Recipe: Indian Tomato Chutney

DISCOVERING SOUTHERN INDIAN COOKING
By Dana Jacobi for the
American Institute for Cancer Research

Grilled tandoori, puffed nan bread and creamy spinach saag are classic dishes from the north of India. Recently, though, thanks to our increasing interest in heat and spice, Americans are being attracted to the hotter food of southern India. Rather than the pounded blend of dry-roasted cinnamon sticks, cardamom, cloves and other spices called garam masala, cooking in southern India uses lots of hot chili peppers and whole mustard seeds. It also emphasizes vegetarian dishes and seafood more than the inland, meat-oriented cooking of the north.

Southern India is the subcontinent's tip, bordered by the Bay of Bengal on the east and the Arabian Sea on the west. Important southern Indian cities include Madras to the east, and the port of Cochin in the western state of Kerala. A fabled source of spices, like Malabar pepper, the Malabar Coast of Kerala was a magnet for ancient Phoenicians, Romans, Arabs and Marco Polo in 1294. Christopher Columbus was headed there rather than the Americas, where he eventually landed. Vasco de Gamma, the Portuguese explorer, reached Cochin in 1498 and is buried there.

These foreign visitors brought foods that enriched the local cooking, particularly the tomatoes and chile peppers carried by the Portuguese from the New World. When Christians, Muslims, Parsees and Jews joined the local Hindus and stayed on, Kerala became an ethnic melting pot and a community of remarkable tolerance, a place where palcharcha is the custom of sharing celebratory dishes of your own faith with friends of other religions.

At home, when you want to give shrimp or salmon sizzling Indian flavor, serve them with this chunky tomato chutney. Inspired by a recipe from Suvir Saran of Amma, a New York

City restaurant, it is also splendid as an omelet filling, or served with cottage cheese.

INDIAN TOMATO CHUTNEY

1 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. curry powder
1 tsp. sweet paprika
1/4-1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper, or to taste
1/4-1/2 tsp. dried red pepper flakes, or to taste
1/2 tsp. turmeric
2 1/2 lbs. large plum tomatoes
2 Tbsp. canola oil
1 tsp. black or yellow mustard seeds
1 tsp. cumin seeds
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
1 Tbsp. sugar
Salt, to taste
Combine coriander, curry powder, paprika, cayenne pepper, pepper flakes, and turmeric in a small bowl and set aside.

Halve tomatoes lengthwise. Scoop out and discard seeds and inner flesh. Cut each half into six pieces.

Heat oil in a medium non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add mustard and cumin seeds. When mustard seeds begin to pop, 1 or 2 minutes, stir in dried spices. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar and salt. Cook, stirring often to prevent sticking. When skin at the edges of some of the tomatoes curls, but they are all still firm and chunky, about 4 minutes, transfer the chutney into a bowl. Serve chutney warm (not hot), or at room temperature.

Makes 2 cups, for 4 servings as a side dish or 8 as a condiment.

Per condiment serving: 70 calories, 4 g. total fat (less than 1 g. saturated fat), 9 g. carbohydrate, 2 g. protein, 2 g. dietary fiber, 15 mg. sodium.