Thursday 14 April 2011

Sesame Chutney (Ellu chutney)


Sesame Chutney (Ellu chutney)


The health benefits of sesame are plenty and I always regret not having taken much of this wonderful seed while growing up. Better late than never so I have been using more of sesame in our diet. The tomato sesame chutney posted sometime back is a regular now in our home. After that, I have gained more confidence in using this wonderful seeds. It has numerous micro-nutrients that our essential for our body. It includes copper, which has anti-inflammatory properties and said to provide relief from rheumatoid arthritis; has magnesium which is said to support vascular and respiratory health. It is also said to be a good source of calcium which can help bone health. I am not a nutritionist but I always like to know more about what I put in my mouth. I saw a sesame chutney recipe on the television program but it pretty much used sesame seeds and coconut alone. Although I certainly add coconut in our diet and do not fear its fat as I believe any fat should be taken in moderation, from that standpoint I wanted to reduce quantity of coconut. I used the roasted chickpea so the recipe was similar to regular coconut chutney. It became an Indian version of hummus where a form of chickpea is used along with sesame seeds and instead of fat from oil, it uses fat from coconut. In effect, it was a nice a different chutney. Here is the recipe...

2-3 tablespoon coconut (dessicated or freshly grated)
2-3 tablespoons sesame seeds
Handful of roasted chickpea (pottu kadalai)
1 teaspoon tamarind paste
2 green chillies
Salt to taste
Curry leaves to garnish

Roast the sesame seeds until they start to pop

Grind along with roasted chickpea, coconut, tamarind, chillies and salt

Add required water and grind to however smooth you like. Add curry leaves and serve!

If you like you can heat some oil and crackle mustard seeds in it and add to chutney

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