Peanut Chutney : Rekha's special

As is the saying in the film Ratatouille, "Anybody can cook"... I have come up with a new saying, "Recipes come from anywhere". This is really true! Women who work as domestic help ( commonly known as Maids in India) have a special place in our lives...I think all Indian married women can relate to this statement. We feel the world has gone upside down when she doesn't come for a day or if she doesn't finish the work on time ! Thankfully, i share a very good rapport with my domestic help and vice versa. Rekha - She is this ever smiling female, keeps cracking jokes and yes, does all the work to perfection ! 

Just one day when she saw i had kept Peanuts on my kitchen platform, she mentioned , "Didi ( Elder sister - that's what they call here to young women and "Aunties" to elder women...Yes, that does state that i am still young :) Anyways, jokes apart...) even i made peanut chutney yesterday". Curious to know, how her version of chutney was, i asked her the recipe and she did mention it to me in detail. And as excited i am to try new recipes always, i made it the same day and had them with plain Parathas ! It was super yummy....

So here comes an easy recipe from a remote village in Rajasthan near Jaipur ( she mentioned that they make different kinds of chutneys in her village and have it with bajra rotis. So i am going to make some more chutney recipes soon :)

Ingredients :

Peanut powder - 1 cup ( Dry roast the peanuts, remove its skin and grind it to a powder in mixer )

Garlic - 8 pieces

Ginger - 1 inch piece

Green chillies - 3 ( or according to taste)

Onions - 1 medium chopped finely

Jeera - 1 tsp

Salt to taste

Red chilli powder ( 1/2 tsp if you need it more spicy )

Oil - 1 tbsp

Recipe :

You can make this recipe in 2 ways... Either make a paste of onions, green chillies, ginger and garlic or chop all of them finely. Either ways it tastes good.

I made a paste of green chillies, ginger, garlic and half of the chopped onions. Don't add water. If its not smooth paste, it's fine or even better ! Let it be coarse.

Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a pan. Add jeera and when it sputters, add the remaining onions. Fry for a minute. Then add the paste. Fry for another 2-3 mins. Add the peanut powder, salt and red chilli powder if you want. Mix well and fry for another minute. Remove from heat. It becomes like a one thick ball.

Peanut chutney is ready!!!

You can store it in air tight container in a fridge.

Happy Cooking :)