A lip-smacking condiment, this Bengali sweet tomato chutney is not only made regularly in Bengali homes but also at weddings and other special occasions – be sure to fall in love with this under 30 minute recipe
If you have ever eaten at a Bengali wedding or at a Durga Pujo pandal, chances are that you have tasted this sweet tomato chutney. The simplest of all “chatnis,” the Bengali tomato chutney is everyone’s favorite. It is most definitely made at our weddings and even on Pujo. On auspicious occasions, it is normally served with khichudi and labra (mildly spiced medley of vegetables). And that combination tastes simply super! At weddings, on the other hand, the simple tomato khejur chatni (tomato and dates chutney) is made slightly richer. The addition of aam shotto (mango pulp candy), raisins and cashews make the wedding chutney more elaborate. However, this Bengali tomato chutney is also made very regularly in Bengali homes. It is one of the best things to finish your meal with!
When making at home, as a part of our regular meals, we normally only add dates. So, that’s the recipe I am sharing with you here. Since it is Pujo time now, I have also added a few cashews, but that is totally optional. Even without the cashews, this sweet tomato chutney tastes yum. In fact, if you can even make it without adding the dates in it. In that case, you will simply need to increase the quantity of your sweetener in the recipe. Now, coming to the ingredients of this tomato khejur chatni, you will only need a handful of them to make it. There are no spices except for panch phoron and turmeric powder that go in it. The taste of this chutney comes from the lovely ripe tomatoes used in it. Now, how amazing is that?
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Minimal ingredients, maximum flavor
Like I said, you will need only a handful of ingredients to get going with this recipe. However, be sure to pick luscious ripe tomatoes for this chatni. You don’t want your tomatoes to be tart for the Bengali tomato chutney. I have been blessed with a wonderful produce of homegrown tomatoes this year from my summer garden. So, those are the ones I have used for my recipe. And none of them turned our tart or not well ripened. Likewise, when you buy tomatoes for this chutney recipe, select the well reddened ones. Now, I have used sugar to sweeten this condiment. However, if you choose you could also use jaggery, but it is sugar that is traditionally used here. Nevertheless, the quantity of either the sugar or jaggery that you add will depend upon two things.
One, how sweet your tomatoes are and second the amount of dates that you will use for the recipe. And remember to add a touch of grated ginger whenever you choose to use jaggery for this recipe. It makes a delicious difference to the taste. Coming to the panch phoron, that is used here, you can right away buy them pre-packaged from your Indian grocer. Alternately, you could make this mix at home. The panch phoron, translated to five ingredient tempering, is a mix of cumin seeds, fennel seeds, onion seeds, fenugreek seeds and mustard seeds. Combine a tablespoon of each and you have your panch phoron mix ready. If you love Bengali food and make it pretty fairly, then this is going to come in handy for you.
Serving suggestion
At weddings, the Bengali tomato chutney is served with crunchy, fried papad. The contrasting flavor and textures of this pairing not only tastes wonderful but serves as a palette cleanser between courses of food. Furthermore, it tastes fabulous served with some Bengali khichudi and even plain steamed rice. My husband, loves saving spoonfuls of rice at the end of his meal just to have it with this chatni, while I enjoy it as is. No matter how you choose to have this lip-smacking sweet tomato chutney, you will love it. Easy to make and so yummy to taste, what more could one ask for?
You could make and serve this as a part of your regular meals and also for special occasions. And if you do, I’d love to know how you and your loved ones enjoyed it. You can share your food pictures with me over on Instagram and Pinterest. Alternately, you could also share your feedback and rate the recipe in the comments section below. Happy festivities everyone.
Eat hearty!
Tomato khejur chatni (Bengali sweet tomato chutney)
Equipment
- Shallow cooking pot
Ingredients
- 8-10 medium tomatoes roughly chopped
- ⅓ cup dates pitted and chopped
- 7-8 cashews optional
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 tbsp panch phoron*
- 1 dried red chilli
- 1 tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp mustard oil
Instructions
- Heat the oil until it smokes and then lower the flame. Temper the oil with the panch phoron and dried chili. Once the fenugreek (methi) seeds in it turn brown add in the tomatoes, turmeric powder and the salt
- Mix well and cover and cook until they soften and break down - this may take 10-12 minutes. You can also add ¼ cup hot water to aid the process
- Once mushy, add the sugar, dates and cashews. Mix well and cook for another 5-7 minutes or until the chutney has reduced and thickened
- Remove in a bowl and let it come to room temperature. Serve this delicious Bengali tomato chutney with your regular home cooked meals or at special occasions. Enjoy!
Notes
- *The panch phoron is a mix of cumin seeds, fennel seeds, onion seeds, fenugreek seeds and mustard seeds. Combine a tablespoon of each and use for the recipe as needed
- The chatni will stay fresh up to 4-5 days in the refrigerator
- If you choose to sweeten your chatni with jaggery instead of sugar, ad a teaspoon of grated ginger with the tomatoes as well. It makes the chutney taste even better
- You could also add chopped aam sotto or mango pulp candy to the chutney in step 3
- Adjust the amount of sugar/jaggery to be added according to your taste, sweetness of the tomatoes used and also on the amount of dates you will use
- g - grams
- tsp - teaspoon
- tbsp - tablespoon
- 1 cup = 250 millilitres
