!
4. Add the coconut and tamarind stir a bit till the coconut gives a nice aroma but take care not to brown it.
5. Set aside and let it cool.
6. Grind with salt and coriander. Use water if you find the need.
7. Serve with idlis or dosas.
Archana
Archana says
Hey that was super quick Aarthi. Thanks.
Sravs says
That’s very unique and delectable chutney !!
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Julie says
Never thought to prepare chutney with these peels..Wonderfully done!!
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Hema says
Very nice idea, wud love to try this..
Sobha Shyam says
interesting chutney, sure delicious n healthy..
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Gayathri NG says
Very simple and looks nice, tastes yummy...
Manju says
I love chutneys....this is a gr8 idea!
Rasi says
This is new to me :).. have never heard of it..nice!
La @ FoodSlice says
Archana, i know this will taste very good. also with the coconut in it. I too was shocked when i saw my mom make chutney with plantain peels for the first time, but i now i make it too.
Archana says
What more do I want .. your appreciation is intoxicating.
Sensible Vegetarian says
What a lovely idea, definitely going to try it next time.
RAKS KITCHEN says
Nice idea to make chutney with the peels, should try!
Deepa Praveen says
Never tried this before. But I will try this for sure
Nisha says
wow never used cucumber peel
Shuchi Vaishnav Gandhi says
Wow !! Peel chutney .... never tried it .... will try this soon ... Thanks for the share 🙂
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hemalata says
Yummy chutney.