Chutney is a great way to add a huge layer of flavor to a dish or recipe. If you are unfamiliar, it is a condiment or side dish traditionally used with many Indian dishes. Most are made with fruit, vinegar, and spices. This combination of sweet, acidity, and spice pairs well with almost any dish!
Because of chutney’s ability to pair well in many dishes, it is being used a lot outside of Indian cuisine. This chutney is made with apples, dates, apple cider vinegar, and mustard seeds. I served it with Roasted Root Vegetables with Parmesan Wheat Berries, but it would also pair well with simple roasted vegetables. You could serve is as a spread on sandwiches, or in grilled cheese, toss it with grains, or use it to top a curry.
Chutney is a highly variable condiment that can be made with an almost unlimited number of ingredient combinations. You could try this recipe with pears instead of apples, or substitute honey for the dates. You could increase or decrease the vinegar to control the savoriness. How will you individualize this chutney? Enjoy!
- Splash olive oil
- ¼ cup yellow onion, diced
- 1 TBS grated ginger
- 2 TBS apple cider vinegar
- 2 large red apples, peeled and diced
- 2 large medjool dates, diced
- 1½ tsp mustard seeds
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp cinnamon
- ¼ cup water
- In a skillet, saute onion in olive oil until softened, 3-5 minutes. Add ginger and saute 1 more minute.
- Deglaze the pan with the cider vinegar and add remaining ingredients.
- Simmer until thick and saucy, and the apples chunks are almost indiscernible, about 20 minutes.
- Transfer to a bowl and serve as a condiment.
Recipe adapted from Naturally Ella.
This is lovely and was my starter recipe for making apple chutney when I moved to our home in 2015 and we inherited six apple trees in the garden.
I made this time and time again and have since varied this original recipe by, amongst other things, leaving the peel of at least one apple in during the cooking process, just halving the dates rather than dicing them at times when I have left the apples in larger chunks, used apple juice in place of water and adding a teaspoon of garam masala (or individual 1/4 teaspoons of cumin and turmeric and a few curry leaves) when aiming for a stronger Indian influence or a star anise and cardamom pod for a Christmas cheese board touch.
Love the idea to put this on a cheese board! Glad to know it works with the peels too. Thank you Candice!