Chundo - Grated Mango Preserve

This time again, the old mango tree in my backyard,looks promising of a good number of mangoes. The tree is quite old and during the last season, it bore so many fruits that almost all of them fell off the tree unripe, some very tiny others big yet diseased. Thus, we did not get to taste any of them as fruits, but were able to drop a few tiny, sour tasting ones in brine and pickle those.
Mangoes do not totally go off season in Togo. The tree in my home starts season sometime around January through March- April. This year too, I have already plucked few huge mangoes. They are raw and very slightly sour.They are ideal to make raw mango rice, some pickle and such. Chundo has been in my mind for a long time to be tried. I am, however, apprehensive that such dishes will meet resistance from my husband. Hence the idea was one I was contemplating on.
I met Rushina, author of "A pinch of this and a handful of that",  and one who has put together a cook studio,"A Perfect Bite", at the IFB Meet last August. She generously gifted me, an authentic Gujarati cookbook titled Dadimano Varso. It is a treasure trove of Palanpuri, Jain Cuisine. Neatly categorized and all recipes given in both languages, English and Gujarati, this book is a quick reckoner to some exotic dishes. I have been making dhals and theplas, shaak and khadhis from this book. Those dishes were very welcome in my home. So I decided to venture a little further and be adventurous. The mangoes and the recipes in the book got me to pick on the Chundo.
Chundo is a sweet - sour and lightly spiced preserve with grated mangoes that is matured in the heat of the sun. You may opt to do the same on stove top too; also the grated mango can be replaced by cubed chunks that render an altogether different texture.
I chose to make the grated one and this is an adaption of the recipe from the book. I did not go by weight or volume given in there.
Chundo - Grated Mango Sweet-Sour and Spiced Preserve
(Adapted fully from Dadimano Varso)
Yield: About 250 ml cupful of preserve.

Ingredients:
2 cups of raw mango grated
2 heaped cups of sugar
Salt to taste
1/3 teaspoon turmeric powder

The spices:
1/4 teaspoon crushed cumin seeds
1/2 tablespoon redchillis crushed to a coarse powder ( the book asks for Kashmiri chilli powder; I had on hand the Byadagi variety chillis only. I crushed them and two regular dry red chillis together.)
2 pinches asafoetida powder


Method:
Wash the mangoes, pat them dry.
Remove the skin and grate them until near the stone within.
Take the grated mango in a large bowl, add the turmeric powder and salt. Allow about 30 minutes for the mangoes to absorb the salt.
Add the sugar and mix well. cover and keep aside.

Keep stirring the mixture at regular intervals so the sugar dissolves in the juice of the mangoes and blends well.
Keep cover for a day and overnight.
Next morning give the mixture a thorough stir and cover the mouth of the bowl with a cloth that is wrapped tightly around the edge.
Place this in the sun through the day. By evening, bring the bowl inside and stir the mangoes again.
Repeat this process for the next seven or eight days. By then the sugar would have thickened and the mangoes translucent.
After a week in direct sunlight, bring the bowl inside and while the preserve is still warm from the sun, add the crushed spices. Give a brisk stir, cover and keep aside.
Place the wrapped bowl in the sun for a further two days. Let the flavours from added spices blend well in direct sunlight.
Once ready, transfer to a clean, sterile bottle/ jar and use.

If sugar does seem less, you may add powdered sugar to the preserve in one of the days in between, during the week when it is curing.
This preserve stays well for a year.
The chundo makes a great accompaniment for theplas.

Vengaya Sambhar made with Koli Masala

There is more than just a few sessions of FOCUS FOOD BLOGGING, goodies that filled bag loads
(for which I paid excess fare to carry home), two days of fun, food and wonderment that the IFBMeet gave me. I got to connect with people whom I share common interest with. Some of them I had known, others not even on networking platforms; all of whom only through their respective blogs.
I had known Anjali through her blog Annaparabrahma,  and through friends who had her on their list of friends. We had not been introduced even virtually, until few messages that were on a group chat in connection with the Meet at Bangalore, and arrangements for our stay during the period. I met her at the serviced apartments with other friends. It was an immediate connect with her. Through the two days, I observed that she was very committed to her goal and took in all of the sessions with a seriousness of a student. The IFBM just whizzed by and we were saying our goodbyes; that is then she handed me a bulky packet of her home made masala that wafted an aroma through the packing. That was the koli masala that she makes and distributes through her e-shop.

This is a fine compound of 18 spices in certain specific proportions that are ground together; it has a heady aroma and adds such good flavour to curries. I believe it is a basic masala they add to fish curries and such, while Anjali being vegetarian has posted more vegetarian dishes using the masala. I had actually read up her recipes and recreate a dish, but then I was also raring to try giving my regular dishes an added twist. The outcome of such an idea is this vengaya sambhar.
I have never before used sambhar powder or any powder in my vengaya sambhar. I may add an extra spice, sometimes ginger, sometimes cloves, yet grind fresh for the sambhar and no compromise on that for the vengaya sambhar. Then there has to be a first for anything and I chose to try cooking my vengaya sambhar with the Koli masala. I am happy with the choice that we enjoyed the flavour packed, pungent with browning shallots and the subtle sweet from the coconut milk, that I had added to it.

Vengaya  Sambhar made with Koli masala and Coconut milk
Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:
1/2 cup (120-125 ml) thuvar dhal/ split yellow lentils
1 tablespoon tamarind -tightly packed
200 grams shallots/ chinna vengayam/ sambhar onions/ Madras onions
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1&1/2 teaspoon Koli Masala
1/3 cup coconut milk, made slightly thin with addition of a little water
2 tablespoons sesame seeds oil/ gingelly oil (any cooking oil)
Salt to taste

For Tempering:
1 teaspoon oil
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
2 sprigs curry leaves

Method:
Rub a few drops oil over the shallots to make it easy to peel them. Peel the shallots.
Soak the tamarind in 1/4 cup of water for a little while. Squeeze out the pulp; add some more water and extract most of the pulp. You may repeat this to achieve more from the tamarind.
Wash the thuvar dhal and pressure cook adding the turmeric powder and sufficient water until very soft and almost mash-able. Allow to cool and mash coarsely.
Take the gingelly oil in a pan and heat it. Add the shallots and sauté until they turn pale and shining. Allowing them to brown just so little will add to the taste, but do not overdo that.
Add some water to the sautéed onions and cook them till slightly soft.
Add the tamarind extract, salt, and the koli masala and allow to simmer over medium heat to let the raw taste subside.
Add the cooked dhal, adjust the water and cook for 7 to 10 minutes.
Pour in the coconut milk, reduce the heat and allow the sambhar to thicken to required consistency.
In a separate pan heat the oil for tempering and add the mustard seeds. When the seeds crackle, add the curry leaves and toss for a few seconds. Temper the sambhar with the same.

Serve the sambhar with hot steamed rice, idlis and dosais as desired.
The combination of vengaya sambhar and urulai kizhangu roast kari (shallow fried spicy potato dry curry) is an unbeatable pair. Try them, you will sure enjoy.

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